THE 


TELEGRAPH  MANUAL: 


A    COMPLETE 


HISTORY  AND  DESCRIPTION 


OF  THE 


tmmiJ0ric,  ^Iwtrit  into  Utapetic  iel{grap|s 

OF 

EUROPE,  ASIA,  AFEIOA,  AND  AMERICA, 

ANCIENT    AND    MODERN. 

WITH   SIX   HUNDRED  AND  TWENTY-FIVE  ILLUSTRATIONS, 


Et  non  "  eripuit  ccelo  fulmen^ 

Fulguri  mentemfudit,  et  orbem  lumine  cinxit—  PIETLB. 


BY      TAL.       P.       SHAFFNER, 
OF    KENTUCKY. 


NEW  YORK: 

D.    VAN    NOSTRAND    No.    192    BROADWAY. 

1867. 


Entered,  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1859, 
BY  TALIAFEBBO  P.  8HAFFNER, 

In  the  Clerk's  Office  of  the  District  Court  of  the  United  States,  for  the 
District  of  Kentucky. 


PREFACE. 


IN  the  preparation  of  this  volume,  the  author  has  not 
advanced  theories,  other  than  those  which  are  founded  upon 
demonstrated  philosophy.  It  is  to  be  understood,  however, 
that  many  of  the  views  expressed  concerning  questions  in  the 
sciences  may,  from  time  to  time,  be  modified  by  new  develop- 
ments. In  every  instance,  the  opinions  given  are  based  upon 
the  known  sciences  as  manifested  through  the  medium  of  the 
arts,  and  more  particularly  the  electric  telegraph. 

I  have  reviewed  the  early  semaphore  telegraphs,  and  ex- 
plained their  respective  modes  of  operation.  These  visual 
systems  have,  however,  ceased  to  be  employed  by  civilized 
nations,  except  for  the  marine  service. 

As  preliminary  to  the  consideration  of  the  electric  telegraph, 
I  have  introduced  a  few  chapters  explanatory  of  the  sciences 
immediately  blended  in  that  art ;  such,  for  example,  as  static 
and  voltaic  electricities,  magnetism,  and  electro-magnetism. 
These  questions  of  philosophy  the  telegrapher  should  most 
carefully  study.  The  data  given  are  from  the  most  reliable 
authorities. 

In  the  collection  of  materials  for  this  work  I  have  spared 
neither  labor  nor  expense.  For  nearly  fifteen  years  I  have 
made  the  subject-matter  of  this  volume  my  most  careful  study. 
For  the  greater  part  of  that  time,  practical  telegraphing  has 
been  my  sole  vocation.  I  have  instituted  thousands  of  experi- 
ments, and  have  travelled  over  most  of  the  civilized  world 
"  in  search  of  light"  upon  this,  the  most  important  of  all  arts. 
The  information  herein  imparted  has  cost  me. years  of  toil  and 


PREFACE. 


a  heavy  expenditure  of  money.  Still,  I  cannot  regret  my  devo- 
tion, either  past  or  present,  to  the  cause.  In  its  study  1  have 
found  new  truths,  serving  to  increase  my  admiration  of  that 
mysterious  Providence  who  knoweth  all  things. 

I  have  not  written  this  hook  for  gain.  It  has  heen  to  me  a 
work  of  love.  For  several  years  I  have  heen  urged  hy  friends 
to  prepare  a  work  on  practical  telegraphing,  and  I  have  in  the 
present  volume  complied  with  that  wish.  I  have  not  confined 
the  work  to  the  telegraph  of  any  particular  locality,  hut,  on 
the  contrary,  I  have  grouped  together  the  various  systems  of 
both  hemispheres.  Nearly  every  combination  herein  described 
I  have  witnessed  in  operation  and  most  carefully  studied.  I 
may  have  failed  to  comprehend  the  full  merits  of  each,  and  my 
descriptions  of  them,  respectively,  may  be  imperfect,  though  I 
have  tried  to  make  them  clear  and  concise. 

I  have  not  attempted  to  arrange  the  various  systems  with 
regard  to  priority  of  invention,  nor  as  to  their  relative  effi- 
ciency. I  have  given  dates  wherever  it  was  possible,  and  have 
refrained  from  exhibiting  any  preferences.  I  indulge  the  hope 
that  the  many  inventors  who  have  distinguished  the  age  by 
the  production  of  their  respective  contrivances,  will  not  accuse 
me  of  an  undue  partiality.  I  have  tried  to  be  fair  in  the  con- 
sideration of  the  merits  of  each  discovery  and  each  invention. 
If  I  have  failed  in  accomplishing  this  desideratum,  the  fault 
lies,  not  with  the  heart,  but  with  the  judgment. 

Notwithstanding  that  this  volume  has  been  greatly  extended, 
I  have  been  compelled  to  omit  several  important  chapters  ; 
such,  for  example,  as  the  organizations  for  generating  magneto- 
electricity,  the  aurora-borealis,  the  fire-alarm  and  railway 
telegraphs,  repeating  apparatuses,  &c.  These  will  be  duly 
considered  in  some  subsequent  edition,  together  with  such 
emendations  and  additions  to  the  present  work  as  shall  be 
found  necessary. 

To  M.  Blavier  and  his  publishers  in  Paris,  to  the  publishers 
of  Noad's  "  Electricity,"  the  "  Illustrated  London  News,"  and 
others  who  have  given  me  full  permission  to  copy  from  their 
respective  works,  I  am  especially  indebted.  On  the  other 


PREFACE.  5 

hand,  some  authors  and  publishers  have  refused  me  that  per- 
mission ;  and  although  I  could  have  copied  whatever  I  might 
have  wanted  from  any  foreign  work  without  legal  liability,  yet 
I  have  not  done  so,  knowingly,  in  a  single  case  where  the 
privilege  was  refused  me. 

I  cannot  conclude  this  review  of  my  labors,  without  expres- 
sing my  most  profound  thanks  to  my  very  able  and  accom- 
plished friend  George  Jaques,  of  Worcester,  Massachusetts,  for 
his  aid  in  translating  from  the  various  languages  of  the  Old 
World,  and  in  searching  for  new  light  and  authorities.  For 
the  services  thus  rendered,  I  cannot  but  feel  the  highest  appre- 
ciation, and  a  sincere  desire  that  his  future  life  may  be  blessed 
with  that  which  will  enable  him  to  fill  the  measure  of  his 
creation,  and  that  his  fireside  may  be  surrounded  with  those 
jewels  which  are  more  brilliant  than  the  pearls  and  gems  that 
sparkle  from  and  adorn  the  imperial  crown. 

In  preparing  this  work  I  have  made  copious  extracts  from 
various  publications,  among  which  may  be  particularly  men- 
tioned, Noad's  Manual  of  Electricity,  Highton's  History  of  the 
Electric  Telegraph,  Dr.  O'Shaughnessy's  Electric  Telegraph, 
Bakewell's  Manual  of  Electricity,  Moigno's  Traite  de  Tele- 
graphic Electrique,  Blavier's  Cours  Theorique  et  Pratique  de 
Telegraphie  Electrique,  Davis's  Manual  of  Magnetism,  Walker's 
Electric  Telegraph  Manipulation,  Shaffner's  Telegraph  Com- 
panion, Dr.  Schellen's  Electro-magnetische  Telegraph,  Vail's 
Electric  Telegraph,  Dr.  Trumbull's  Electric  Telegraph,  Shaff- 
ner's  Telegraph  Tariff  Scale,  Smithsonian  Reports,  American 
and  European  Patent  Reports,  &c.,  &c.  I  have  not,  in  all 
cases,  particularly  marked  the  extracts  taken,  because,  in  many 
of  them,  I  have  blended  new  matter,  and,  to  a  greater  or  less 
extent,  expressed  their  ideas  in  different  language.  In  justice, 
however,  to  the  respective  authorities  I  make  this  general 
acknowledgment. 

To  the  respective  governments  of  Europe  I  feel  deeply 
grateful,  especially  to  the  French,  Belgian,  Prussian,  Danish, 
Swedish,  Norwegian,  and  Russian.  For  the  facilities  given, 
and  the  vast  amount  of  material  placed  at  my  command  on 


6  PREFACE. 

my  visits,  to  them  respectively,  and  for  the  documents  from 
time  to  time  transmitted,  I  have  been  placed  under  lasting 
obligations.  To  M.  Chauvin,  director-general  of  the  Royal 
Prussian  Telegraphs,  I  have  to  express  my  sincere  thanks  for 
recent  valuable  documents ;  though  their  reception  was  too  late 
for  the  present  edition,  they  will  serve  a  good  end  in  the 
future. 

It  is  my  purpose  to  continue  this  work  by  subsequent 
editions,  and  embrace  the  improvements  continually  making 
in  the  art  of  telegraphing.  Should  the  reader  find  any  errors 
in  this  volume  of  either  omission  or  commission,  he  will  serve  a 
good  end  by  informing  me  of  the  fact.  It  is  very  desirable  to 
promulgate  truths  well  sustained  by  practical  demonstrations  ; 
and  if  there  be  anything  in  this  volume  otherwise,  it  is  for  the 
weal  of  the  enterprise  that  the  false  doctrines  should  be  at  the 
earliest  moment  suppressed. 

In  conclusion,  1  would  add,  that  I  have  been  compelled  to 
write  this  volume  piecemeal,  on  the  steamboat,  on  the  railway, 
at  various  hotels,  and  at  places  thousands  of  miles  apart.  All 
this  I  have  had  to  do  within  the  past  six  months.  And  while, 
in  obedience  to  other  duties,  it  has  not  been  possible  for  me  to 
give  that  personal  attention  to  its  passage  through  the  press  I 
should  have  wished,  the  novel  and  technical  character  of  its 
contents  rendered  more  difficult  the  labors  of  the  correctors 
of  the  press,  to  whose  care  it  was  necessarily  left. 

"With  these  explanations,  I  submit  the  "  Telegraph  Manual " 
to  the  generous  and  impartial  consideration  of  the  telegraphers 
throughout  the  world. 

TAL.  P.  SHAFFNER. 

NEW- YORK,  July,  1859. 


CONTENTS, 


CHAPTEK    I. 

THE   TELEGRAPH. 

The  meaning  of  the  term  Telegraph — Divine  Telegraph — Telegraphs  mentioned  in  the 
Classics  and  Ancient  History — The  Telegraph  invented  by  Polybius — Agamemnon's 
Telegraph,  B.  C.  1084 — North  American  Aboriginal  Telegraph — The  American  Revo- 
lutionary Army  Signals , PAGE  17 

CHAPTER    II. 

THE  SEMAPHORE  TELEGRAPH. 

Origin  of  the  Semaphore  Telegraph — Its  Adoption  by  the  French  Government — Its  Ex- 
tension over  Europe — A  German  Telegraph  Station — Russian  Telegraph 27 

CHAPTER    III. 

THE   CHAPPE   TELEGRAPH,    ETC. 

Description  of  the  Chappe"  Telegraph — Organization  of  the  Signal  Alphabet — Process 
of  Manipulation — Its  Celerity  in  Sending  Dispatches 32 

CHAPTER    IV. 

OTHER    SEMAPHORE    TELEGRAPHS. 

The  Prussian  Semaphore  Telegraph — The  English  Semaphore — The  Gonon,  Chappe*, 
Guyot,  and  Treutler's  Imorovements  on  the  Chappe  Telegraph 46 

CHAPTER    V, 

STATIC    ELECTRICITY. 

Static  Electricity  Explained— Conductors  and  Non-Conductors—Vitreous  and  Resinou. 
Electricity— Discovery  of  the  Leyden  Jar— Franklin's  Electrical  Theories— Cou 
lomb's  Theories  of  Electro-Statics  -Franklin's  Reasons  for  believing  that  Lightning 
and  Electricity  were  Identical — Identity  of  Lightning  and  Electricity  Demonstrated— 
The  Franklin  Kite  Experiment — Distribution  of  Electricity — Phenomena  of  Resist 
ance  to  Induction— Phenomena  of  Attraction  and  Repulsion— Igniting  Gas  with  tht 
Finger — The  Leyden  Jar  Experiments  ....  , ..  .„- & 


8  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER    VI. 

VOLTAIC    ELECTRICITY. 

Electrical  Phenomena  Discovered  by  Galvani — Origin  of  the  Voltaic  Pile  -Science  of 
the  Voltaic  Battery — Onm's  Mathematical  Formula? — Chemical  and  Electrical  Action 
of  the  Battery — The  Daniell,  the  Smee,  the  Bunson,  the  Grove,  and  the  Chester  Vol- 
taic Batteries — Comparative  Intensity  and  Quantity  of  the  Grove,  Daniell,  and  Smee 
Batteries . .  77 

CHAPTER    VII. 

MAGNETISM. 

Native  Magnetism  of  the  Load-Stone — Attractive  and  Repulsive  Forces  of  Permanent 
Magnets — Component  parts  of  the  Magnet — Induced  Magnetism 105 

CHAPTER   VIII. 

ELECTRO-MAGNETISM. 

Discovery  of  Electio-Magnetism  by  CErsted — Discoveries  of  Schweigger,  Arago,  and 
Ampere — Discoveries  of  Sturgeon  and  Henry — Recapitulation  of  the  Discoveries  on 
Electro-Magnetism — English  Telegraph  Electrometers — Magnetometers — The  De  La 
Rive  Ring  and  other  Experiments 114 

CHAPTER    IX. 

EARLY   ELECTRIC   TELEGRAPHS. 

Suggestions  of  Science — The  Telegraph  of  Lomond — Reizen's  and  Dr.  Salva's  Electric 
Spark  Telegraph— Baron  Schilling's,  Gauss  and  Weber's,  and  Alexander's  Tele- 
graphs   132 

CHAPTER    X. 
SOEMMERING'S  ELECTRO-CHEMICAL  TELEGRAPH. 

Soemmering's  Electric  Telegraph  of  1809 — The  Apparatus  and  Manipulation  Described 
— Signal  Keys  for  opening  and  closing  the  Circuits 142 

CHAPTER    XI. 
RONALD'S  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH. 

Invention  of  Ronald's  Electric  Telegraph — Experiments  and  Description  of.  the  Appa- 
ratus— Description  of  an  Electrograph 147 

CHAPTER    XII. 
STEINHEIL'S  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH. 

Experiments  and  Discovery  of  the  Earth  Circuit — The  Electric  Telegraph  as  Invented 
— The  Electric  Conducting  Wires — Conductibility  of  the  Earth  Circuit — Apparatus 
for  Generating  the  Electric  Current — The  Indicating  Apparatus — Construction  of  the 
Apparatus — Application  of  the  Apparatus  to  Telegraphing — The  Alphabet  and  Nume- 
rals-rrThe  Discovery  and  Invention  of  Steinheil 157 


CONTENTS.  9 

CHAPTEK    XIII. 

HISTORY    OF    THE    ENGLISH    ELECTRIC    TELEGRAPH. 

William  Fothergill  Cooke  and  the  Telegraph — Moncke's  Electrometer  Experiment* — 
The  English  Electric  Telegraph  invented — Invention  of  the  Alarum — The  Mechani-.Ai 
Telegraph— The  Escapement  Apparatus — Mr.  Cooke's  Efforts  to  put  his  Telegrapl  in 
Operation — The  Second  Mechanical  Telegraph — Wheatstone's  Permutating  K.*y- 
Board — Messrs.  Cooke  and  Wheatstone  become  associated — The  Secondary  Cir*mi. 
invented — Mr.  Cooke  improves  his  Original  Telegraph — All  the  Improvements  com- 
bined— Description  of  the  Apparatuses — Improvements  patented  in  1838 — Whjat- 
stone's  Mechanical  Telegraph — Further  Improvements  by  Mr.  Cooke 179 

CHAPTER   XIV. 

THE    ENGLISH    ELECTRIC    TELEGRAPH. 

English  Telegraph,  and  Description  of  its  Electrometer — The  Single-Needle  Apparatus 
— Formation  of  the  Alphabet — Single-Needle  Instrument  and  Voltaic  Circuit — Tne 
Double-Needle  Instrument,  Alphabet,  and  Manipulation — The  Alarum  Apparatus- 
Combining  and  Arranging  of  Circuits 216. 

CHAPTER    XV. 

INTERIOR    OP   THE   ENGLISH   TELEGRAPH    STATIONS. 

Interior  Arrangements  of  a  Station — Bate  of  Signalling — The  Strand  Telegraph  Station 
— The  Public  Receiving  Department — Blank  Forms  of  the  English  Telegraphs  . .  233 

CHAPTER    XVI. 

DAVY'S    ELECTRO-CHEMICAL   TELEGRAPH. 

Nature  of  the  Invention  described — The  Transmitting  Apparatus — The  Receiver — The 
Instruments  combined — The  Manipulation — The  Signal  Alphabet 255 

CHAPTER   XVII. 

BAIN'S   PRINTING    TELEGRAPH. 
Description  of  the  Printing  Telegraph  Apparatus 269 

CHAPTER   XVIII. 

THE   BRETT   PRINTING   TELEGRAPH. 

Brett's  Printing  Telegraph — Description  of  the  Composing  Apparatus — The  Printinc, 
Apparatus  and  Manipulation — The  Compositor  or  Commutator  described — Mr.  Brett's 
Last  Improvement 273 

CHAPTER    XIX. 

THE    MAGNETO-ELECTRIC    TELEGRAPH. 

Application  of  Magneto-Electricity  to  Telegraphing— Its  Advantages— Description  of 
Henley's  Apparatus— The  Bright's  Apparatus— Its  Comparative  Celerity 28ft 


.10  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER   XX. 
HIGHTON'S  ELECTBIC  TELEGRAPHS. 

High  Tension  Electric  Telegraph— Gold  Leaf  Instruments— Single  and  Double  Pointet 
Needle  Apparatus — Revolving  Pointer — Improvements  in  Batteries  andlnsulation  295 

CHAPTER    XXI. 
BAKE  WELL'S  ELECTRIC  COPYING  TELEGRAPH. 

Manipulation  of  the  Electric  Copying  Telegraph  of  P.  C.  Bakewell  of  England— The 
Apparatus  Described — Secrecy  of  Correspondence,  its  Advantages  and  Disadvan- 
tages  - ,. ..~ -^ .*»»«• 304 

CHAPTER   XXII. 

NOTT'S  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH. 
Description  of  the  Apparatus 310 

CHAPTER    XXIII. 

SEIMENS   AND  HALSKIE'S    GERMANIC    TELEGRAPH. 

Description  of  the  Telegraph  Apparatus — The  Alarum  Bell — Electric  Circuits  and  Ma- 
nipulation— The  Transmitter  and  its  Application 313 

CHAPTER    XXIV. 

FRENCH  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH. 

The  Nature  and  Origin  of  the  System — The  Receiving  Apparatus — The  Manipulating 
Apparatus — The  Process  of  Sending  Signals — The  Formation  of  the  Alphabet  . .  325 

CHAPTER    XXV. 

THE  FRENCH  RAILWAY   ELECTRIC   TELEGRAPH. 

Principles  of  the  French  Railway  Telegraph— Description  of  the  Receiving  Instrument 
— The  Manipulating  Apparatus — Process  of  Manipulation  between  Stations — Portable 
Apparatus  for  Railway  Service — Breguet's  Improvement 334 

CHAPTER    XXVI. 

ELECTRIC   TELEGRAPH  BELL  APPARATUS. 

The  French  Telegraph  Bell  Instruments — Vibratory  Bell  Apparatuses — Use  of  Bells  rn 
Telegraph  Offices 346 

CHAPTER    XXVII. 

THE    ELECTRO-CHEMICAL   TELEGRAPH. 

Bain's  Electro-Chemical  Telegraph — Apparatus  and  Manipulation — Smith  and  Bain's 
Patented  Invention — Bain's  Description  and  Claims— Morse's  Electro-Chemical  Tele- 
graph— Westbrook  »rwi  Rogers'  Electro-Chemical  Telegraph 354 


CONTENTS.  11 

CHAPTEK   XXVIII. 
FROMENT'S  ALPHABETICAL  AND  WHITING  TELEGRAPHS. 

Alphabetical  Apparatus  and  Manipulation — The  Writing  Apparatus 37$ 

CHAPTEK   XXIX. 

TAIL'S   PRINTING  TELEGRAPH. 

Description  of  the  Telegraph  Apparatus — Manipulation  and  Celerity  of  Communicating 
— Arrangement  of  the  Alphabet 382 

CHAPTEK   XXX. 

THE    HOUSE   PRINTING   TELEGRAPH. 

Early  History  of  the  House  Telegraph— The  Composing  and  Printing  Apparatuses— The 
Axial  Magnet— The  Air  Valve  and  Piston— The  Manipulation— The  Patented 
Claim 391 

CHAPTER   XXXI. 

HISTORY    OP    THE   AMERICAN  ELECTRO -MAGNETIC  TELEGRAPH. 

Invention  of  the  Telegraph — The  First  Model  of  the  Apparatus — Specimen  of  the  Tele- 
graph Writing — The  Combined  Circuits  Invented — Favorable  Report  of  the  Committee 
on  Commerce  in  Congress — Construction  of  the  Experimental  Line — Invention  of 
the  Local  Circuit — Improvements  of  the  Apparatus — Administration  of  the  Patents,  by 
Hon.  F.  O.  J.  Smith,  and  Hon.  Amos  Kendall — Extension  of  Lines  in  America. . .  402 

CHAPTER    XXXII. 

THE   MORSE  TELEGRAPH    APPARATUSES. 

The  Early  Telegraph  Instruments — Modern  Lever  Key — The  Early  Circuit  Changer — 
Modern  Circuit  Closers — Nottebohn's  Circuit  Changer — Binding  Connections— The 
Electro-Magnet  of  1844 — The  Modern  Relay  Magnet — The  Receiving  Register — The 
Sounder 422 

CHAPTER   XXXIII. 

INTERIOR   OF   AN  AMERICAN   TELEGRAPH   STATION. 

Receiving  Department  of  a  Telegraph  Station — The  Operating  or  Manipulating  Depart- 
ment— Receiving  Dispatches  by  Sound — Incidents  of  the  Station — Execution  of  an 
Indian  Respited  by  Telegraph 458 

CHAPTER   XXXIV. 

THE  MORSE   TELEGRAPH    ALPHABET. 

Composition  of  the  American  Morse  Alphabet — The  Alphabet,  Numerals,  and  Punctu- 
ation— The  Austro-Germanic  Alphabet  of  1854 — European  Morse  Alphabet  of 
1859  .. ..-  469 


12  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER    XXXV. 

TELEGRAPH   ELECTRIC    CIRCUITS. 

Electric  Circuits  on  European  Lines — Circuit  of  the  Main  Line  described — Adjustment 
of  the  Line  Batteries — Early  Experimental  Circuits — The  Stager  Compound  Circuits 
— Combining  of  Electric  Circuits 480 

CHAPTER    XXXVI. 

ELECTRIC    CURRENTS. 

Electric  Currents  Explained — Electric  Circuits — Quantity  and  Intensity  Currents — 
Phenomena  of  the  Return  Current — Retardation  of  the  Current  Illustrated — Esti- 
mated Velocity  of  the  Current — Working  of  the  Mediterranean  Telegraphs — Scale  of 
the  Velocity  of  the  Current  on  Subaqueous  Conductors 496 

CHAPTER    XXXVII. 

ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH  CONDUCTORS. 

Composition  of  Telegraph  Circuits — Conductibility  of  Metals  and  Fluids — Conducting 
Power  of  different  sizes  of  Copper  Wire — Conducting  Power  of  Telegraph  Wires — 
Advantage  of  Zinc-Coated  Wires — Conductors  composing  a  Voltaic  Circuit — Strength 
of  Telegraph  Wires— Scale  and  Weight  of  Telegraph  Wires  513 

CHAPTER    XXXVIII. 

GUTTA-PERCHA    INSULATION. 

Application  of  Gutta-Percha  as  an  Insulation — Discovery  of  Gutta-Percha,  its  Nature, 
Qualities,  and  Chemical  Properties 524 

CHAPTER   XXXIX. 

TELEGRAPH   INSULATION. 

English  Telegraph  Insulators — The  American,  the  French,  the  Sardinian,  the  Bavarian 
the  Holland,  the  Baden,  the  Austrian,  the  Seimens  and  Halskie's,  and  the  Hindostan 
Insulators — Tightening  the  Wires  in  Asia,  England,  and  on  the  Continent 529 

CHAPTER    XL. 

PARATONNERRE,   OR  LIGHTNING   ARRESTER. 

Lightning  on  the  Telegraph — Highton's  Paratonnerre — Reid's  American  Paratonnerre— 
Various  Apparatuses  on  American  Lines — Attachment  of  Paratonnerres  at  R.'c: 
Crossings — Incidents  of  Lightning'striking  the  Line — Steinheil's,  Fardley'g,  Meisne?  *, 
Nottebohn's,  Breguet's,  the  French,  and  Walker's  Paratonnerres  564 

CHAPTER    XLI. 

SUBTERRANEAN  TELEGRAPHS. 

Subterranean  Lines  in  America,  Prussia,  Russia,  Denmark,  and  France — Lines  in  Great 
Britain — Underground  Lines  in  Hindostan — Mode  of  Testing  Subte-'aneaa  Telegraphs 
Repairing  the  Insulated  Wires 687 


CONTENTS.  13 

CHAPTER    X  L  1 1 . 

AMERICAN    SUBMARINE   TELEGRAPHS. 

Disasters  to  Mast  Crossings  over  Rivers — Adoption  of  Submarine  Cables — Submarine 
Cables  Perfected — Submerging  of  the  Cable — Bishop's  Submarine  Cables — Chester's 
Cable  Manufactory — Leaden-Covered  Telegraph  Wires 599 

CHAPT  E  R    XLIII  . 

EUROPEAN  SUBMARINE  TELEGRAPHS.       . 

The  English  and  French  Cables — Mode  of  Shipping  and  Submerging  Cables — Holyhead 
and  Howth  Telegraph— The  Irish  Channel  Cable  of  1852— The  English  and  Belgian 
Submarine  Telegraph — Donaghadee  and  Port  Patrick  Submarine  Line — English  and 
Holland  Submarine  Cable — Prince  Edward's  Island  Cable — Danish  Baltic  Sea  Tele- 
graph— The  Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence  Telegraph— The  Balize,  Hudson,  and  Zuyder  Zee 
Cables— The  Black  Sea  Telegraphs— The  Mediterranean  Submarine  Telegraph 
Lines ...607 

CHAPTER    XL  I  V  . 

ATLANTIC  OCEAN  TELEGRAPHY. 

The  Atlantic  Telegraph  Company  Organized — Principles  of  Philosophy  Presumed  by 
the  Company— The  Expedition  for  Laying  the  Cable  in  1857— The  First  Expedition 
of  1858— The  Second  Expedition  of  1858— Working  of  the  Telegraph  Cable— Cause 
of  the  Failure  of  the  Cable  to  operate • 622 

CHAPTER    XLV. 

OCEAN  TELEGRAPHY. 

The  Depths  Ot  the  Ocean — Description  of  the  Brooks  Lead — The  Elements  of  the 
Ocean— Maury's  View  of  a  Deep  Sea  Cable— Atlantic  Telegraphs  Projected. .  .  649 

CHAPTER    XLVI, 

TELEGRAPH   CROSSINGS    OVER   RIVERS. 

Telegraph  Crossings  in  Europe — The  Great  Crossing  over  the  River  Elbe — Wide  Spans 
of  Wire  on  the  Continent — River  Crossings  in  America — Description  of  the  Great 
Mast  on  the  Ohio  River — Suspension  of  the  Wire  over  the  Masts — A  Western  Fron- 
tier Telegraph  Crossing 65t 

CHAPTER    XLVII. 

CONSTRUCTION  OF  THE  AMERICAN  LINES. 

Organization  for  Digging  the  Holes — Erection  of  the  Poles — Suspension  of  the  Wire — 
Insulating  the  Poles : 668 


J4  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER    XLVIII. 

THE    TIMBER   AND   PREPARATION   OF   TELEGRAPH   POLES. 

The  Size,  Preparation,  and  Durability  of  Telegraph  Poles,  including  the  Red-Cedar, 
White-Cedar,  Walnut,  Poplar,  White-Oak,  Black-Oak,  Post-Oak,  Chestnut,  Honey- 
Locust,  Cotton-Wood,  Sycamore,  and  other  Timbers 681 

CHAPTER    XLIX. 

POLES   ON  THE  FRENCH   TELEGRAPH  LINES. 

Preparation  of  Poles  on  the  French  Lines — Injection  with  Sulphate  of  Copper — Size 
Cost,  and  Durability  of  different  Kinds  of  Wood 688 

CHAPTER    L. 

POLES    ON   THE   ENGLISH  AND    OTHER  EUROPEAN  LINES. 

Baltic  Squared  Timber—Saplings  of  Larch,  Pine,  Spruce,  &c. — Poles  on.  the  Hindostan 
Line — Bainbop,  Iron- Wood,  Teak,  Saul,  and  other  Timbers — Their  Preparation  and 
Durability 696 

C  H  AFTER     LI. 

REPAIRING    OF   TELEGRAPH    LINES. 

Qualification  and  Duties  of  Eepairers — Continuous  and  Uniform  Metallic  Conductors — 
The  Joining  of  Telegraph  Wire — Repairing  a  Break  of  the  Line  Wire — The  Interrup- 
tion of  the  Line  by  the  Falling  of  Trees— The  Great  Sleet  of  1849,  and  the  Telegraph 
Lines — Destruction  of  the  Telegraph  Lines  by  Lightning — A  Silk  Cord  Splice  found 
in  the  Line — Novel  Cases  of  Repairing  the  Line — Removal  from  the  Line  of  all  For- 
eign Conductors — To  preserve  the  Insulation  of  Wire — To  Secure  the  Permanency 
of  the  Structure  of  the  Line 701 

CHAPTER    MI. 

IMPROVEMENTS  IN  TELEGRAPH  APPARATUS. 

Kirchhof's,  Farmer's,  Hughes',  Partridge's,  Baker's,  Coleman's,  Channing's,  Smith's, 
Clay's  Woodman's,  Humaston's,  and  Wesson's,  Patented  Improvements  in  Telegraph- 
ing   718 

CHAP  TER    LIII. 

ELECTRIC   TIME-BALL. 

Utility  of  Electric  Time-Balls  for  Correction  of  Chronometers — Nelson's  Monument  an^. 
Time-Ball 741 

CHAPTER    LIV. 

ORGANIZATION   AND   ADMINISTRATION   OF   AMERICAN   TELEGRAPHS. 

Organization  of  Telegraph  Lines — Organization  of  Companies — Charter — By-Laws — 
Office  '  Regulations — Rules  for  Sending  and  Receiving  Messages — Lines  in  Britjgh 
Provinces — Patent  and  Parliamentary  Monopolies 745 


CONTENTS.  15 

CHAPTER    LV. 

ADMINISTEATION    OF  AMERICAN   TELEGEAPHS.  \ 

Tariff  on  Dispatches  in  America — Words  Chargeable  and  Free — Arrangement  of  Local 
Tariff's — Qualifications  of  Employes — Protection  of  the  Telegraph— Secrecy  of  Dis- 
patches— Penalty  for.  Refusing  to  Transmit  Despatches — Patent  Franchise  Inviolable 
—The  Eight  of  Way  for  Telegraphs 7^8 

CHAPTERLVI. 

ORGANIZATION   AND   ADMINISTRATION    OF   EUROPEAN  TELEGRAPHS. 

The  Telegraph  in  France — Decrees  permitting  the  Public  to  Telegraph — Regulations  on 
receiving  and  transmitting  Dispatches — Conditions  of  Admission  of  Supernumeraries 
— Programme  of  Preparatory  Education  required  of  Candidates 768 

CHAPTER    LVII. 

ADMINISTRATION   OF   RUSSIAN  TELEGRAPHS. 

Russian  Government  Telegraph — Categorical  Arrangement  of  Dispatches — Regulation 
for  Receiving  and  Sending  Dispatches — Classification  and  Tariff  of  Charges — Regu 
lation  of  the  Clocks 777 

CHAPTER    LVIII. 

EUROPEAN  INTERNATIONAL  TARIFFS. 

European  International  Tariff— English  International  Tariff— Rules  and  Regulations — 
The  French  Range 784 

CHAPTER    LIX. 

ORGANIZATION   AND   ADMINISTRATION   OF   ASIATIC    TELEGRAPHS. 

History  of  the  Telegraph  in  Hindostan — Rules  and  Regulations  on  the  Bengal  Lines 
—Classification  and  Qualification  of  Employes 799 


APPENDIX. 

BIOGRAPHICAL   SKETCHES    OF   EMINENT  TELEGRAPHERS, 


SAMUEL  F.B.  MORSE,  OF  NEW-YORK 8 

AMOS  KENDALL,  OP  THE  DISTRICT  OP  COLUMBIA 808 

FRANCIS  0.  J.  SMITH,  OP  MAINB 811 

WILLIAM  M.  SWAIN,  OP  PENNSYLVANIA 822 

WILLIAM  TANNER,  OF  ALABAMA' 825 

JOHN  J.  SPEED,  JR.,  OF  MICHIGAN 820 

JEPTHA  H.  WADE,  OP  OHIO •  831 

LEVI  L.SADLER,  OP  MASSACHUSETTS 833 

ANSON  STAGER,  OP  OHIO 837 

TALIAFERRO  P.  SHAFFNER,  OF  KENTUCKY 840 


TELEGRAPH    CHESS-BOARD 


57 


59 


Gl 


55 


53 


51 


49 


41 


43 


47 


39 


37 


33 


25 


27 


23 


21 


19 


17 


11 


13 


15 


THE   TELEGRAPH. 


CHAPTER    I. 

The  meaning  of  the  term  Telegraph — Divine  Telegraph — Telegraphs  mentioned 
in  the  Classics  and  Ancient  History — The  Telegraph  invented  by  Polybius — 
Agamemnon's  Telegraph,  B.  C.  1084 — North  American  Aboriginal  Tele- 
graph— The  American  Revolutionary  Army  Signals. 

THE  MEANING  OF  THE  TERM  TELEGRAPH. 

TELEGRAPH — Greek,  -njj/le,  at  a  distance,  and  ypa</>«,  to  write. 

The  original  meaning  of  the  word,  as  taken  from  the  Greek, 
is  to  perform  the  act  of  writing  at  a  distance.  In  its  modern 
application  it  means  the  art  of  "communicating  at  a  distance." 
For  example,  the  semaphore  telegraph,  composed  of  angles, 
communicated  intelligence  by  certain  mechanical  contrivances, 
which  had  to  be  seen  and  understood  by  the  operator  miles 
distant.  Also  the  needle  systems  of  the  electric  telegraphs  of 
Europe :  they  do  not  write,  yet  they  communicate  to  points  far 
distant.  The  term  has  been  applied  to  any  and  all  systems  of 
transmitting  information  by  signs  or  sounds  to  another  beyond 
the  reach  of  speech. 

The  art  of  conveying  intelligence  by  the  aid  of  signals  has 
been  practised  for  centuries,  and  for  aught  we  know  since  Adam 
and  Eve  commenced  their  pioneer  career  in  the  Garden  of  Eden. 

I  have  searched  the  Bible  in  vain  for  some  tangible  mode  of 
signaling  among  the  early  nations.  '  The  most  definite  refer- 
ence to  communicating  by  signals  mentioned  in  the  Old  Testa- 
ment is  to  be  found  in  chapter  vi.,  verse  1,  of  the  prophet 
Jeremiah,  viz. :  "  0,  ye  children  of  Benjamin,  gather  yourselves 
to  flee  out  of  the  midst  of  Jerusalem,  and  blow  the  trumpet  in 
Tekoa,  and  set  up  a  sign  of  fire  in  Beth-haccerem ;  for  evil 
appeareth  out  of  the  north,  and  great  destruction!" 

The  writings  of  Jeremiah  date  588  years  before  Christ,  and 
the  above  reference  to  communicating  intelligence  to  others 
by  the  "sign  of  fire"  or  by  any  means  of  signaling  is  the 
earliest  on  reliable  record. 

2 


18 


THE    TELEGRAPH. 


DIVINE    TELEGRAPH. 

In  the  New  Testament  there  is  nothing  more  potent  and 
more  sublime  than  the  signal  placed  in  the  heavens  to  indicate 
that  the  Son  of  Grod  was  born.  The  humble  shepherds  in  the 
open  fields  of  Judea,  while  guarding  their  flocks,  beheld  in  the 
vaulted  firmament  a  STAR,  the  brilliancy  of  which  had  no  twin. 
It  was  a  signal — a  Divine  signal — communicating  to  man  the 
glad  tidings  of  the  birth  of  the  Prince  of  Peace. 


ANCIENT    TELEGRAPHS.  19 

The  Grospel  of  St.  Matthew  teaches  that  the  signal  light 
suspended  in  the  heavens  hy  the  hand  of  the  Creator  was  seen 
by  the  wise  men  of  the  east : 

"Now  when  Jesus  was  born  in  Bethlehem  of  Judea,  in  the 
days  of  Herod  the  king,  behold,  there  came  wise  men  from  the 
east  to  Jerusalem, 

"  Saying,  Where  is  he  that  is  born  King  of  the  Jews?  for  we 
have  seen  his  star  in  the  east,  and  are  come  to  worship  him." 

TELEGRAPHS  MENTIONED  IN  THE  CLASSICS  AND  ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

In  profane  history  and  the  classics,  various  methods  of  com- 
municating by  signals  are  mentioned. 

Homer  is  the  first  who  mentions  the  telegraphic  art.  He 
compares*  the  lambent  flame  which  shone  round  the  head  of 
Achilles,  and  spread  its  lustre  all  round,  to  the  signals  made  in 
besieged  cities  by  clouds  of  smoke  in  the  daytime,  and  by 
bright  fires  at  night,  as  certain  signals  calling  on  the  neighbor- 
ing states  for  assistance,  or  to  enable  them  to  repel  the  powerful 
efforts  of  the  enemy. 

Julius  Africanus  minutely  details  a  mode  of  spelling  words 
by  a  telegraph.  It  appears  that  fires  of  various  substances 
were  the  means  made  use  of.  He  says  the  Roman  generals 
had  recourse  to  such  media  of  distant  communication.  In 
Livy,  in  Yegetius,  and  in  the  life  of  Sertorius,  by  Plutarch,  it 
is  mentioned  tKat  these  generals  frequently  communicated  by 
telegraphs. 

In  book  iv.,  page  238,  of  Brumoi's  account  of  the  Theatres 
of  the  Greeks,  it  is  stated  that  fire  signals  were  used  to  com- 
municate the  events  of  wars,  and  likewise  to  direct  the  com- 
mencement of  battles.  This  description  of  signals  was  anterior 
to  the  use  of  trumpets.  A  priest,  crowned  with  laurels,  pre- 
ceded the  army,  and  held  a  lighted  torch  in  his  hand.  He  was 
respected  and  spared  by  the  enemy,  even  in  the  heat  of  battle. 
Hence  the  old  proverbial  expression  for  a  complete  defeat,  that 
even  the  very  torch-bearer  had  not  been  spared.  Hence,  also, 
it  is  highly  probable  that  the  usage  arose  of  representing  dis- 
cord with  inflamed  torches. 

The  Chinese,  like  the  ancient  Scythians,  communicated  intel- 
ligence by  lighting  fires  or  raising  a  cloud  of  smoke  at  different 
stations.  Polybius  gives  the  general  appellation  of  Pyrsia  to 
the  telegraphic  modes  then  practised ;  'indicating  that  fires 
were  the  principal  means  made  use  of.  An  ingenious  though 
limited  species  of  telegraph  was  invented  by  ^Eneas,  who  lived 
in  the  time  of  Aristotle,  and  who  wrote  on  the  duties  of  a 
general.  Two  oblong  boards  had  various  sentences  written  on 


20  THE    TELEGRAPH. 

their  surfaces,  as,  "  The  enemy  have  entered  the  country"  "  The 
invasion  has  been  repelled"  "  The  enemy  are  in  motion"  &c., 
&c.  These  boards  were  fixed  perpendicularly  in  pieces  of  cork 
which  fitted  very  nearly  the  mouth  of  two  similar  circular  ves- 
sels filled  with  water,  and  having  a  cock  adapted  to  each  vessel. 
One  of  the  vessels  was  stationed  where  the  intelligence  origi- 
nated, and  the  second  at  the  place  to  which  it  was  to  be  conveyed. 
A  person,  as  at  present,  was  always  on  the  lookout ;  and  when 
he  perceived  one  or  more  torches  raised  up  at  the  primary  sta- 
tion, he  understood  that  intelligence  was  about  to  be  commu- 
nicated. On  observing  a  second  torch  raised,  he  instantly 
answered  the  signal  and  opened  or  turned  the  cock  of  the  ves- 
sel he  was  in  charge  of ;  the  cock  of  the  vessel  at  the  primary 
station  having  been  turned  immediately  on  raising  up  the 
second  torch  at  that  station  and  on  observing  this  signal 
answered.  As  the  cocks  were  opened  simultaneously  at  both 
stations,  the  circular  corks  with  the  board  standing  perpendicu- 
lar to  their  respective  centres,  would  descend  in  the  vessels 
equally,  as  the  water  subsided.  At  the  instant  when  the  sen- 
tence to  be  communicated  descended  or  sunk  to  the  level  of 
the  edge  of  the  vessel  at  the  primary  station,  the  person  in 
charge  there  raised  a  torch.  The  person  at  the  second  station, 
on  observing  this,  instantly  answered  this  signal,  and  turned 
the  cock  of  his  vessel,  and  thus  stopped  the  flowing  of  the 
water,  reading  at  the  same  time  the  sentence  then  level  with 
the  edge  of  the  vessel,  such  sentence,  on  account  of  the  equal 
flow  of  the  water,  corresponding  to  the  one,  similarly  situated 
at  the  original  station. 

TELEGRAPH  INVENTED  BY  POLYBIUS PUNIC  WAR,  B.  C.  264. 

Polybius  writes,  in  his  history  of  the  Punic  wars,  that  he 
improved  a  mode  of  communicating  ideas  by  the  letters  of  the 
alphabet  applied  to  a  telegraph  invented  by  Cleoxenus,  or  ac- 
cording to  some  authors,  byDemoclitus.  The  letters  of  the 
Greek  alphabet  were  divided  into  five  parts,  and  those  in  each 
division  were  inscribed  on  a  board  fixed  perpendicularly  to  an 
upright  post  for  each  of  those  divisions  of  the  alphabet.  These 
posts  stood  in  an  opening  between  two  walls  about  ten  feet  by 
six,  and  situated  on  each  side  of  the  posts.  Two  long  tubes 
(a  dioptical  instrument)  were  fixed  in  one  position  or  direction. 
The  telegraph  workers  could  readily  perceive  through  these 
tubes,  which  excluded  all  lateral  rays,  the  right  or  left  of  the 
station  viewed,  and  what  number  of  torches  might  be  raised 
above  the  top  of  the  wall,  either  on  the  right  or  left  of  the 
station  looked  to.  Things  being  thus  prepared  at  the  primary 


21 

and  second  station,  the  person  in  charge  at  the  primary  station 
wonld  raise  up  two  torches  as  a  commencing  signal  that  intel- 
ligence was  about  to  be  conveyed. 

The  looker-out  at  the  other  station  would,  on  perceiving  this, 
hold  up  a  couple  of  torches,  thus  indicating  that  he  was  pre- 
pared. The  ideas  to  be  communicated  were  reduced  previ- 
ously to  as  few  words  as  possible.  The  posts  on  which  the 
letters  were,  being  numbered  1,  2,  3,  4,  and  5,  one  or  more 
torches  raised  up  above  the  left-hand  wall,  would  indicate  to 
the  person  at  the  second  station,  on  what  post  was  situated  the 
first  letter  of  the  sentence  to  be  communicated.  The  person  at 
the  second  station,  on  observing  through  one  of  his  tubes  the 
torch  or  torches  held  up,  would  immediately  raise  torch  or 
torches  corresponding  to  the  display  exhibited.  The  person  at 
the  primary  station,  seeing  his  signal  taken  up,  would  lower  his 
torch  or  torches,  which  would  at  once  disappear  on  sinking  under 
the  level  of  the  top  of  the  wall.  The  column  on  which  the  letter 
was,  being  thus  ascertained,  the  person  at  the  primary  station 
would  hold  up  from  behind  the  right-hand  wall,  a  torch  or 
torches,  indicating  the  position  of  the  letter  on  the  post  already 
pointed  out.  For  instance,  if  it  was  the  first  letter  at  the 
top  of  the  column,  he  would  hold  up  one  torch,  and  if  the 
second,  two  torches,  and  so  on  to  the  fifth  letter  on  the  column. 
The  person  at  the  second  station  would  exhibit  a  corresponding 
number,  to  make  it  appear  that  he  understood  the  signal. 
Every  letter  in  each  word  would  be  communicated  in  this 
manner  ;  and  we  are  to  suppose  that  an  agreed-on  signal  would 
be  made  to  indicate  the  termination  of  a  word  and  of  a  sentence. 
It  is  further  evident  that  information  could  be  conveyed  along 
any  number  of  stations,  on  the  principle  of  the  modern  tele- 
graph of  keeping  up  every  signal  until  taken  up  at  the  suc- 
ceeding station.  But  in  this  case  two  parallel  walls  would  be 
requisite  on  each  side  of  the  posts,  in  order  that  the  torches, 
when  depressed,  might  disappear  to  the  two  contiguous  sta- 
tions at  the  same  instant.  This  was  a  night  telegraph ;  but  it 
con  Id  obviously  and  readily  have  been  converted  into  a  day 
telegraph  by  substituting  flags  in  lieu  of  torches. 

AGAMEMNON'S  TELEGRAPH,  B.  c.  1084. 

^Eschylus,  who  was  born  five  hundred  and  twenty-five  years 
before  Christ,  wrote  a  tragedy  in  which  he  gave  an  account 
of  the  fall  of  Troy,  which  occurred  1084  years  before  the 
Christian  era.  For  ten  years  the  city  had  been  besieged  by 
Agamemnon,  ^he  news  of  the  memorable'  event  was  signaled 
to  his  queen,  Clytsemnestra.  The  following  is  from  ^Gschylus : 


22  THE    TELEGRAPH. 

"WATCHMAN.  I  pray  the  gods  a  deliverance  from  these  toils, 
a  remedy  for  my  year-long  watch,  in  which,  couching  on  my 
elbows  on  the  roofs  of  the  Atreidae,  like  a  dog,  I  have  contem- 
plated the  host  of  the  nightly  stars,  and  the  bright  potentates 
that  bear  winter  and  summer  to  mortals,  conspicuous  in  the 
firmament.  And  now  1  am  watching  for  the  signal  of  the 
beacon,  the  blaze  of  fire  that  brings  a  voice  from  Troy,  and 
tidings  of  its  capture  ;  for  thus  strong  in  hope  is  the  woman's 
heart,  of  manly  counsel.  Meanwhile  I  have  a  night- bewildered 
and  dew-drenched  couch,  not  visited  by  dreams,  for  fear,  in 
place  of  sleep,  stands  at  my  side,  so  that  I  cannot  firmly  close 
my  eyelids  in  slumber.  And  when  I  think  to  sing  or  whistle, 
preparing  this  the  counter-charm  of  song  against  sleep,  then 
do  I  mourn,  sighing  over  the  sad  condition  of  this  house,  that 
is  not,  as  of  yore,  most  excellently  administered.  But  now, 
may  there  be  a  happy  release  from  my  toils  as  the  fire  of  joyous 
tidings  appears  through  the  gloom.  Oh  hail !  thou  lamp  of 
night,  thou  that  displayest  a  light  as  like  the  day,  and  the 
marshalling  of  many  dances  in  Argos  on  account  of  this  event. 
Ho !  ho !  I  will  give  a  signal  distinctly  to  the  wife  of  Agamem- 
non, that  she,  having  arisen  with  all  speed  from  her  couch, 
may  raise  aloud  a  joyous  shout  in  welcome  to  this  beacon,  if 
indeed  the  city  of  Ilion  is  taken,  as  the  beacon  light  stands 
forth  announcing ;  and  I  myself  will  dance  a  prelude.  For  I 
will  count  the  throws  of  my  lord  that  have  fallen  well ;  mine 
own,  since  this  kindling  of  the  beacon  light,  has  cast  me  thrice 
six.  May  it  then  befall  me  to  grasp  with  this  hand  of  mine 
the  friendly  hand  of  the  sovereign  of  this  palace  on  his  arrival. 
*  *  #  #  *  #  #'*### 

CHORUS.  But  thou,  daughter  of  Tyndarus,  Queen  ClytEem- 
nestra,  what  means  this  ?  What  new  event  ?  What  is  it  that 
thou  hast  heard  ?  and  on  the  faith  of  what  tidings  art  thou 
burning  incense  sent  around  ?  And  the  altars  of  all  our  city- 
guarding  gods,  of  those  above  and  those  below,  gods  of  heaven 
and  gods  of  the  forum,  are  blazing  with  offerings  ;  and  in 
different  directions  different  flames  are  springing  upward,  high 
as  heaven,  drug'ged  with  the  mild,  unadulterated  cordials  of 
pure  ungent,  with  the  royal  cake,  brought  from  the  inmost 
cells.  Concerning  these  things,  tell  one  both  what  is  pos- 
sible and  lawful  for  thee  to  say,  and  become  thou  the  healer 
of  this  distracting  anxiety,  which  now,  one  while,  is  full  of 
evil  thought,  but  at  another  time,  because  of  the  sacrifices, 
hope  blandly  fawning  upon  me  repels  the  insatiate  care,  the 
rankling  sorrow  that  is  preying  upon  my  heart.  *  *  * 

I  have  come  revering  thy  majesty,  Clytaemnestra ;  for  right 


23 

it  is  to  honor  the  consort  of  a  chieftain  hero,  when  the  monarch's 
throne  has  been-  left  empty.  And  gladly  shall  I  hear  whether 
thou,  having  learned  aught  that  is  good  or  not,  art  doing  sac- 
rifice with  hopes  that  herald  gladness — yet  not  if  thou  con- 
tinuest  silent  will  there  be  offence. 

CLYTJEMNEST&A.  Let  morning  become,  as  the  adage  runs,  a 
herald  of  gladness  from  its  mother  night ;  and  learn  thou  a  joy 
greater  than  thy  hope  to  hear,  for  the  Argives  have  taken  the 
city  of  Priam. 

CH.  How  sayest  thou  ?  thy  word  escaped  me  from  its  in- 
credulity. 

CLYT.  I  say  that  Troy  is  in  the  power  of  the  Argives — 
speak  I  clearly  ? 

CH.     Joy  is  stealing  over  me,  that  calls  forth  a  tear. 

CLYT.     Ay,  for  thy  countenance  proves  thy  loyalty. 

CH.     Why,  what  sure  proof  hast  thou  of  these  things  ? 

CLYT.  I  have  a  proof — why  not  ? — unless  the  deity  hath 
deluded  me. 

CH.  Art  thou  then  reverencing  the  vision  of  dreams  that 
win  easy  credence  ? 

CLYT.  I  would  not  take  the  opinion  of  my  soul  when  sunk 
in  slumber. 

CH.     But  did  some  wingless  rumor  gladden  thy  mind  ? 

CLYT.  Thou  sharply  mockest  my  sense  as  that  of  a  young 
girl. 

CH.     And  at  what  time  hath  the  city  been  sacked 

CLYT.  I  say  in  the  night  that  hath  now  brought  forth  this 
day. 

CH.     And  what  messenger  could  come  with  such  speed  ? 

CLYT.  Yulcan,  sending  forth  a  brilliant  gleam  from  Ida  ; 
and  beacon  dispatched  beacon  of  courier-fire  hitherward.  Ida, 
first,  to  the  Hermaean  promontory  of  Lemnos,  and  third  in  order 
Athos,  mount  of  Jove,  received  the  great  torch  from  the  isle, 
and  passing  o'er  so  as  to  ridge  the  sea,  the  might  of  the  lamp 
as  it  joyously  travelled,  the  pine-torch  transmitting  its  gold- 
gleaming  splendor,  like  a  sun,  to  the  watch  towers  of  Macistus. 
And  the  watchman  omitted  not  his  share  of  the  messenger's 
duty,  either  by  any  delay,  or  by  being  carelessly  overcome  by 
sleep ;  but  the  light  of  the  beacon  coming  from  afar  to  the 
streams  of  the  Euripus  gives  signal  to  the  watchmen  of  Mes- 
sapius,  and  they  lighted  a  flame  in  turn  and  sent  the  tidings 
onward,  having  kindled  with  fire  a  pile  of  withered  heath. 
And  the  lamp  in  its  strength  not  yet  at  all  bedimmed,  bounding 
over  the  plain  of  the  Asopus,  like  the  bright  moon  to  the  crag 
of  Cithaeron,  aroused  another  relay  of  the  courier  fire.  And 


24  THE    TELEGRAPH. 

the  watch  refused  not  the  light  that  was  sent  from  afar,  light- 
ing a  larger  pile  than  those  above  mentioned ;  but  it  darted 
across  the  lake  Grorgopis,  and  having  Beached  mount  J3giplanc- 
tus,  stirred  it  up  that  the  rule  of  fire  might  not  be  stint,  and 
lighting  it  up  in  unscanting  strength,  they  send  on  a  mighty 
beard  of  flame,  so  that  it  passed  glaring  beyond  the  headland 
that  looks  down  upon  the  Saronic  frith,  then  it  darted  down 
until  it  reached  the  Arachnsean  height,  the  neighboring  post  of 
observation,  and  thereupon  to  this  roof  of  the  Atreidse  here 
darts  this  light,  no  new  descendant  of  the  fire  of  Ida.  Such, 
in  truth,  were  my  regulations  for  the  bearers  of  the  torch 
fulfilled  by  succession  from  one  to  another ;  and  the  first  and 
the  last  in  the  course  surpass  the  rest.  Such  proof  and  signal 
do  I  tell  thee  of  my  husband  having  sent  me  tidings  from  Troy. 

CH.  To  the  gods,  my  queen!  I  will  make  prayer  hereafter, 
but  I  could  wish  to  hear  and  to  admire  once  more,  at  length," 
those  tidings  as  thou  tellest  them. 

CLYT.  On  this  very  day  the  Greeks  are  in  possession  of  Troy. 
I  think  that  a  discordant  clamor  is  loud  in  the  city.  If  you 
pour  into  the  same  vessel  both  vinegar  and  oil,  you  will  pro- 
nounce that  they  are  foemen,  and  not  friends.  So  you  may 
hear  the  voices  of  the  captured  and  the  conquerors  distinct 
because  of  a  double  result ;  for  the  one  party  having  fallen 
about,  the  corpses  of  men,  both  those  of  brothers,  and  children 
those  of  their  aged  parents,  are  bewailing,  from  a  throat  that 
is  no  longer  free,  the  death  of  those  that  were  dearest  to  them. 
But  the  other  party,  on  the  contrary,  is  hungry,  fatigued  from 
roaming  all  the  night  after  the  battle,  arranging  at  meals  of 
such  things  as  the  city  furnishes,  by  no  fixed  law  in  the  dis- 
tribution, but  as  each  hath  drawn  the  lot  of  fortune.  Already 
are  they  dwelling  in  the  captured  houses  of  the  Trojans,  freed 
from  the  frost  beneath  the  sky,  and  from  the  dews,  thus  will 
they,  poor  wretches,  sleep  the  whole  night  through  without 
sentries." 

NORTH  AMERICAN  ABORIGINAL  TELEGRAPH. 

The  most  remarkable  signaling  records  are  to  be  found  on 
various  parts  of  the  North  American  continent.  The  aborigines, 
or  a  race  of  people  centuries  since  extinct,  had  their  signal 
stations  or  mounds.  Upon  the  loftiest  summits  beacon  fires 
were  built,  and  the  rising  smoke  by  day  and  the  red  flame  by 
night  communicated  intelligence  to  others  far  distant.  These 
mounds,  these  beacon  remains,  are  still  to  be  seen  in  different 
parts  of  America.  An  eminent  author  upon  this  subject  says, 
that  the  most  commanding  positions  on  the  hills  bordering  the 


NORTH  AMERICAN  ABORIGINAL  TELEGRAPH. 


valleys  of  the  west,  are  often  crowned  with  mounds,  generally 
intermediate,  but  sometimes  of  large  size  ;  suggesting  at  once 
the  purposes  to  which  some  of  the  cairns  or  hill-mounds  of 
the  Celts  were  applied,  namely,  that  of  signal  or  alarm  posts. 
E/anges  of  these  mounds  may  be  observed  extending  along 
the  valleys  for  many  miles.  Between  Chillicothe  and  Colum- 
bus, on  the  eastern  border  of  the  Scioto  valley,  not  far  apart, 
some  twenty  may  be  selected,  so  placed  in  respect  to  each 
other,  that  it  is  believed,  if  the  country  was  cleared  of  the 
forest,  signals  of  fire  might  be  transmitted  in  a  few  minutes 
along  the  whole  line.  On  a  hill  opposite  Chillicothe,  nearly  six 
hundred  feet  in  height,  the  loftiest  in  the  entire  region,  one  of 
these  mounds  is  placed.  A  fire  built  upon  it  would  be  distinctly 
visible  for  fifteen  or  twenty  miles  up,  and  an  equal  distance 
down  the  valley. 

In  the  Miami  valley  similar  works  are  found.  Upon  a  hill 
three  hundred  feet  in  height,  overlooking  the  Colerain  work, 
and  commanding  an  extensive  view  of  the  valley,  are  placed 
two  mounds^  which  exhibit  marks  of  fire  on  and  around  them. 
Similar  mounds  occur  at  intervals  along  the  "Wabash  and  Illi- 
nois, as  also  on  the  Upper  Mississippi,  the  Ohio,  the  Miamis, 
and  Scioto.  On  the  high  hills,  overlooking  Portsmouth  and 
Marietta,  mounds  of  stone  are  situated ;  those  qf  the  former 
place  exhibit  evident  marks  of  fire. 

These  mounds,  or  beacon  hills,  are  to  be  found  in  different 
parts  of  the  continent.  The  remains  of  these  beacon  fires  are 
silent  records  left  by  a  people,  long  since  gone.  Above  the 
cinders  have  grown  stately  oaks,  and  upon  the  surface  of  the 
earth  nothing  but  the  new  soil  is  to  be  seen.  On  removing  the 


26 


THE  TELEGRAPH. 


earth  some  few  feet,  the  charcoal  and  ash  beds  are  found. 
How  many  centuries  they  have  been  there  no  human  being  can 
divine.  It  remains  a  sealed  history  to  the  world. 

The  savage  Indians,  that  rove  in  the  wild  regions  of  Amer- 
ica, have  their  means  of  communicating  by  beacons  and  other 
modes  of  signaling.  When  Lieut.  Fremont  penetrated  into 
the  fastnesses  of  Upper  California,  his  appearance  created  an 
alarm  among  the  Indians.  He  there  observed  the  primitive 
telegraph  communicating  his  presence  to  tribes  far  distant.  In 
his  report,  he  says  :  "  Columns  of  smoke  rose  over  the  country 
at  scattered  intervals — signals,  by  which  the  Indians,  here,  as 
elsewhere,  communicate  to  each  other,  that  enemies  are  in  the 
country.  It  is  a  signal  of  ancient  and  very  universal  applica- 
tion among  barbarians." 


AMERICAN    REVOLUTIONARY    ARMY    SIGNALS. 

During  the  American  Revolutionary  war, 
the  people  had  their  modes  of  signaling  to 
each  other  the  movements  of  the  enemy, 
and  especially  when  they  were  approach- 
ing. Among  the  different  plans  of  com- 
municating between  the  divisions  of  the 
army,  was  the  next  representation,  of  a 
barrel  at  the  head  of  a  mast,  a  flag  below 
it,  and  the  basket  hanging  to  a  cross-beam. 
This  mast  was  moveable.  The  parts  were 
moveable,  and  any  arranged  system  of  sig- 
naling could  be  carried  out  by  this  simple 
contrivance.  For  example,  suppose  the 
enemy  was  approaching,  the  pole  might  be 
left  bare,  so  that  there  would  be  no  reason 
for  the  enemy  to  suspect  the  objects  of 
its  use.  The  basket  or  either  of  the  others, 
alone  or  combined,  or  any  transposition, 
could  be  made  to  communicate  a  variety 
of  information. 


THE  SEMAPHORE  TELEGRAPH. 


CHAPTER  II. 

Origin  of  the  Semaphore  Telegraph — Its  Adoption  by  the  French  Government 
— Its  Extension  over  Europe — A  German  Telegraph  Station — Russian  Tel- 
egraph. 

ORIGIN    OF    THE  SEMAPHORE  OR  AERIAL   TELEGRAPH. 

THE  visual  telegraph  system,  ol  late  in  universal  use  over 
Europe  and  a  part  of  Asia,  has  been  superseded  by  the  electric 
system.  Notwithstanding  it  has  passed  away,  yet  a  descrip- 
tion of  its  beautiful  mechanism  must  ever  be  of  interest  to  the 
telegrapher.  The  most  perfect  aerial  telegraph  was  that  invent- 
ed by  the  Messrs.  Chappe,  and  first  adopted  in  France. 

There  were  three  brothers  Chappe,  nephews  of  the  celebra- 
ted traveler,  Chappe  d'Auteroche,  who  were  students — one  at 
the  Seminary  d' Angers,  and  the  other  two  were  at  a  private 
school  about  a  half  league  from  the  town.  Claude  Chappe,  the 
pupil  of  the  seminary,  wishing  to  alleviate  the  separation  with 
his  brothers,  contrived  the  following  means  by  which  they 
might  correspond  one  with  the  other. 

He  placed  at  the  two  ends  of  a  bar  of  wood  two  wing  pieces 
of  wood,  to  be  moved  at  pleasure,  by  means  of  which  he  was 
enabled  to  produce  192  signals,  which  were  distinctly  visible 
by  means  of  a  spy-glass.  He  conceived  the  idea  of  making 
words  of  these  signals,  and  he  communicated  the  same  to  his 
two  brothers.  This  took  place  a  few  years  before  the  French 
revolution  in  1793.  His  invention  was  first  tried  in  1791,  but, 
like  all  inventors^  Chappe  met  with  great  opposition  and  dis- 
couragement. The  people  were  opposed  to  the  use  of  the  tele- 
graph at  all,  and  his  first  telegraphs  and  the  stations  were  de- 
stroyed by  the  populace.  His  second  telegraph  shared  the  same 
fate,  and  was  burnt  to  the  ground,  and  poor  Chappe  narrowly 
escaped  with  his  life  ;  the  people  threatened  to  burn  him  with 
his  telegraph.  Not  daunted  by  these  misfortunes  he  renewed 
his  efforts  for  government  aid,  with  increased  zeal,  until  sucess 
crowned  his  efforts. 

27 


28          SEMAPHORE  TELEGRAPH ITS  EXTENSION. 


ADOPTION  OF  THE  SEMAPHORE  TELEGRAPH  IN  FRANCE. 

Continuing  his  efforts  with  the  zeal  common  to  great  invent- 
ors, he  finally  succeeded  in  getting  the  government  to  favor 
his  project,  and  a  commissioner  was  appointed  to  examine  into 
it.  The  commissioner  reported  favorably,  and  his  system  was 
adopted,  and  Chappe  was  honored  with  the  appointment  of  tel- 
egraphic engineer  to  the  French  government. 

Fortunately,  before  the  presentation  of  the  invention  to  the 
government,  the  Chappe  brothers  perfected  the  system  entire, 
and  in  the  preparation  of  the  signals  they  had  the  aid  of  Leon 
D  elaunay,  who  had  formerly  been  consul,  and  who  was  well 
acquainted  with  the  cipher  language  of  diplomacy.  In  this 
perfect  state  it  was  presented  to  the  convention,  adopted  and 
subsequently  executed.  Circumstances  favored  these  inventors 
remarkably ;  for  their  telegraph,  after  it  had  been  once  adopt- 
ed by  the  government,  it  was  fortunately  inaugurated  by  the 
announcement  of  a  victory.  The  following  was  the  first  dis* 
patch,  having  been  transmitted  by  the  telegraph  from  the  fron- 
tier of  France  to  Paris,  viz. : 

"CONDE  IS  TAKEN  FROM  THE  AuSTRIAN8.'; 

To  which  the  convention,  then  in  session,  responded  as  fol- 
lows, viz. : 

"  THE  ARMY  OF%  THE  NORTH  DESERVES  THE  GRATITUDE  OF  THE 
COUNTRY." 

These  two  dispatches  ran  like  an  electric  shock  through  the 
convention,  and  soon  thereafter  throughout  Paris.  The  Chappe 
telegraph  was  then  the  pride  of  the  nation !  The  telegraph 
and  the  victory  were  rejoiced  over  as  twin-sisters  in  French 
glory.  From  this  time  the  telegraph  spread  with  wonderful 
rapidity  to  all  parts  of  France,  and  thence  to  the  other  gov- 
ernments of  Europe.  The  line  from  Paris  to  Lille  was  con- 
structed in  1794,  and  two  minutes  only  were  occupied  in  the 
transmission  of  a  dispatch. 

In  the  perfection  of  the  beautiful  mechanism  for  the  produc- 
tion of  the  signals,  Chappe  had  the  invaluable  assistance  of  that 
most  ingenious  mechanic,  M.  Breguet,  whose  fame  as  a  watch- 
maker had  spread  throughout  Europe 

EXTENSION  OF  THE  SEMAPHORE  TELEGRAPH  OVER  EUROPE. 

After  the  perfection  of  the  semaphore  telegraph  in  France,  its 
usefulness  was  observed  by  the  other  governments  of  Europe. 
In  1802,  a  modified  system  was  adopted  in  Denmark.  About 
the  same  time  it  was  adopted  in  Belgium.  About  1795,  it  was 


SEMAPHORE    TELEGRAPH ITS    GENERAL    ADOPTION. 


29 


adopted  in  Sweden,  with  some  improvements  over  the  Chappe 
system  of  that  time.  Soon  after  the  establishment  of  the  lines 
in  France,  the  telegraph  was  erected  in  some  parts  of  G-ermany. 
But  the  mechanism  of  the  stations  of  that  day  was  not  so  per- 
fect as  it  has  since  been  made  by  the  brothers  Chappe,  and  as 
will  be  described  hereafter.  In  1823,  the  visual  telegraph 
was  established  between  Calcutta  and  the  fortress  of  Chunore, 
in  Asia.  A  year  later  it  was  erected  between  Alexandria  and 
Cairo,  in  Egypt,  by  Mohammed  Ali.  In  some  form  or  other  i\ 
has  spread  mostly  over  the  inhabited  globe. 

Fig.  1. 


German  Telegraph  Station,  1798. 


30 


GERMAN  AND  RUSSIAN  SEMAPHORE  TELEGRAPHS. 


THE  GERMAN  TELEGRAPH  STATION. 

"While  at  Frankfort  on  the  Main,  Germany,  in  1854, 1  found 
a  drawing  of  the  ancient  semaphore  telegraph,  used  in  that 
country  more  than  a  half  century  ago.  The  house  or  station 
was  a  plain  hut,  and  the  mechanism  for  manipulation  very 
simple,  as  will  be  seen  in  figure  1.  The  ropes  were  drawn  by 
the  hand,  moving  the  regulator  B  B,  and  the  indicators  B  c,  as 
desired.  The  position  of  the  regulator  and  the  indicators,  in 
the  figure  above,  forms  the  letter  A.  Suppose  the  indicators 
A  c  were  let  down  so  as  to  hang  below  B  B,  the  position  then 
would  form  the  letter  E.  The  different  angles  assumed  by  the 
regulator  and  the  indicators  form  letters,  as  illustrated  by  the 
alphabet  given  in  figure  1.  A  A  is  an  upright  post  made  per- 
manent in  the  earth  or  to  the  house.  The  descending  cords 
move  B  B  and  B  c  separately.  The  organization  of  the  me- 
chanism, and  the  mode  of  manipulation,  will  be  more  particu- 
larly described  in  the  next  chapter,  in  reference  to  the  Chappe 
telegraph. 

THE  SEMAPHORE  TELE  GRAPH  IN  RUSSIA. 

It  was  not  until  the  reign  of  the  great  Emperor  Nicholas  I., 
that  Russia  organized  a  complete  telegraphic  system,  which 
was  executed  in  the  most  gigantic  style  in  the  principal  direc- 
tions required  by  the  government.  From  Warsaw  to  St.  Pe- 
tersburg, to  Moscow,  and  on  other  routes,  the  towers  and  houses 
were  constructed  for  permanency  and  beauty.  They  were 
neatly  painted,  and  the  grounds  were  beautifully  ornamented 
with  trees  and  flowers.  I  have  seen  these  stations,  situated  on 
eminences  along  the  routes  mentioned,  every  five  or  six  miles, 
and  the  towers  were  in  height  according  to  the  face  of  the 
country,  and  sufficiently  high  to  overlook  the  tall  pine  so  com- 
mon in  Russia.  The  system  employed  was,  like  those  of  all 
the  other  governments  of  Europe,  the  Chappe  telegraph. 

The  erection  of  these  towers  cost  several  millions  of  dollars, 
and  the  expense  of  maintaining  them  was  very  great.  The 
line  from  the  Austrian  or  Prussian  frontier,  through  Warsaw  to 
St.  Petersburg,  required  about  220  stations,  and  at  each  of 
these  stations  were  some  six  employes,  making  an  aggregate 
of  1,320  men.  Besides  these,  there  were  managing  men  at 
different  localities  having  charge  of  the  general  administration. 

That  great  Emperor  Nicholas  I. — ever  watchful  and  pro- 
gressive— at  an  early  day  inaugurated  the  semaphore  telegraph 
in  a  manner  commensurate  with  the  vastness  of  his  government 
and  its  wants ;  and,  notwithstanding  the  immense  cost  that  it 
had  been  to  the  government,  as  soon  as  he  saw  a  superior  tele- 


RUSSIAN  SEMAPHORE  TELEGRAPH. 


31 


graph  he  adopted  it,  and  bade  farewell  to  the  visual  signals 
which  had  served  him  so  faithfully  for  a  quarter  of  a  century. 
It  was  a  noble  example  to  the  fixedness  of  the  bureau  depart- 
ments of  other  governments.  These  stations  are  now  silent. 
No  movements  of  the  indicators  are  to  be  seen.  They  are  still 
upon  their  high  positions,  fast  yielding  to  the  wasting  hand  of 
time.  The  electric  wire,  though  less  grand  in  its  appearance, 
traverses  the  empire,  and  with  burning  flames  inscribes  in  the 
distance  the  will  of  the  emperor  to  sixty-six  millions  of  human 
beings  scattered  over  his  wide-spread  dominions. 


Russian  Telegraph  Station,  1858. 


CHAPTER    III. 

Description  of  the  Chappe  Telegraph — Organization  of  the  Signal  Alphabet — 
.Process  of  Manipulation — Its  Celerity  in  Sending  Dispatches. 


DESCRIPTION  OF  THE  CHAPPE  SEMAPHORE  TELEGRAPH. 

I  WILL  now  proceed  to  describe  the  Chappe  sempahore  tele- 
graph according  to  the  modern  mode  of  operating  it.  The  de- 
scription is  from  the  best  authorities,  and  I  presume  it  will  be 
sufficiently  clear,  to  enable  any  one  to  understand  the  system 
in  its  most  complete  sense. 

i  The  Chappe  telegraph  is  composed  of  three  pieces :  one  is 
large  and  called  a  regulator,  and  two  small  ones,  which  are 
called  indicators.  The  regulator  A  B,  fig.  1,  is  a  long  rectan- 
gular piece,  13  inches  wide  and  14  feet  long,  and  from  1£  to  2 
inches  thick.  At  its  centre,  and  in  the  direction  of  its  centre, 
it  is  traversed  by  an  axis,  which  traverses  also  a  mast  or  verti- 
cal post  D  D  at  its  upper  extremity.  The  regulator,  thus  situ- 
ated and  elevated  little  over  14  feet  above  the  roof  T  T,  can  turn 
freely  on  its  axis,  and  describe  a  circle  of  which  the  plane  is 
vertical.  It  can  therefore  give  as  many  signals  as  it  can  repre- 
sent distinguishable  diameters  of  a  circle ;  but  to  avoid  all  con- 
fusion Chappe  wisely  reduced  its  telegraphic  positions  to  four, 
and  it  can  never  take  any  other  but  the  four,  namely,  the  ver- 
tical, horizontal,  right  oblique,  and  left  oblique ;  the  oblique 
Fig.  4.  forming  an  angle  of  45  degrees.  It  would  be  im- 
possible to  find  four  positions  better  defined  and  more 
distinct.  They  are  represented  in  figs.  2,  3,  4  and  5. 
The  two  indicators  A  c  and  B  c,  fig.  1,  are  also 
two  rectangular  pieces,  six  feet  long,  one  foot  wide, 
and  of  a  thickness  a  little  less  than  that  of  the  reg- 
ulator. They  are  attached  to  the  two  ends  of  the 
regulator  as  the  figure  represents..  Each  indica- 
tor has  at  its  extremity  A  and  B  an  axis  which  tra- 
verses the  regulator  at  the  same  point.  The  extremi- 
ty c  c  is  free  and  moveable,  each  indicator  can 
therefore  describe  a  circle,  of  which  the  plane*  is 
parallel  to  the  plane  of  the  circle,  which  the  regulator 
may  describe  ;  thus,  in  this  manner,  all  the  signals 
are  made  in  the  same  way,  vertical  and  perpendicu- 
lar to  the  line  of  vision. 


32 


THE    CHAPPE    SEMAPHORE    TELEGRAPH. 


t 
34  CHAPPE    SIGNAL    ALPHABET. 

The  regulator  having  its  axis  of  rotation  at  its  centre  of 
form  and  gravity,  remains  indifferently  in  whatever  posi- 
tion it  is  ^utj  but  the  indicator,  revolving  on  an  axis 
placed  at  one  of  the  ends,  are  free,  and  are  disposed  to  fall 
toward  the  earth.  To  counteract  this  tendency,  the  visible 
branches  of  the  indicators  B  c  and  A  c  are  counterbalanced  by 
a  weight  placed  on  a  branch  invisible  at'  distance  A  K  and  B 
K.  This  branch  at  first  formed  of  two  rods  of  iron  f  of  an  inch 
in  diameter,  fixed  at  the  extremities  B  and  A  of  the  indicators, 
was  soon  changed  into  a  single  rod,  by  forming  with  the  two 
an  acute  angle. 

Toward  its  extremity  the  branch  has  a  counterpoise  K  of 
lead,  which  keeps  the  indicator  in  equilibrium  in  all  its  various 
positions  around  its  axis.  It  is  understood  that  the  two  indica- 
tors should  be  of  the  same  weight,  and  that  their  axis  should 
be  at  equal  distances  from  the  axis  of  the  regulator. 

The  distance  from  the  centre  of  rotation  of  the  regulator  to 
the  centre  of  rotation  of  the  indicators  is  6^  feet,  that  from  the 
centre  of  rotation  of  the  indicators  to  their  movable  extremities 
is  5J  feet ;  when,  therefore,  the  two  indicators  are  turned  in- 
wardly, their  moveable  ends  are  two  feet  apart.  The  regula- 
tors and  the  indicators  are  made  like  a  window  shutter  with 
alternate  slot  or  bar,  and  aperture,  one  half  of  the  bars  setting 
to  the  right  and  the  other  half  to  the  left,  to  divide  the  force  of 
the  wind,  and  to  produce  light  and  shade. 

The  assemblage  of  these  three  pieces  forms  a  complete 
whole,  elevated  in  space,  and  sustained  by  a  single  point  of 
support,  namely,  the  rotating  axis  of  the  regulator,  which 
axis  turns  with  a  hug  sufficiently  tight  to  stand  at  any  given 
point,  at  the  upper  extremity  of  the  post  through  which  the 
said  axis  traverses  horizontally.  The  mast,  or  post  sustaining 
the  telegraph,  ought  to  be  very  solid  and  strong.  Tt  may  be 
double,  but  whether  single  or  double,  the  surface  which  is  pre- 
sented to  the  eye  ought  always  to  be  much  less  than  the 
width  of  the  regulator  and  indicator,  to  avoid  confusion.  The 
line  presented  by  this  elongated  surface  is  nevertheless  use- 
ful as  the  datum  line,  since  it  always  indicates  the  direc- 
tion of  the  vertical  line.  This  post  is  furnished  with  iron  pins 
on  each  side  to  serve  as  a  ladder  by  which  to  ascend. 

ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  CHAPPE  SIGNAL  ALPHABET. 

The  regulator  should  only  occupy  four  positions  :  the  vertical, 
fig.  2  ;  the  horizontal,  fig.  3  ;  the  right  oblique,  fig.  4 ;  and  the 
left  oblique,  fig.  5  ;  each  separated  from  the  other  by  an  angle 
of  45  degrees. 


I 
CHAPPE    SIGNAL    ALPHABET.  35 

Let  us  now  suppose  the  regulator 
placed  in  a  horizontal  position,  and  hav- 
ing a  single  indicator  B  E,  describe  a 
circle  around  its  axis  B,  and  by  stopping 
it  at  every  45  degrees  we  thus  give  to  it  Ac 
8  different  positions  in  regard  to  the  reg- 
ulator B  A.  Of  these  8  positions,  6  are 
angular  B  L,  B  M,  B  N,  B  F,  B  E,  and  B  D. 
Two  are  parallel  B  c  and  B  o.  This  last 
position  has  been  abandoned,  because  as 
it  is  merely  a  prolongation  of  the  regulator,  it  is  not  seen  dis- 
tinctly. 

The  7  relative  positions  of  the  indicator  and  of  the  regulator 
thus  give  7  distinct  indexes,  alf  combining  to  form  the  desired 
signals.  For  whatever  be  the  position  of  the  regulator,  the  in- 
dicator is  always  placed  in  a  horizontal,  or  vertical,  or  right 
oblique,  or  left  oblique  position,  respectively.  Of  these  seven 
signals,  one,  c  B,  confounds  itself  with  the  regulator,  and  is 
called  zero.  Two,  B  L  and  B  D,  form  with  the  regulator  an  an- 
gle of  90  degrees,  and  two,  B  N  and  B  F,  an  angle  of  135  degrees. 
It  is  necessary,  therefore,  to  find  simple  means  of  distinguishing 
them.  In  the  method  adopted  for  the  formation  of  signals,  the 
indicator  in  the  positions  B  L,  B  M,  and  B  N,  has  always  its  free 
extremity  turned  toward  the  sky,  and  its  other  extremity  to- 
ward the  earth,  in  the  positions  B  F,  BE,  and  B  D.  In  designa- 
ting angles,  the  words  sky  and  earth  will  be  used  to  avoid  pro- 
lixity. On  the  other  hand,  it  would  be  tedious  to  say  45  de- 
grees sky,  90  degrees  sky,  135  degrees  sky  or  earth.  These 
different  terms  have  been  adopted  to  economize  in  the  language. 
The  terms  used  are  zero,  5  sky,  10  sky,  15  sky,  15  earth,  10 
earth,  5  earth,  and  they  are  written  as  indicated  in  fig.  7. 
The  regulator  being  fixed  in  any  Fig.  7—  -^  — '  -^  -%  — i  —, 
of  the  four  positions  which  it  can 

take,  a  single  indicator  produ-     «  8  _     *_u-^_,       r—   T-* 
ces  with  it  7  distinct  and  sepa- 
rate signals.     It  is  evident  that 

the  indicator  placed  at  the  left        9  *~    <-*   *->    £-?  ^  *-*  *-, 
of  it,  will  produce  the  same  number,  and  these  are  called  the 
same,  except  they  are  described  as  at  the  left  of  the  indicator 
as  seen  in  fig.  8. 

Now,  if  we  consider  the  signals  which  may  result  from  the 
combination  of  the  seven  signals  of  one  indicator  with  the  seven 
signals  of  the  other  indicator,  we  shall  see  that  if  one  of  the  in- 
dicators is  placed  at  zero,  and  the  other  is  passed  through  its 
seven  positions,  we  shall  obtain,  in  the  first  place,  the  double 


36  CHAPPE    SIGNAL    TELEGRAPH. 

horizontal,  or  rather  the  horizontal  closed  line,  then,  zero  5 
sky,  zero  10  sky,  zero  15  sky,  zero  15  earth,  zero  10  earth,  and 
zero  5  earth,  as  seen  in  fig.  8. 

Elevating  and  keeping  at  "  5  sky"  one  of  the  indicators,  we 
shall  have  5  sky  zero,  two  5  sky,  5  and  10  sky,  5  and  15  sky, 
5  sky  and  15  earth,  5  sky  and  10  earth,  5  sky  and  15  earth,  which 
makes  7  other  signals,  as  seen  in  fig.  9. 

Elevating  and  keeping  at  "  10  sky"  one  of  the  indicators, 
we  will  obtain  seven  more  signals,  and  so  on, -until  the  seven 
signals  of  one  indicator  have  been  combined  with  each  of  the 
seven  signals  of  the  other,  giving  in  all  49  signals,  without 
changing  the  position  of  the  regulator ;  but  the  regulator  takes 
four  different  positions,  giving^  four  different  values  to  the  49 
signals,  and  raising  the  whole  number  of  possible  signals  to 
196,  furnished  by  the  Chappe  semaphore  telegraph.  These 
signals  are  clear,  simple,  and  easy  to  name  and  to  write.  It  is  im- 
possible to  commit  an  error,  on  a  clear  day,  in  seeing,  designa- 
ing,  or  writing  them.  One  grave  difficulty,  however,  present- 
ed itself  in  communicating,  that  is,  how  to  designate  to  the 
neighboring  station  that  the  signals  formed  were  correct,  and 
how  to  indicate  the  time  to  repea,t  them. 

The  brothers  Cimppe  decided  that  no  signals  should  be  formed, 
with  the  regulator  in  a  horizontal  or  perpendicular  position  ; 
that  all  signals  should  be  formed  on  the  right  oblique  or  left 
oblique.  They  also  decided  that  no  signal  should  have  value 
until  the  regulator  should  be  returned  to  a  vertical  or  horizon- 
tal position. 

In  this  way  the  operator  who  sees  a  signal  formed  on  the 
right  or  left  oblique,  notices,  and  prepares  himself  to  repeat  it 
back  to  the  station  ;  but  he  does  not  record  it.  As  soon  as  he 
sees  it  carried  to  the  horizontal  or  vertical  position,  he  knows  it 
to  be  correct,  and  he  immediately  writes  it  down,  and  then  re- 
peats it  to  the  same  station.  This  manoeuvre  is  called  "  verify- 
ing the  signal."  From,  that  time  each  signal  formed  on  each 
oblique  takes  a  double  value.  Since  it  may  be  carried  to  the 
horizontal  or  vertical  line,  49  signals,  there  can  be  received  98 
significations  in  passing  from  the  right  oblique  to  the  horizontal 
or  vertical  line  ;  and  the  same  for  the  left  oblique,  in  all  196 
signals.  Nevertheless,  the  signals  of  the  two  obliques  would 
not  be  intelligible  if  the  signals  of  the  right  oblique  were  not  dif- 
ferent from  those-  of  the  left  oblique ;  for  both  being  brought  to 
the  horizontal  or  vertical  line,  they  being  in  all  respects  similar, 
would  really  represent  only  98  signals,  unless  we  noticed  the 
direction  in  which  they  are  moved  to  a  horizontal  or  vertical 
position. 


THE     CHAPPE    SIGNAL    ALPHABET. 


37 


As  the  necessity  of  the  telegraph  requires  a  great  portion  of 
the  signals  for  the  purposes  of  regulation  and  police  of  the  line, 
the  rest  of  the  signals  being  devoted  exclusively  to  the  trans- 
mission of  dispatches,  these  two  classes  of  signals,  being  per- 
fectly distinct,  cannot  be  placed  in  the  same  journal  of  business. 
The  signals  formed  on  one  oblique  are,  therefore,  devoted  to 
the  administration  of  the  line,  and  those  on  the  other  oblique 
are  devoted  to  the  correspondence.  There  are  thus  98  regula- 
tion signals,  and  98  dispatch  signals,  which  are  all  written  on 
horizontal  and  vertical  lines,  but  written  separately  in  the  jour- 
nal book,  marked  out  for  the  registration  of  the  respective  ser- 
vices. The  signals  take  their  names 
when  they  are  formed  on  the  obliques, 
as  seen  in  fig.  10,  and  it  is  important 
to  remark  that  the  designation  of  a 
signal  must  commence  always  from 
the  upper  extremity  of  the  regu- 
lator. The  signals  are  never  written 
as  in  the  table,  fig.  10,  but  always 
on  the  horizontal  lines,  as  in  fig.  11, 
or  in  the  vertical  line,  as  in  table,  fig. 
12.  The  station  master  writes  them 
as  he  sees  them,  but  never  until  he  is 
sure  they  are  correctly  understood.  It 
now  remains  to  be  explained 


Fig.  10. 


\ 


Fig.  11. 


Fie:.  12. 


how  the  mechanism  which 
produces  these  signals  is 
operated.  To  one  not  fa- 
miliar with  signaling,  Ithe 
process  may  seem  surround- 
ed with  complications,  and 
tardiness  of  action.  Such, 
however,  is  not  the  case;  and 
a  knowledge  of  the  more 
modern  electric  needle  sys- 
tem of  telegraphing  would 
prove  the  error.  But  as  to 
the  rapidity  •  in  transmission, 
the  facts  hereafter  stated 
will  more  fully  demonstrate 
that  the  Chappe  telegraph 
is  not  a  slow  process  of  com- 
municating intelligence,  but  that  it  has  subserved  well  the 
purposes  contemplated  by  its  patriotic 
founder. 


n  1  r  r  i  j  j  j  ( 1 1 
m  /•(  u  j  UN 

mnnmu 
u.riin:i )  ( c  i 


and    enthusiastic 


38 


MANIPULATION  OP  THE  CHAPPE  TELEGRAPH. 


THE    PROCESS  OF    MANIPULATING  THE    CHAPPE 
TELEGRAPH. 

The  axis  a  a'  a",  fig  13,  which  com- 
mands the  regulator,  is  turned  by  a  pulley, 
j9,  fixed  at  its  extremity,  <z,  opposite  to  that 
of  a",  which  carries  the  regulator  ;  this 
pulley,  from  16  to  18  inches  in  diameter, 
contains  two  deep  grooves,  and  under  this 
pulley  in  the  interior  of  the  post  about 
three  feet  from  the  ground  is  another  sim- 
ilar one,  q,  which  also  has  two  grooves. 
The  second  pulley,  gyis  also  fixed  at  the 
extremity  £,  of  an  axis  b  b'  b",  which  tra- 
verses horizontally  the  interior  prolonga- 
tion of  the  post  D  D',  figures  1  and  13. 
In  order  to  receive  upon  a  square  b",  a 
double  lever  /  /,  which  serves  to  place  it 
in  rotation,  as  well  as  the  pulley  fixed  at 
its  other  extremity.  This  lever,  or  double 
right-hand  crank,  is  about  three-and-a- 
half  feet  long,  and  is  terminated  by  two 
wooden  handles  situated  at  right  angles 
from  each  other,  in  in.  Let  us  suppose 
now  that  the  lever  which  represents  a  di- 
ameter, and  describes  a  circle,  the  plane  of 
which  parallel  is  to  that  of  the  circle  de- 
scribed by  the  regulator  ;  let  us  suppose,  I 
say,  that  this  lever  is  fixed,  in  the  first 
place,  parallel  with  the  regulator,  and  at 
the  moment  we  transmit  to  the  pulley  p 
the  rotatory  movement,  which  it  will  give 
to  the  pulley  q  by  means  of  two  tightly- 
strained  bright  wire  cords,  of  which  one 
passes  to  the  right  of  the  two  pulleys  in 
one  ot  their  two  grooves,  and  the  other  to 
the  left  in  the  other  groove.  Suppose  now 
that  the  free  extremities  of  these  two  cords 
are  fastened  at  the  bottom  of  their  respect- 
ive grooves,  after  having  surrounded  the 
upper  and  lower  pulleys  by  at  least  half 
the  circumferences,  it  is  evident  that  the 
movement  described  by  the  lever  /  /  will 
be  transmitted  by  the  axis  b  b'  b"  to  the 
pulley  #,  which  will  transmit  it  exactly 
by  means  of  the  two  cords  c  c'  c"  to  the 
pulley  p  ;  and  that  this  latter  will  trans- 


MANIPULATION    OP    THE    CHAPPE    TELEGRAPH.  39 

mit  by  the  axis  a  a/  a"  to  the  regulator  R  R,  and  to  all 
'  the  parts  which  it  carries,  a'nd  that  the  regulator  will 
also  follow  the  movement  of  the  lever  I  I,  and  remain  per- 
fectly parallel  with  it.  It  is  also  evident  that  the  lever 
and  the  regulator  may  describe  at  least  a  circle,  because 
the  cords  are  wound  upon  each  pulley  for  each  half  of  a  cir- 
cumference at  each  extremity.  As  a  substitute  for  the  cords, 
and  to  give  them  easily  the  proper  tension  which  the  move- 
ment causes  them  to  lose,  the  middle  portion  of  them,  which  is 
never  required  to  pass  over  the  pulley,  are  iron  rods  with 
screws,  by  which  they  may  be  lengthened  or  shortened  at 
pleasure.  These  rods  are  terminated  above  and  below  by 
hooks  which  hold  the  cords  by  a  single  ring  in  the  end  of  the 
cord.  The  extremity  of  the  cords  which  answer  to  the  pulleys, 
traverses  the  bottom  of  the  groove,  through  a  hole  made  for 
that  purpose,  and  is  attached  to  a  spoke  of  the  pulley  which  is 
shortened  or  lengthened  by  means  of  a  screw.  By  this  very 
simple  system  a  station-master  may  change  very  rapidly  the 
cords  or  the  rods,  and  lengthen  or  shorten  them  at  pleasure. 
The  rods  or  cords  pass  through  the  roof  of  the  house,  through 
holes,  in  such  a  way  as  to  avoid  friction  as  much  as  possible. 

To  communicate  movement  to  the  indicators,  the  mechanism 
is  the  same  as  above  described,  only  a  little  more  complicated 
or  extended,  because  there  must  be  two  return  cords,  one 
from  the  extremities,  the  lever  /  /  at  its  axis  b"  and  the  other 
from  the  axis  of  the  regulator  a"  to  its  extremities  R  R.  In 
the  second  place  the  rotary  movement  must  be  transmitted  to 
two  different  and  independent  circles.  Let  us  consider  in  the 
first  place,  the  transmission  of  the  movement  to  a  single  indica- 
tor. 

The  indicator  is  governed  by  an  axis  i'  i",  which  also  governs 
the  pulley  with  two  grooves  m  ;  this  pulley  is  fastened  to  the 
pulley  o/  by  two  metallic  cords,  which  renders  all  their  movements 
dependent  and  identical ;  the  pulley  o/  forms  a  single  piece  with 
the  pulley  o  ;  these  two  pulleys  are  united  by  a  hollow  axis 
traversed  by  the  axis  of  the  regulator  a  a/  a/',  around  which  it 
turns  freely.  The  pulley  o,  and  consequently  the  pulley  (/  re- 
ceives all  its  movements  from  the  pulley  u',  which  receives 
them  from  the  pulley  u,  to  which  it  is  connected  by  a  hollow 
axis,  which  turns  upon  the  axis  b  b'  b"  of  the  lever  ;  the  pulley 
u  receives  its  movement  from  the  pulley  r  ;  this  last  pulley  is 
controlled  by  an  axis  which  traverses  the  lever  /  /,  in  which  it 
turns ;  the  extremity  If  of  this  axis  is  fixed  to  one  lever  form- 
ing the  ray  I"  u"  ;  this  lever,  or  handle  or  hand,  in  describing 
a  circle,  causes  the  pulley  r  to  describe  a  circle  in  the  same 


40  MANIPULATION    OF    THE    CHAPPE    TELEGRAPH. 

direction,  which  causes  the  same  result  to  the  pulley  u,  which 
in  its  rotation  draws  the  pulley  u\  and  this  rotation  is  trans- 
mitted to  the  pulley  o,  which  communicates  it  to  the  pulley  o', 
and  this  latter  causes  the  pulley  m  to  turn,  which  causes  the 
regulator  i  i  to  describe  a  complete  circle  in  the  same  direc- 
tion as  the  hand  I"  n"  has  done.  By  causing  this  hand  to 
describe  a  circle,  in  an  opposite  direction,  it  is  easily  seen  that 
the  indicator  will  do  the  same  thing.  Let  us  now  follow  the 
transmission  of  the  movement  to  the  second  indicator. 

By  causing  the  hand  I'  ri  to  turn,  the  pulley  r'  is  made 
to  turn,  which  causes  the  pulley  u'"  to  turn.  This  pulley 
forms^  a  single  piece  with  its  neighboring  pulley  u",  and  both 
turn  by  means  of  one  common  hollow  axis  ;  around  the  com- 
mon hollow  axis  of  the  two  pulleys  u  u',  the  pulley  u'\  trans- 
mits the  movement  to  the  pulley  o",  united  by  a  hollow  axis  to 
its  neighbor  o/x/.  This  hollow  axis  turns,  also,  around  the 
hollow  axis  common  to  the  pulleys  o/  and  o.  The  pulley  o"' 
puts  in  rotation  the  pulley  m^  which  makes  the  indicator  i'  i' 
describes  identically  the  same  movement  which  the  hand  V  ri 
had  made. 

If  we  observe,  now,  that  the  large  lever  /  /  makes  the  regu- 
lator describe  movements  similar  to  its  own,  and  that  it  draws 
by  these  movements  the  rays  I'  ri  I"  ri',  without  changing  the 
relations  established  between  them  and  itself,  and  that  the  in- 
dicators cannot  change  their  relative  positions  with  the  regu- 
lators, but  by  change  of  relation  with  the  said  rays  of  the  grand 
lever,  without  changing  the  relation  of  the  said  rays  to  the 
grand  lever,  we  shall  easily  understand. 

1st.  That  the  rays  I'  ri  I"  ri',  making  any  angle  with  the 
diameter  1 1,  the  indicators  1 1  ix  ix  will  make  precisely  the  same 
angles  with  the  regulator  R  R. 

2d.  Whatever  be  the  horizontal,  vertical,  right  oblique,  or 
left  oblique,  in  which  we  put  the  lever  I  I,  the  regulator  will 
take  the  same  position  ;  and,  as  this  same  movement  affects 
no  change  in  the  value  of  the  angles  formed  by  I'  ri  I"  ri''  with 
I  I,  the  indicators  will  also  remain  invariably  in  their  angles 
with  the  regulator. 

Thus  the'  interior  mechanism  gives  a  constant  and  exact 
image  of  the  exterior  mechanism,  and  the  signals  are  always 
reproduced  with  precision  before  the  eyes  of  the  operator. 

In  order  that  the  angles  of  the  indicators  and  of  the  regula- 
tors should  be  invariably  fixed,  the  hands  I'  ri  I"  ri'  are  fur- 
nished with  a  spring  and  a  tooth.  This  spring  is  designed  to 
make  the  tooth  t  enter  into  the  notches  of  the  steel  dividing 
circle  d.  These  divisions  are  seven  in  number,  of  45  degrees 


MANIPULATION    OF    THE    CHAPPE    TELEGRAPH.  41 

each.  The  axis  of  the  large  lever  also  carries  a  divisor  of  8 
notches ;  but  while  the  divisors  of  the  two  hands  are  fixed  in 
relation  to  the  axis  which  traverses  them,  said  divisor  of  the 
large  lever  is  fixed  upon  the  axis  and  turns  with  it.  When 
we  wish  to  hold  the  regulator  on  account  of  high  wind,  or  for 
other  cause,  we  place  a  kind  of  bolt  fixed  in  the  post  to  enter 
one  of  these  notches,  and  this  bolt  stops  all  movements  of  the 
regulator. 

As  the  indicator  ought  always  to  remain  motionless,  when 
the  regulator  is  move.d  after  a  signal  is  made,  the  spring 
above  mentioned  always  holds  the  tooth  of  the  hand  fixed 
in  the  notch  of  the  divisor  when  said  hand  has  been  placed 
in  such  a  way  that  the  operator  is  obliged,  when  he  wishes  to 
change  the  position  of  an  indicator,  to  draw  the  hand  toward 
himself  in  order  to  disengage  the  tooth,  and  to  let  go  of  the 
hand  when  the  tooth  has  arrived  opposite  the  new  notch  in 
which  the  tooth  is  to  be  fixed.  From  these  facts  it  will  be 
seen  that  the  mechanism  of  the  Chappe  telegraph  is  a  model 
of  simplicity  and  precision.  It  fulfills  the  conditions  of  ra- 
pidity, clearness,  and  variety  in  execution. 

Let  us  suppose  that  the  telegraph  is  at  rest  in  the  position 
represented  in  fig.  13,  which  position  is  called  the  vertical  closed, 
and  that  the  operator  enters  his  office  in  the  morning  ;  he  com- 
mences by  applying  his  eye  alternately  to  first  one,  and  then 
the  other  of  his  neighboring  telegraph  stations,  to  see  if  either  of 
them  are  giving  a  signal,  and,  in  the  meantime,  he  arranges 
on  his  desk,  pen,  ink,  and  record-book. 

As  soon  as  he  sees  one  of  the  two  stations  move,  he  draws  the 
bolt  which  holds  the  large  axis  at  rest,  and  puts  one  hand  upon 
the  upper  handle  of  the  great  crank,  and  then  looks  at  the  sig- 
nal which  has  been  formed. 

If  the  regulator  is  to  be  carried  to  the  right  oblique,  or 
left  oblique,  which  is  indispensable,  he  pushes  the  upper  ex- 
tremity of  the  handle  to  the  right  or  left,  aiding  the  move- 
ment at  the  same  time  by  pushing  the  lower  extremity  with  his 
leg,  at  the  same  time  he  puts  his  other  hand  upon  the  small 
lower  crank  I'  n'  in  order  to  commence  moving  the  indicator ; 
the  regulator  being  once  set  in  motion,  he  lets  go  the  upper 
handle  in  order  to  take  hold  of  the  handle  I"  n")  and  move  the 
second  indicator,  thus  the  signal  being  formed,  he  stops  it  on 
the  oblique  which  belongs  to  it.  He  thus  looks  through  his 
telescope  to  the  station  whence  the  signal  came,  to  see  if  said 
signal  has  been  carried  to  the  horizontal  or  to  the  vertical.. 
If  it  has  been  carried,  he  knows  it  to  be  correct,  and  accord- 
ingly records  it  as  he  sees  it  horizontal  or  vertical  in  the  square 


42  CELERITY   OF    DISPATCH    BY    CHAPPE    TELEGRAPH. 

of  signals  of  correspondence  ;  if  it  has  been  formed  on  the  other 
oblique,  he  records  the  hour  and  minute  at  which  the  labor 
commences  ;  and  lastly,  he  makes  his  own  signal,  and  watches 
to  see  if  the  station  to  which  he  communicates  the  dispatch 
repeats  and  carries  it  correctly.  If  he  is  sure  that  the  signal 
has  been  well  understood  and  properly  reproduced,  he  turns  to 
the  fjrst  telescope,  repeats  the  signal  which  he  sees  on  the 
oblique,  waits  till  it  is  carried  to  the  horizontal  or  vertical,  in 
order  to  record  it,  repeats  it  in  his  turn,  watches  if  it  is  cor- 
rectly taken  by  the  other  station,  and  the  operation  thus  con- 
tinues indefinitely. 
*  ' 

CELERITY  OF  DISPATCHING  BY  THE  CHAPPE  TELEGRAPH. 

The  greatest  speed  which  can  be  attained -in  the  passage  of 
signals  without  producing  confusion,  is  three  signals  a  minute, 
whence  it  follows  that  20  seconds  is  necessary  to  execute  all 
the  steps  of  a  signal,  to  record  it,  and  to  verify  it.  All  the 
signals,  however,  do  not  require  this  period  of  time,  as  there 
are  half  signals.  These  half  signals  are  four  in  number — the 
double  zero  or  vertical  closed,  the  closed  or  double  horizontal 
zero,  the  right  oblique  closed  and  left  oblique  closed.  These 
are  all  made  in  their  place,  and  it  is  only  necessary  to  fold  in 
the  two  indicators.  These  demi-signals  are  very  useful,  be- 
cause they  serve  to  distinguish  groups  of  signals  ;  *and,  be- 
cause, being  frequently  necessary,  they  waste  less  time  than 
a  signal  execution,  of  which  requires  several  steps  and  move- 
ments. The  movements  of  the  regulator  are  so  easy,  when 
the  machine  is  in  good  order,  and  there  is  no  wind,  that  gen- 
erally the  operator  can,  by  using  the  two  hands  to  develop  the 
indicators,  at  the  same  time  bring  the  regulator  to  the  position 
which  it  is  to  occupy. 

The  complete  operation  of  a  signal  is  as  follows  :  1st.  Ob- 
serve the  signal  which  is  formed  on  the  oblique.  2d.  Form 
it.  3d.  Observe  if  it  is  carried  to  the  horizontal  or  to  the  ver- 
tical. 4th.  Carry  it  in  a  corresponding  manner.  5th.  Record 
it.  6th.  See  if  the  next  station  reproduces  it  exactly. 
These  six  steps  ought  to  be  equal  in  duration  of  time ;  if  it 
were  otherwise  a  signal  would  be  badly  observed  by  the  two 
stations  corresponding.  We  also  remedy  inequalities  of  strength 
and  of  agility,  in  the  operators,  by  directing  that  there  must 
never  be  a  change  of  a  signal  carried,  before  the  station  to 
which  it  is  communicated  has  also  carried  it. 

Suppose  a  passage  of  3  signals  a  minute,  the  different  steps 
ought  to  be  thus  divided  :  for  observing,  4  seconds  ;  forming  on 
the  oblique,  4  seconds ;  observing  the  carrying,  and  carrying, 


CELERITY    OF    DISPATCH    BY    CHAPPE    TELEGRAPH. 


43 


4  seconds ;  recording,  4  seconds ;  and  verifying  with  the  next 
station,  4  seconds :  total,  20  seconds. 

This  rapidity  of  three  signals  a  minute  is  far  from  "being 
constant.  It  can  only  be  depended  upon  when  the  weather 
is  fine,  when  the  operators  are  well  disposed,  experienced,  and 
faithful. 

Chappe  said,  that  when  the  weather  was  fine,  and  the  fogs 
and  haziness  of  the  atmosphere  are  not  a  hindrance  to  vision, 
the  first  signal  of  a  communication  ought  not  to  occupy  more 
than  10  or  12  minutes  in  passing  from  Toulon  to  Paris,  cities 
situated  215  leagues  or  475  miles  apart,  and  connected  by  a 
telegraph  line  of  120  stations ;  but  Chappe  added,  that  if  we 
suppose  a  continuous  correspondence  between  Paris  and  Tou- 
lon, there  would  ordinarily  arrive  at  Toulon  but  one  signal  a 
minute. 

To  recapitulate,  the  Chappe  telegraph  gives  98  primitive 
signals  for  the  correspondence,  and  98  primitive  regulating  and 
indicating  signals.  These  two  classes  of  signals,  although 
alike,  must  not  be  confourided,  because  they  are  formed  one 
on  the  left  oblique,  and  the  other  on  the  right  oblique ;  and 
because  they  are  recorded  one  in  the  regulation  column,  and 
the  other  in  the  column  of  correspondence.  This  record  I  have 
arranged  in  the  following  form,  viz. : 


No.  of  Signals.  •[ 

REGULATIONS  AND  OFFICE  SIGNALS. 

SIGNALS  OF  CORRESPONDENCE. 

Right  Oblique. 

Left  Oblique. 

Right  Oblique. 

Left  Oblique. 

Ho*  Carried. 

How  Carried. 

How  Carried. 

How  Carried. 

These  signals  may  succeed  each  other  with  the  rapidity  of 
3  per  minute.  They  form  figures  easy  to  observe,  easy  to  re- 
cord, and  without  an  effort  of  the  mind ;  the  machine  is  solid, 
light,  and  elegant.  A  man  of  moderate  intelligence  is  entirely 
competent  to  manage  the  correspondence. 

To  show  the  immense  superiority  of  the  Chappe  telegraph 
over  all  other  aerial  telegraphs  which  have  been  devised  or 
temporarily  established,  either  before  or  since  his  time,  it  would 
be  sufficient  to  describe  them  and  notice  their  resources ;  and 


44  CELERITY    OF    DISPATCH    BY    CHAPPE    TELEGRAPH. 

we  shall  see  that  none  of  them,  if  we  except  the  Swedish  tele- 
graph invented  by  Edelcrantz,  can  be  said  to  have  sub- 
served the  purposes  of  science  or  telegraphic  art.  In  France, 
where  the  most  perfect  model  has  been  before  their  eyes,  all 
efforts  made  previous  to  the  time  of  Chappe  were  but  rude 
approaches  to  the  Chappe  system,  and  but  one  of  those  efforts 
still  in  existence.  The  system  of  Chappe  produced,  as  a  first 
and  inevitable  result,  a  diminution  of  just  one  third  in  rapidity 
of  the  signals.  By  analyzing  its  movements  it  is  easy  to  antici- 
pate such  a  result ;  but  it  is  more  easy  to  be  convinced  of  it  by 
taking  such  a  position  as  to  have  a  view  of  the  towers  of  St. 
Sulpice.  Upon  one  of  these  towers  is  the  Chappe  telegraph, 
and  upon  the  other,  the  telegraph  devised  by  Mr.  Flocon, 
the  third  administrator  of  the  telegraph.  By  watching  these 
two  telegraphs  for  an  hour,  and  counting  exactly  the  number 
of  the  signals,  it  will  be  seen  that  the  Chappe  telegraph  gives 
exactly  three  signals,  while  the  other  gives  two.  A  second  ob- 
jection to  Mr.  Flocon's  telegraph  is,  that  it  requires  a  greater 
degree  of  intelligence  to  operate  it;  consequently  it  is  more 
liable  to  fault  in  transmitting  correspondence  and  in  recording 
them.  The  regulator  is  placed  upon  a  vertical  mast  or  post, 
and  the  indicators  are  attached  to  the  extremities  of  a  fixed 
horizontal  bar ;  all  the  signals  are  therefore  given  horizontally. 
We  must  observe  the  regulator  separately,  in  order  to  know 
if  we  understand  whether  the  signals  belong  to  the  right  oblique 
or  to  the  left  oblique,  and  we  must  record  them  vertically  or 
horizontally.  If  they  are  to  be  recorded  vertically,  we  must 
then  make  an  abstract  of  what  we  have  seen,  and  after  ar- 
ranging the  figure  in  the  head,  then  make  a  draft  of  it.  The 
telegraph,  modified  by  Mr.  Flocon,  nevertheless  offers  one  ad- 
vantage, that  of  being  less  difficult  to  operate  when  the  wind 
is  light ;  but,  it  is  said  that  it  is  not  by  means  of  new  machines, 
or  retrenchments,  or  additions  to  them,  as  perfected  by  Chappe, 
that  the  aerial  telegraphing  can  be  improved.  The  true  and 
only  way  of  progress  in  semaphore  telegraphing  is  to  find  the 
means  of  multiplying  the  number  of  primitive  signals  ;  to  com- 
bine these  signals  in  such  a  way  as  to  express,  with  the  least 
motion  and  in  the  shortest  time  possible,  the  greatest  quantity 
of  numbers  ;  to  represent  by  these  numbers  as  many  ideas  as 
possible,  and  to  double  the  period  of  correspondence  by  con- 
tinuing it  through  the  night. 

The  greatest  effort  and  the  most  active  inventive  talent  have 
been  thwarted  in  every  effort  to  make  an  aerial  telegraph  effect- 
ive at  night,  and  even  Chappe  admitted  its  impracticability 
after  the  most  arduous  labors  to  consummate  the  object.  Like 


CELERITY    OF    DISPATCH    BY    CHAPPE    TELEGRAPH.  45 

result  has  followed  the  labors  of  others  down  to  the  present 
time. 

"  We  may  at  present,"  says  Mr.  Jules  Gruyot,  from  whom 
much  of  this  description  has  been  copied,  "  without  changing 
anything  in  the  exactitude  of  the  signals,  and  without  changing 
anything  in  the  mechanism  that  produces  them,  double  their 
number.  We  may  raise  them  to  82,944  words  ;  parts  of,  or  the 
whole  of  phrases,  by  two  signals  expressed  by  4,  5  arid  6  move- 
ments ;  and  we  may  devise  plans  to  establish  the  Chappe  tele- 
graph  by  night  as  it  is  by  day.  Thus  the  resources  of  the  tele- 
graphic art  are  far  from  being  exhausted,  and  to  accomplish 
these  ends  the  inventive  mind  can  be  directed." 


CHAPTER     IV. 


The  Prussian  Semaphore  Telegraph — The  English  Semaphore — The  Gonon, 
Chappe,  Guyot,  and  Treutler's  Improvements  on  the  Chappe  Telegraph. 

THE  PRUSSIAN  SEMAPHORE  TELEGRAPH. 

Fig.  l.  THE  Prussian  telegraph,  represented  by 

fig.  1,  was  introduced  into  Prussia  in 
the  year  1832,  when  the  government  ap- 
propriated 170,000  thalers  for  the  estab- 
lishment of  a  line  of  stations  between 
Berlin  and  Troves,  passing  through  Pots- 
dam, Magdeburg,  Cologne,  and  Coblcntz. 
The  mechanism  of  the  apparatus  differs 
essentally  from  that  of  the  Chappe.  A 
vertical  post  traverses  the  platform  of  the 
station,  and  rises  to  the  height  of  20  feet. 
The  post  bears  three  pairs  or  couples  of 
wings  moveable  around  their  extremities. 
The  wings  are  4  feet  long,  and  1^  feet 
wide.  Each  wing  is  fixed  to  a  pulley,  over  which  passes  a  cord. 
This  cord,  in  the  room  of  the  station-master,  passes  around  a 
second  pulley,  to  which  a  handle  is  attached.  The  rotation  of 
the  handle  causes  each  wing  to  describe  a  semi-circle  ;  but  only 
four  of  these  positions  are  used,  those  which  the  wing  forms 
with  the  vertical  angles  0°,  45°,  90°,  and  135°.  While  one 
of  the  upper  wings  remains  in  the  same  position,  the  second 
wing  may  take  four  different  positions,  so  that  each  pair  of  wings 
furnishes  16  signals.  One  of  these  signals  being  given,  the 
second  or  middle  pair  of  wings  may,  in  their  turn,  take  16  rel- 
atively different  positions,  and  consequently  the  first  two  wings 
give  together  16  x  16  =  256  signals.  This  product  multiplied 
by  the  sixteen  signals  of  the  third  pair,  gives  a  total  of  4.096. 
Such  is  the  number  of  signals  at  command  by  the  Prussian 
telegraph. 

The  Prussian  telegraph  was  perfected  and  extended  over 
the  kingdom  with  a  degree  of  enterprise  highly  commendable 
to  the  nation.  Experts  were  called  into  the  service,  and  no- 
where could  be  found  a  system  more  admirably  conducted. 
"Wherever  improvements  could  be  made,  they  were  promptly 
adopted,  and,  at  an  early  day  after  the  establishment  of  the 
semaphore  in  Prussia,  it  was  materially  simplified. 

46 


SEMAPHORE  TELEGRAPH  IN  ENGLAND. 


47 


THE  ENGLISH  SEMAPHORE  TELEGRAPH. 

Fig.  2. 


English  Telegraph  Station. 


The  English  telegraph  is 
represented  in  fig.  2.  It  con- 
sists of  a  quadrangular 
frame,  in  which  six  octag- 
onal plates  or  panels  turn 
around  a  horizontal  axis. 
These  six  panels  are  divi- 
ded into  two  groups,  each 
formed  of  three  plates,  placed 
vertically  above  each  other. 
A  simple  mechanism  of  pul- 
leys and  cranks  enables  the 
operator  to  exhibit  each  pan- 


Fig.  3. 


L 


48  IMPROVEMENTS    OF    SEMAPHORE    TELEGRAPH. 

nel  either  its  face  or  edge,  and  as  each  panel  takes  two  dif- 
ferent positions  the  whole  will  give  64  very  distinct  signals. 
This  telegraph  was  introduced  into  England  in  1795,  and 
has  performed  much  valuable  service  for  the  government  and 
commerce.  In  searching  for  facts  upon  this  subject  in  the 
British  Museum  in  London,  some  years  since,  I  found  the  above 
drawings.  They  represent  their  erection  close  to  the  earth,  as 
was  the  case  some  half  a  century  ago.  High  hills  were  then 
chosen,  and  upon  them  a  rude  structure  was  placed,  as  seen  in 
fig.  2. 

THE  GONON  IMPROVEMENT  OF  THE  SEMAPHORE  TELEGRAPH. 

ft 

This  improvement  is  composed  of  two  columns,  one  of  which 
is  33  feet,  and  the  other  28  feet  high.  To  each  of  these  two 
columns  are  fitted  two  moveable  arrows.  Between  these  four 
arrows  the  distance  is  nine  feet,  which  space  is  filled  with  six 
windows  or  openings,  arranged  so  as  to  be  opened  and  closed 
at  pleasure.  There  are  four  dial  plates  with  a  crank  corre- 
sponding to  the  four  arrows,  and  six  keys  corresponding  to  the 
six  sashes  or  openings.  With  this  simple  mechanism  the  ope- 
rator can  from  his  room  move  the  arrows,  shut  and  open  the 
sashes,  and  form  40,960  signals,  which  Mr.  Gronon  found  was 
all  that  would  be.  wanted  for  a  general  correspondence.  By 
adding  two  fixed  lights  to  each  of  the  sashes,  and  two  movea- 
ble lights  to  each  of  the  arrows,  Mr.  Gonon  said  he  could, 
after  some  little  preparation,  operate  his  machine  as  a  night 
telegraph,  the  signals  being  exactly  the  same. 

ABRAHAM  CHAPPE5S  IMPROVEMENT  ON  THE  ORIGINAL  SEMAPHORE. 

More  recently  Mr.   Abraham   Chappe  proposed  an  improve- 
ment on  the  system  first  erected,  which  he  described  in  sub- 
stance, as  follows  : 
Fig.  4.  Pig.  5.  "  In  my  new  system 

^        j       ,  of  numeration  and  com- 

i  7  bination  of  signals,  all 

the  official  signals  are  given  on  the  horizontal  line  as  represent- 
ed in  fig.  4.     During  the  entire  dispatch  the  indicator  alone 
Fi    g  moves.    Each  indica- 

tor, in  describing  its 
circle,  stops  as  here- 
tofore described  at  the 
six  positions,  marked 
in  fig.  4,  that  is,  5, 
10,  and  15  sky ;  5, 


GUYOT'S  IMPROVEMENT  OF  SEMAPHORE  TELEGRAPH.     49 


10,  and  15  earth.  Each  angle  of  fig.  5,  of  an  indicator,  signi- 
fies a  single  number,  and  each  corresponding  angle  of  the  op- 
posite indicator  represents  the  same  number.  The  closed  alone 
represent  nothing. 

"  Inclosing  the  left  indicator  and  opening  successively  the 
right  indicator  under  its  six  angles,  I  shall  have  in  the  same 
order  the  number  1,  2,  3,  4,  5,  and  6,  by  the  signals  represent- 
ed in  fig.  5.  In  developing  both  indicators  at  once,  I  shall 
obtain  36  combinations  of  two  figures  each,  as  seen  in  fig.  6. 
The  numbers  given  by  these  36  combinations  are  216  series, 
and  combining  signals  sufficient  to  represent  58,190  more  than 
was  used  by  the  older  system." 

GUYOT'S  IMPROVEMENT  OF  THE    SEMAPHORE    TELEGRAPH. 

Mr.  Jules  Guyot  proposed  an  im- 
provement which  is  thus  described. 
At  distances  of  two  to  three  miles 
a  post  was  fixed  about  30  feet  high, 
strongly  fastened  at  the  foot.  The 
upper  extremities  were  stayed  by 
guys  of  four  iron  cords.  A  station- 
house,  some  eight  feet  square  at  the 
foot,  was  erected  for  manipulating. 
The  posts  were  fitted  with  ladder  pins, 
by  which  they  could  be  ascended  at 
pleasure.  Each  pole,  or  mast,  bore 
near  its  upper  end  a  fixed  axis  par- 
allel to  the  line,  upon  which  a  needle 
or  indicator  turned  in  a  vertical 
plane.  Fifteen  feet  lower  was  a 
second  and  a  similar  axis  and  indi- 
cator, and  between  these  two  axes 
was  a  moveable  piece  or  regulator 
which  could  raise  as  high  as  the  up- 
per axis,  or  descend  to  the  lower  one. 

They  were  about  nine  feet  long,  and  about  three  feet  wide 
at  the  smaller  end,  and  about  four  feet  at  the  widest  end. 
They  were  constructed  with  slats  as  the  window  blind,  paint- 
ed a  heavy  black  through  the  centre,  and  white  on  the  lateral 
bands.  This  ingenious  contrivance  of  Mr.  Guyot's  was  never 
practically  established,  but  it  unquestionably  possessed  very 
great  merit. 

The  night  telegraph,  proposed  by  Mr.  Guyot,  was  con- 
structed  with  two  liquid  hydrogen  lanterns,  suspended  at  the 

4 


50 


TREUTLER  IMPROVEMENT  OF  SEMAPHORE  TELEGRAPH. 


Fig.  8. 


lower  indicator  of  the  day  tele- 
graph, so  as  to  give  a  light  in 
both  directions.  He  also  pro- 
posed to  use  lanterns  on  the 
Chappe  telegraph,  by  placing 
two  white  lights  at  each  ex- 
tremity of  the  regulator,  and 
two  bright  green  lights  at  the 
extremity  of  the  indicators.  By 
means  of  an  arrangement  of 
these  lights  the  Chappe  tele- 
graph was  made  to  serve  for 
the  night.  Fig.  8  represents 
the  signals  on  the  right  oblique  indicating  signals  10  earth, 
and  10  sky,  and  in  which  all  the  lanterns  are  outside  of  the 
mechanism,  illustrating  the  day  telegraph  transformed  into  the 
night. 


Fig.  9. 
\^/ 


THE    TREUTLER    IMPROVEMENT    IN    SEMAPHORE 


TELEGRAPHING. 


Fig.  10. 


Mr.  Treutler,  of  Ber- 
lin, constructed  a  sema- 
phore telegraph  to  be 
used  principally  in  the 
railway  service.  Fig. 
9  represents  the  whole 
mechanism  invented  by 
him.  It  was  a  mast 
with  a  single  pair  of 
wings.  These  movea- 
ble  wings  were  furnish- 
ed with  two  series  of 
mirrors  as  represented  in  fig.  10,  designed 
to  reflect  the  parallel  to  the  line,  and  in  two 
opposite  directions. 


STATIC   ELECTRICITY, 


CHAPTER    V. 

Static  Electricity  Explained — Conductors  and  Non-Conductors — Vitreous  and 
Resinous  Electricity — Discovery  of  the  Leyden  Jar — Franklin's  Electrical 
Theories — Coulomb's  Theories  of  Electro-Statics — Franklin's  Reasons  for 
believing  that  Lightning  and  Electricity  were  Identical — Identity  of  Light- 
ning and  Electricity  Demonstrated — The  Franklin  Kite  Experiment — Dis- 
tribution of  Electricity — Phenomena  of  Resistance  to  Induction — Phenomena 
of  Attraction  and  Repulsion — Igniting  Gas  with  the  Finger — The  Leyden 
Jar  Experiments. 

STATIC    ELECTRICITY    EXPLAINED. 

THE  name,  electricity,  is  derived  from  the  Greek  word 
jjheKrpov,  which  signifies  amber,  the  first  substance  upon  which, 
electrical  properties  were  seen. 

Since  the  discovery  of  this  mysterious  phenomenon  in  nature, 
the  whole  world  has  been  startled  from  time  to  time,  by  its 
extraordinary  developments.  It  was  unknown  to  the  ancients, 
and  as  a  science,  it  dates  with  the  eighteenth  century.  ;  &l 

I  do  not  propose  to  discuss  the  intricacies  of  this  science,  ex- 
cept in  general  terms,  and  to  a  very  limited  extent.  The  facts 
herein  mentioned,  are  from  many  standard  works, 

Static  electricity  is  more  commonly  called  frictional  elec- 
tricity. The  term  "  static"  is  applied,  to  distinguish  the  action 
of  the  force  excited  by  friction,  from  that  excited  by  chemical 
action.  Frictional,  or  static  electricity,  exhibits  itself  in  a  state 
of  equilibrium,  and  remains  comparatively  at  rest,  except  dur- 
ing the  instant  of  discharge  ;  while  voltaic,  or  chemical  elec- 
tricity, appears  to  be  constantly  in  motion,  from  one  pole  of  the 
voltaic  battery  to  the  other,  and  has  hence  been  called  current 
electricity.  Static  electricity  is  sometimes  called  "  electricity 
at  rest,"  and  voltaic,  or  current,  is  called  "  electricity  in  mo- 
tion." 

The  subject-matter,  considered  in  this  chapter,  will  be  "  static 


STATIC    ELECTRICITY 


electricity,"  and  in  another  chapter  will  be  explained  the  dif- 
ferent elements  organized,  to  generate  voltaic  or  "  electricity 
in  motion,"  as  applied  for  telegraphic  purposes. 

It  is  supposed  that  electricity,  in  some  form  or  other,  exists 
in  all  nature,  nevertheless,  some  substances  manifest  a  greater 
degree  of  its  presence  than  others. 

CONDUCTORS    AND    NON-CONDUCTORS. 

The  metals  were  found  to  rank  highest  in  this  property.  It 
has  been  subsequently  discovered  that  all  bodies  are  conductors 
of  electricity  more  or  less.  No  substance  is  at  present  known 
which  is  an  absolutely  perfect  non-conductor.  With  all  bodies, 
the  passage  through  them  of  a  definite  amount  of  electricity 
is  but  a  question  of  time. 

The  great  object  to  be  maintained  in  the  construction  of  an 
electric  telegraph  is,  to  .give  the  greatest  possible  facility  for 
the  passage  of  the  power  to  a  particular  distant  station,  and  to 
throw  every  possible  obstacle  in  the  way  of  the  escape  of  any 
portion  of  the  power  in  any  other  direction  than  the  one  desired. 

For  such  purpose,  the  most  perfect  conductors  are  used  for 
the  conveyance  of  the  power,  and  the  most  perfect  insulators 
made  to  surround  such  conductors. 

The  following  table  exhibits  the  conducting  power  of  seve- 
ral bodies  with  respect  to  electricity.  It  begins  with  the  most 
perfect  conductors,  and  ends  with  those  which  are  the  least 
perfect  conductors.  The  properties,  therefore,  of  these  latter 
bodies,  approximate  most  closely  to  that  of  non-conductors  or 
insulators.  The  exact  order,  however,  is  by  no  means  fully 
substantiated  as  yet,  and  the  table  must  therefore  only  be  taken 
ae  a  general  guide. 


All  the  metals,  viz. : 


Silver, 

Copper, 

Gold, 

Brass, 

Zinc, 

Tin, 

Platinum, 

Palladium, 

Iron  and 

Lead, 

Well-burnt  Charcoal, 

Plumbago, 

Concentrated  acids, 

Powdered  charcoal, 

Dilute  acids, 

Saline  solutions, 


Metallic  ores, 

Animal  fluids. 

Sea-water, 

Spring-water, 

Rain-water, 

Ice  above  13°  Fahr. 

Snow, 

Living  vegetables, 

Living  animals, 

Flame, 

Smoke, 

Steam, 

Salts  soluble  in  water, 

Rarefied  air, 

Vapor  of  alcohol, 

Vapor  of  ether, 


Moist  earths  and  stones, 
Powdered  glass, 
Flour  of  sulphur, 
Dry  metallic  oxydes, 
Oils — heaviest  the  best, 
Ashes,  vegetable  bodies, 
Ashes  of  animal  bodies, 
Many  transparent  crys- 
tals, dry, 

Ice  below  13°  Fahr., 
Phosphorus, 
Lime, 
Dry  chalk, 
Native  carbonate  of  ba- 

rytes, 
Lycopodium, 


DISCOVERY    OF    THE    LEYDEN  JAR..  53 

Gum  elastic,  Parchment,  Mica, 

Camphor,  Dry  paper,  All  vitrifications, 

Some  silicious  and  argil-  Feathers,  Glass, 

laceous  stones,  Hair,  Jet, 

Dry  marble,  Wool,  Wax, 

Porcelain,  Dyed  silk,  Sulphur, 

Dry  vegetable  bodies,  Bleached  silk,  Resins, 

Baked  wood,  Raw  silk,  Amber, 

Dry  gases  and  air,  Transparent  gems,  Shellac. 

Leather,  Diamond, 

Grutta-percha,  has  recently  been  discovered,  and  it  is  found 
in  practical  service  to  be  a  better  non-conductor  than  glass, 
and  possibly  than  shellac.  It  has  proved  of  wonderful  utility 
in  the  art  of  telegraphing. 

VITREOUS    AND    RESINOUS    ELECTRICITY. 

The  celebrated  philosopher,  Dufaye,  discovered  that  there 
were  two  distinct  kinds  of  electricity,  one  of  which  he  called 
vitreous,  or  that  of  glass,  rock-crystal,  precious  stones,  hair  of 
animals,  wool,  and  many  other  bodies  ;  and  the  other  resinous, 
that  of  amber,  copal,  gum-lac,  silk-thread,  paper,  and  a  vast 
number  of  other  substances.  He  showed  that  bodies  having  the 
same  kind  of  electricity  repel  each  other,  but  attract  bodies 
charged  with  electricity  of  the  other  kind  ;  and  he  proposed 
that  test  of  the  state  of  the  electricity  of  any  given  substance 
which  has  ever  since  his  time  been  adhered  to,  viz. :  to  charge 
a  suspended  light  substance  with  a  known  species  of  electricity, 
and  then  to  bring  near  it  the  body  to  be  examined.  If  the 
suspended  substance  was  repelled,  the  electricity  of  both  bodies 
was  the  same ;  if  attracted,  it  was  different. 

DISCOVERY    OF    THE    LEYDEN    JAR. 

It  was  in  the  year  1746,  that  those  celebrated  experiments? 
which  drew  for  many  succeeding  years  the  almost  exclusive 
attention  of  men  of  science  to  the  new  subject,  and  which  led 
the  way  to  the  introduction  of  the  Ley  den  vial — were  made 
by  Muschenbroek,  Cuneus,  and  Kleist.  Professor  Muschen- 
broek  and  his  associates,  having  observed,  that  electrified 
bodies,  exposed  to  the  atmosphere,  speedily  lost  their  electric 
virtue,  conceived  the  idea  of  surrounding  them  with  an  insu- 
lating substance,  by  which  they  thought  that  their  electric 
power  might  be  preserved  for  a  longer  time.  Water  contained 
in  a  glass  bottle  was  accordingly  electrified,  but  no  remarkable 
results  were  obtained,  till  one  of  the  party,  who  was  holding 
the  bottle,  attempted  to  disengage  the  wire  communicating 
with  the  prime  conductor  of  a  powerful  machine ;  the  conse- 


54  STATIC    ELECTRICITY. 

quence  was,  that  he  received  a  shock,  which,  though  slight, 
compared  with  such  as  are  now  frequently  taken  for  amuse- 
ment from  the  Leyden  vial,  his  fright  magnified  and  exagger- 
ated in  an  amusing  manner.  In  describing  the  effect  produced 
on  himself,  by  taking  the  shock  from  a  thin  glass  bowl,  Musch- 
enbroek  stated  in  a  letter  to  Reaumer,  that  "  he  felt  himself 
struck  in  his  arms,  shoulders,  and  breast,  so  that  he  lost  his 
breath,  and  was  two  days  before  he  recovered  from  the  effects 
of  the  blow  and  the  terror,"  adding,  "  he  would  not  take  a 
second  shock  for  the  kingdom  of  France."  M.  Allamand,  on 
taking  a  shock,  declared,  "  that  he  lost  the  use  of  his  breath 
for  some  minutes,  arid  then  felt  so  intense  a  pain  along  his 
right  arm,  that  he  feared  permanent  injury  from  it."  Winkler 
stated,  that  the  first  time  he  underwent  the  experiment,  "  he 
suffered  great  convulsions  through  his  body ;  that  it  put  his 
blood  into  agitation ;  that  he  feared  an  ardent  fever,  and  was 
obliged  to  have  recourse  4,o  cooling  medicines  !"  The  lady  of 
this  professor  took  the  shock  twice,  and  was  rendered  so  weak 
by  it,  that  she  could  hardly  walk.  The  third  time  it  gave  her 
bleeding  at  the  nose.  Such  was  the  alarm  with  which  these 
early  electricians  were  struck,  by  a  sensation  which  thousands 
have  since  experienced  in  a  much  more  powerful  manner,  with- 
out the  slightest  inconvenience.  It  serves  to  show  how  cautious 
we  should  be  in  receiving  the  first  accounts  of  extraordinary 
discoveries,  where  the  imagination  is  likely  to  be  affected. 

After  the  first  feelings  of  astonishment  were  somewhat  abated, 
the  circumstances  which  influenced  the  force  of  the  shock  were 
examined.  Muschenbroek  observed  that  the  success  of  the 
experiment  was  impaired  if  the  glass  was  wet  on  the  outer  sur- 
face. Dr.  "Watson  showed,  that  the  shock  might  be  transmit- 
ted through  the  bodies  of  several  men  touching  each  other,  and 
that  the  force  of  the  charge  depended  on  the  extent  of  the  ex- 
ternal surface  of  the  glass  in  contact  with  the  hand  of  the 
operator.  Dr.  Bevis  proved  that  tin-foil  might  be  substituted 
successfully  for  the  hand  outside,  and  for  the  water  inside  the 
jar  ;  he  coated  panes  of  glass  in  this  way,  and  found  that  they 
would  receive  and  retain  a  charge  ;  and  lastly,  Dr.  Watson 
coated  large  jars  inside  and  outside  with  tin- foil,  and  thus  con- 
structed what  is  now  known  as  the  Leyden  vial. 

FRANKLIN'S   ELECTRICAL  THEORIES. 

It  was  in  the  year  1747,  that,  in  consequence  of  a  commu- 
nication from  Mr.  Peter  Collinson,  a  Fellow  of  the  Royal  Society 
of  London,  to  the  Literary  Society  of  Philadelphia,  Franklin 
first  directed  his  attention  to  electricity  ;  and  from  that  period, 


55 

till  1754,  his  experiments  and  observations  were  embodied  in  a 
series  of  letters,  which  were  afterward  collected  and  published. 
"  Nothing,"  says  Priestley,  "  was  ever  written  upon  the  subject 
of  electricity,  which  was  more  generally  read  and  admired  in 
all  parts  of  Europe,  than  these  letters.  It  is  not  easy  to  say, 
whether  we  are  most  pleased  with  the  simplicity  and  perspi- 
cuity with  which  they  are  written,  the  modesty  with  which  the 
author  proposes  every  hypothesis  of  his  own,  or  the  noble  frank- 
ness with  which  he  relates  his  mistakes  when  they  were  cor- 
rected by  subsequent  experiments."  The  opinion  adopted  by 
Franklin  with  respect  to  the  nature  of  electricity  differed  from 
that  previously  submitted  by  Dufaye.  His  hypothesis  was  as 
follows :  "  All  bodies  in  their  natural  state  are  charged  with 
a  certain  quantity  of  electricity,  in  each  body  this  quantity 
being  of  definite  amount.  This  quantity  of  electricity  is  main- 
tained in  equilibrium  upon  the  body  by  an  attraction  which  the 
particles  of  the  body  have  for  it,  and  does  not  therefore  exert 
any  attraction  for  other  bodies.  But  a  body  may  be  invested 
with  more  or  less  electricity  than  satisfies  its  attraction.  If  it 
possesses  more,  it  is  ready  to  give  up  the  surplus  to  any  body 
which  has  less,  or  to  share  it  with  any  body  in  its  natural  state ; 
if  it  have  less,  it  is  ready  to  take  from  any  body  in  its  natural 
state  a  part  of  its  electricity,  so  that  each  will  have  less  than 
its  natural  amount.  A.  .body  having  more  than  its  natural 
quantity  is  electrified  positively  or  plus,  and  one  which  has 
less  is  electrified  negatively  or  minus.  One  electric  fluid  is 
thus  supposed  to  exist,  and  all  electrical  phenomena  are  refer- 
able either  to  its  accumulation  in  bodies  in  quantities  more 
than  their  natural  share,  or  to  its  being  withdrawn  from 
them,  so  as  to  leave  them  minus  their  proper  portion.  Elec- 
trical excess  then  represents  the  vitreous,  and  electrical  defi- 
ciency the  resinous  electricities  of  Dufaye  :  and  hence  the  terms 
positive  and  negative,  for  vitreous  and  resinous"  The  appli- 
cation of  this  theory  to  the  explanation  of  the  Leyden  vial 
will  appear  in  its  proper  place. 

Besides  this  theory,  we  are  indebted  to  Franklin  for  the  dis- 
covery of  the  identity  of  lightning  and  electricity,  for  the  in- 
vention of  paratonnerres,  and  for  the  discovery  of  induction, 
which  latter  principle  was  immediately  taken  up,  and  pur- 
sued through  its  consequences  by  Wilke  and  (Epinus,  and  soon 
led  to  the  invention  of  an  instrument,  which  in  the  hands  of 
Volta,  became  the  condenser,  now  so  useful  in  electroscopical 
investigations. 

Franklin's  hypothesis  was  investigated  mathematically  by 
(Epinus  and  Mr.  Cavendish,  between  the  years  1759  and  1771. 


56  STATIC    ELECTRICITY. 

About  the  same  time  the  electrophorus  was  constructed  by 
Yolta ;  Watson  and  Canton  fused  metals  by  .electricity,  and 
Beccaria  decomposed  water,  although  at  the  time  he  had  no  idea 
he  had  done  so,  supposing  it  to  be  a  simple  elementary  sub- 
stance. 

COULOMB'S  THEORIES  OF  ELECTRO-STATICS. 

In  the  year  1785,  the  foundation  of  electro-statics  was  laid 
by  Coulomb,  a  most  profound  philosopher,  who  reduced  elec- 
tricity, the  most  subtile  of  all  physical  agents,  to  the  rigorous 
sway  of  mathematics,  and  caused  it  to  become  a  branch  of 
mathematical  physics.  By  means  of  his  torsion  electrical  bal- 
ance, he  made  three  valuable  additions  to  the  science ;  estab- 
lishing— 1st,  That  electrical  forces,  viz.,  attraction  and  repul- 
sion, vary  inversely  as  the  square  of  their  distances,  following, 
it  will  be  observed,  the  same  law  as  gravitation  ; — 2d,  That 
excited  bodies,  when  insulated,  gradually  lose  their  electricity  free 
from  two  causes  ;  from  the  surrounding  atmosphere  being  never 
free  from  conducting  particles,  and  from  the  incapacity  of  the 
best  insulators  to  retain  the  whole  quantity  of  electricity  with 
which  any  body  may  be  charged,  there  being  no  substance 
known  altogether  impervious  to  electricity — Coulomb  deter- 
mined the  effect  of  both  these  causes  ; — 3d,  That  when  elec- 
tricity is  accumulated  in  any  body,  the  whole  of  it  is  deposited 
on  the  surface,  and  none  penetrates  to  the  interior.  A  thin  hol- 
low sphere  may  contain  precisely  as  much  electricity  as  a  solid 
of  the  same  size.  Hence,  accumulation  is  not  a  consequence 
of  attraction  for  mass  of  matter,  but  on  the  contrary,  is  solely 
due  to  its  repulsive  action.  These  observations  of  Coulomb  on 
the  distribution  of  the  electric  fluid  on  the  surfaces  of  con- 
ductors, illustrated  satisfactorily  the  doctrine  of  points  which 
formed  so  prominent  a  part  of  Franklin's  researches. 


ELECTRICITY    WERE    IDENTICAL. 

It  was  in  the  year  1749,  that  the  celebrated  American  phi- 
losopher, Franklin,  in  a  letter  to  Mr.  Collinson,  stated  fully  his 
reasons  for  considering  the  cause  of  electricity  and  lightning 
to  be  the  same  physical  agent,  differing  in  nothing,  save  the 
intensity  of  its  action.  "  When,"  says  he,  "  a  gun-barrel,  in 
electrical  experiments,  has  but  little  electrical  fire  in  it,  you 
must  approach  it  very  near  with  your  knuckle  before  you  can 
draw  a  spark  ;  give  it  more  fire  and  it  will  give  a  spark  at  a 
greater  distance.  Two  gun-barrels  united,  and  as  highly  elec- 
trified, will  give  a  spark  at  a  still  greater  distance.  But  if  two 
gun-barrels  electrified  will  strike  at  two  inches  distance,  and 


IDENTITY    OF    LIGHTNING    AND    ELECTRICITY.  57 

make  a  loud  snap,  to  what  a  great  distance  may  ten  thousand 
acres  of  electrified  cloud  strike,  and  give  its  fire,  and  how  loud 
must  be  that  crack  ?"  He  next  states  the  analogies  which  afford 
presumptive  evidence  of  the  identity  of  lightning  and  electricity. 
The  electrical  spark  is  zig-zag,  and  not  straight ;  so  is  light- 
ning. Pointed  bodies  attract  electricity ;  lightning  strikes 
mountains,  trees,  spires,  masts,  and  chimneys.  When  different 
paths  are  offered  to  the  escape  of  electricity,  it  chooses  the  best 
conductor  ;  so  does  lightning.  Electricity  fires  combustibles : 
s*o  does  lightning.  Electricity  fuses  metals  :  so  does  lightning. 
Lightning  rends  bad  conductors  when  it  strikes  them ;  so  does 
electricity  when  rendered  sufficiently  strong.  Lightning  reverses 
the  poles  of  a  magnet ;  Electricity  has  the  same  effect.  A  stroke 
of  lightning  when  it  does  not  kill,  often  produces  blindness. 
Lightning  destroys  animal  life,  and  so  do  electrical  shocks. 

In  his  memorandum-book  of  November  7th,  1749,  Frank- 
lin wrote  the  following  reasons,  which  induced  him  to  believe, 
that  the  lightning  and  electricity  were  identical : 

"  Electric  fluid  agrees  with  lightning  in  these  particulars : 
1,  giving  light ;  2,  color  of  the  light ;  3,  crooked  direction ; 
4,  swift  motion ;  5,  being  conducted  by  metals ;  10,  melting 
metals ;  11,  firing  inflammable  substances ;  12,  sulphurous 
smell.  The  electric  fluid  is  attracted  by  points.  We  do  not 
know  whether  this  property  is  in  lightning,  but  since  they  agree 
in  all  the  particulars  in  which  we  can  already  compare  them, 
is  it  not  probable  they  agree  likewise  in  this  ?  Let  the  experi- 
ment be  made." 

From  the  effect  of  points  on  electrified  bodies,  Franklin  in- 
ferred that  lightning  might  also  be  drawn  silently  and  safely 
from  the  clouds,  by  a  metallic  point  fixed  at  a  great  elevation, 
and  he  waited  with  considerable  anxiety  the  completion  of  a 
spire  at  Philadelphia,  to  enable  him  to  try  the  experiment.  In 
the  meantime,  he  published  his  discoveries,  and  suggested  to 
others  to  make  the  necessary  experiment. 

He  published  to  the  world  the  following  plan : 

"  To  determine  this  question,  whether  the  clouds  that  con- 
tain lightning  be  electrified  or  not,  I  would  propose  an  experi- 
ment to  be  tried,  where  it  may  be  done  conveniently.  On  the 
top  of  some  high  tower  or  steeple,  place  a  kind  of  sentry-box, 
big  enough  to  contain  a  man  and  an  electrical  stand.  From 
the  middle  of  the  stand  let  an  iron  rod  rise,  and  pass,  bending 
out  of  the  door,  and  then  upright  twenty  or  thirty  feet,  pointed 
very  sharp  at  the  end.  If  the  electrical  stand  be  kept  clear 
and  dry,  a  man  standing  on  it,  when  such  clouds  are  passing 
low,  might  be  electrified,  and  afford  sparks,  the  rod  drawing 


t)8  STATIC    ELECTRICITY. 

fire  to  him  from  a  cloud.  If  any  danger  to  the  man  be  appre- 
hended, let  him  stand  on  the  floor  of  his  box,  and  now  and 
then  bring  near  to  the  rod  the  loop  of  a  wire  that  has  one  end 
fastened  to  the  leads,  he  holding  it  by  a  wax  handle  ;  so  the 
sparks,  if  the  rod  is  electrified,  will  strike  from  the  rod  to  the 
wire,  and  not  affect  him." 

IDENTITY    OP    LIGHTNING    AND    ELEOTRICITY    DEMONSTRATED. 

In  accordance  with  the  above  suggestions,  two  Frenchmen) 
M.  Dalibard  and  M.  Delor,  each  erected  an  apparatus  for  th$ 
purpose  of  drawing  from  the  clouds  the  lightning.  M.  Deli- 
bard  coastructed  his  at  Marly-la-ville,  about  six  leagues  from 
Paris,  and  M.  Delor  had  his  on  a  high  part  of  Paris. 

M.  Dalibard's  apparatus  consisted  of  an  iron  pointed  rod, 
forty  feet  long,  the  lower  end  of  which  was  inserted  in  a  sentry- 
box,  protected  from  rain,  and  on  the  outside  it  was  fastened  to 
three  wooden  posts  by  silk  cords,  also  defended  from  the  rain. 
It  was  this  rod  that  first  attracted  electricity  from  the  clouds. 
M.  Dalibard  was  absent  from  Marly  at  the  time,  and  had  left 
the  apparatus  in  charge  of  an  old  soldier,  named  Coiffier,  who 
was  at  the  time  engaged  as  a  carpenter.  On  the  10th  of  May, 
1752,  between  two  and  three  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  a  sud- 
den clap  of  thunder  made  Coifner  hurry  to  his  post,  and, 
according  to  the  instructions  given  him,  he  presented  a  vial 
furnished  with  a  brass  wire  to  the  rod,  and  immediately  saw  a 
bright  spark,  accompanied  by  a  loud  snapping  noise.  After 
having  taker*  another, spark  stronger  than  the  first,  he  called  in 
the  neighbors,  and  sent  for  the  cure.  The  latter  ran  to  the 
spot  with  all  speed,  and  his  parishioners  seeing  him  running, 
followed  at  his  heels,  expecting  that  Coifner  had  been  killed  by 
lightning ;  nor  were  they  prevented  from  hastening  to  the  spot, 
notwithstanding  a  violent  hail-storm.  The  cure  was  equally 
successful  in  drawing  sparks  from  the  iron  rod,  and  instantly 
dispatched  an  account  of  the  important  event  to  M.  Dalibard. 
The  cure  stated  that  the  sparks  were  of  a  blue  color,  an  inch 
and  a  half  long,  and  smelt  strongly  of  sulphur.  He  drew 
sparks  at  least  six  times  in  about  four  minutes,  and  in  the 
course  of  these  experiments  he  received  a  shock  in  the  arm, 
extending  above  the  elbow,  which  he  said  left  a  mark,  such  as 
might  have  been  made  by  a  blow  with  the  wire  on  the  naked 
skin. 

Eight  days  after  this  experiment,  the  rod  erected  by  M. 
Delor,  which  was  ninety-nine  feet  higk,  yielded  electric  sparks ; 
and  the  same  phenomenon  was  afterward  exhibited  to  the 
French  king,  and  to  members  of  the  nobility. 


IDENTITY   OF    LIGHTNING    AND    ELECTRICITY. 
Fig.  1. 


59 


60  STATIC    ELECTRICITY. 

THE    FRANKLIN     KITE     EXPERIMENT. 

The  experiment  made  by  Franklin  was  in  June,  1752  ;  the 
description  of  which  will  be  found  in  the  following  : 


"  He  prepared  his  kite  by  making  a  small  cross  of  two  light 
strips  of  cedar,  the  arms  of  sufficient  length  to  extend  to  the 
four  corners  of  a  large  silk  handkerchief  stretched  upon  them ; 
to  the  extremities  of  the  arms  of  the  cross  he  tied  the  corners 
of  the  handkerchief.  This  being  properly  supplied  with  a  tail, 
loop,  and  string,  could  be  raised  in  the  air  like  a  common  paper 
kite ;  and  being  made  of  silk,  was  more  capable  of  bearing 
rain  and  wind.  To  the  upright  arm  of  the  cross  was  attached 
an  iron  point,  the  lower  end  of  which  was  in  contact  with  the 
string  by  which  the  kite  was  raised,  which  was  a  hempen  cord. 
At  the  lower  extremity  of  this  cord,  near  the  observer,  a  key 
was  fastened :  and  in  order  to  intercept  the  electricity  in  its 
descent,  and  prevent  it  from  reaching  the  person  who  held  the 
kite,  a  silk  ribbon  was  tied  to  the  ring  of  the  key,  and  con- 
tinued to  the  hand  by  which  the  kite  was  held. 

Furnished  with  this  apparatus,  on  the  approach  of  a  storm, 
he  went  out  upon  the  commons  near  Philadelphia,  accompanied 
by  his  son,  to  whom  alone  he  communicated  his  intentions, 
well  knowing  the  ridicule  which  would  have  attended  the  re- 
port of  such  an  attempt  should  it*  prove  to  'be  unsuccessful. 
Having  raised  the  kite,  he  placed  himself  under  a  shed,  that 
the  ribbon  by  which  it  was  held  might  be  kept  dry,  as  it  would 


THE    FRANKLIN    KITE    EXPERIMENT.  61 

become  a  conductor  of  electricity  when  wetted  by  rain,  and  so 
fail  to  afford  that  protection  for  which  it  was  provided.  A 
cloud,  apparently  charged  with  thunder,  soo*n  passed  directly 
over  the  kite.  He  observed  the  hempen  cord ;  but  no  bristling 
of  its  fibres  was  apparent,  such,  as  was  wont  to  take  place 
when  it  was  electrified.  He  presented  his  knuckle  to  the  key, 
but  not  the  smallest  spark  was  perceptible.  The  agony  of  his 
expectation  and  suspense  can  be  adequately  felt  by  those  only 
who  have  entered  into  the  spirit  of  such  experimental  researches. 
After  the  lapse  of  some  time,  he  saw  that  the  fibres  of  the  cord  near 
the  key  bristled,  and  stood  on  end.  He  presented  his  knuckle 
to  the  key  and  received  a  strong  bright  spark.  It  was  light* 
ning.  The  discovery  was  complete,  and  Franklin  felt  that  he 
was  immortal. 

A  shower  now  fell,  and  wetting  the  cord  of  the  kite  im- 
proved its  conducting  power.  Sparks  in  rapid  succession  were 
drawn  from  the  key  ;  a  Leyden  jar  was  charged  by  it,  and  a 
shock  given  :  and,  in  fine,  all  the  experiments  which  were  wont 
to  be  made  by  electricity  were  reproduced,  identical  in  all  their 
concomitant  circumstances.1' 

Franklin  afterward  raised  an  insulated  metallic  rod  from 
one  end  of  his  house,  and  attached  to  it  a  chime  of  bells, 
which,  by  ringing,  gave  notice  of  the  electrical  state  of  the 
apparatus. 

These  interesting  experiments  were  eagerly  repeated  in  al- 
most every  civilized  country,  with  variable  success.  In  France, 
a  grand  result  was  obtained  by  M.  de  Romas  :  he  constructed 
a  kite  seven  feet  high,  which  he  raised  to  the  height  of  550 
feet  by  a  string,  having  a  fine  wire  interwoven  through  its 
whole  length.  On  the  26th  of  August,  1756,  flashes  of  fire, 
ten  feet  long,  and  an  inch  in  diameter,  were  given  off  from  the 
conductor.  In  the  year  1753,  a  fatal  catastrophe  from  incau- 
tious experiments  upon  atmospheric  electricity,  occurred  to 
Professor  Richmann,  of  St.  Petersburg ;  he  had  erected  an  ap- 
paratus in  the  air,  making  a  metallic  communication  between 
it  and  his  study,  where  he  provided  means  for  repeating  Frank- 
lin's experiments  :  while  engaged  in  describing  to  his  engraver, 
Sokoloflf,  the  nature  of  the  apparatus,  a  thunder-clap  was  heard, 
louder  and  more  violent  than  any  which  had  been  remembered 
at  St.  Petersburg.  Richmann  stooped  toward  the  electrometer 
to  observe  the  force  of  the  electricity,  and  "  as  he  stood  in  that 
posture,  a  great  white  and  bluish  fire  appeared  between  the 
rod  of  the  electrometer  and  his  head.  At  the  same  time  a  sort 
of  steam  or  vapor  arose,  which  entirely  benumbed  the  engraver, 


62  STATIC    ELECTRICITY. 

and  made  him  sink  on  the  ground."  Several  parts  of  the  ap- 
paratus were  broken  in  pieces  and  scattered  about :  the  doors 
of  the  room  were  torn  from  their  hinges,  and  the  house  shaken 
in  every  part.  The  wife  of  the  professor,  alarmed  by  the 
shock,  ran  to  the  room,  and  found  her  husband  sitting  on  a 
chest,  which  happened  to  be  behind  him  when  he  was  struck, 
and  leaning  against  the  wall.  He  appeared  to  have  been 
instantly  struck  dead ;  a  red  spot  was  found  on  his  forehead, 
his  shoe  was  burst  open,  and  a  part  of  his  waistcoat  singed  ; 
SokolofF  was  at  the  same  time  struck  senseless.  This  dread- 
ful accident  was  occasioned  by  the  neglect  on  the  part  of  Rich- 
mann  to  provide  an  arrangement  by  which  the  apparatus,  when 
too  strongly  electrified,  might  discharge  itself  into  the  earth, 

DESCRIPTION    OF    ELECTRICAL    MACHINES. 

I  have,  now,  sufficiently  explained  to  the  reader  the  wonder- 
ful experiments  of  Franklin,  and  those  in  France,  made  in  the 
month  of  May,  1752,  in  accordance  with  the  plans  published 
by  him.  I  will  proceed  to  notice  the  means  of  manifesting 

Fig.  3. 


DESCRIPTION    OF    ELECTRICAL    MACHINES.  63 

frictional  electricity,  commonly  known  as  static,  in  contradis- 
tinction to  that  generated  by  chemical  action.  Static  elec-' 
tricity,  as  I  have  already  stated,  is  sometimes  called  "  electricity 
at  rest,"  and  a  voltaic  current,  is  called  "  electricity  in  motion." 
The  former  remains  comparatively  at  rest,  excepting  during  the 
instant  of  discharge. 

The  following  are  descriptions  of  electrical  machines,  viz. : 
There  are  two  kinds  of  electrical  machines  in  general  use — 
the  cylindrical,  and  the  plate  machine.  The  former  is  shown 
in  fig.  3.  It  consists  of  a  hollow  cylinder  of  glass,  supported 
on  brass  bearings,  which  revolve  in  upright  pieces  of  wood 
attached  to  a  rectangular  base  ;  a  cushion  of  leather  stuffed 
with  horse-hair,  and  fixed  to  a  pillar  of  glass,  furnished  with  a 
screw  to  regulate  the  degree  of  pressure  on  the  cylinder ;  a 
cylinder  of  metal  or  wood  covered  with  tin-foil,  mounted  on  a 
glass  stand,  and  terminated  on  one  side  by  a  series  of  points 
to  draw  the  electricity  from  the  glass,  and  on  the  other  side  by 
a  brass  ball.  A  flap  of  oiled  silk  is  attached  to  the  rubber  to 
prevent  the  dissipation  of  the  electricity  from  the  surface  of 
the  cylinder  before  it  reaches  the  points.  On  turning  the  cylin- 
der, the  friction  of  the  cushion  occasions  the  evolution  of  elec- 
tricity, but  the  production  is  not  sufficiently  rapid  or  abundant 
without  the  aid  of  a  more  effective  exciter,  which  experience 
has  shown  to  be  a  metallic  substance.  The  surface-  of  the 
leather  cushion  is  therefore  smeared  by  certain  amalgams  of 
metals,  which  thus  become  the  real  rubber.  The  amalgam 
employed  by  Canton,  consisted  of  two  parts  of  mercury,  and 
one  of  tin,  with  the  addition  of  a  little  chalk.  Singer  proposed 
a  compound  of  two  parts '  by  weight  of  zinc,  and  one  of  tin, 
with  which  in  a  fluid  state  six  parts  by  weight  of  mercury  are 
mixed,  and  the  whole  shaken  in  an  iron,  or  thick  wooden  box, 
until  it  cools.  It  is  then  reduced  to  a  fine  powder  in  a  mortar, 
and  mixed  with  lard  in  sufficient  quantity  to  reduce  it  to  the 
consistency  of  paste.  This  preparation  should  be  spread  cleanly 
over  the  surface  of  the  cushion,  up  to  the  line  formed  by  the 
junction  of  the  silk  flap  with  the  cushion ;  but  care  should 
be  taken  that  the  amalgam  should  not  be  extended  to  the  silk 
flap.  It  is  necessary  occasionally  to  wipe  the  cushion,  flap,  and 
cylinder,  to  cleanse  them  from  the  dust  which  the  electricity 
evolved  upon  the  cylinder  always  attracts  in  a  greater  or  less 
quantity.  It  is  found  that  from  this  cause,  a  very  rapid 
accumulation  of  dirt  takes  place  on  the  cylinder,  which  ap- 
pears in  black  spots  and  lines  upon  its  surface.  As  this  obstructs 
the  action  of  the  machine,  it  should  be  constantly  removed, 


tH  STATIC    ELECTRICITY. 

which  may  be  done  by  applying  to  the  cylinder,  as  it  revolves, 
a  rag  wetted  with  spirits  of  wine.  The  production  of  electri- 
city is  greatly  promoted  by  applying,  with  the  hand  to  the 
cylinder,  a  piece  of  soft  leather,  five  or  six  inches  square,  cov- 
ered with  amalgam.  This  is,  in  fact,  equivalent  to  giving  a 
temporary  enlargement  to  the  cushion. 

The  use  of  the  oiled  silk  flap  is  to  prevent  the  dissipation  of 
the  electricity  evolved  on  the  glass  by  contact  with  the  air ;  it 
is  thus  retained  on  the  cylinder  till  it  encounters  the  points  of 
the  prime  conductor,  by  which  it  is  rapidly  drawn  off  It  is 
usual  to  cover  with  a  varnish  of  gum  lac,  those  parts  of  the 
glass  beyond  the  ends  of  the  rubber,  with  a  view  of  preventing 
the  escape  of  the  electricity  through  the  metallic  caps  at  the 
extremities  of  the  cylinder,  and  the  inside  of  the  flap  is  also 
sometimes  coated  with  a  resinous  cement,  consisting  of  four 
parts  of  Venice  turpentine,  one  part  of  resin,  and  one  of  bees' 
wax,  boiled  together  for  about  two  hours  in  an  earthen  pipkin 
over  a  slow  fire. 

Fig.  4. 


When  the  cylindrical  machine  is  arranged  for  the  develop- 
ment of  either  positive  or  negative  electricity,  the  conductor  is 
placed  with  its  length  parallel  to  the  cylinder,  and  the  points 


DISTRIBUTION   OF    ELECTRICITY.  65 

project  from  its  side,  as  in  the  machine^shown  in  the  figure. 
The  negative  conductor  supports  the  rubber,  and  receives  from 
it  the  negative  electricity,  not  by  induction,  as  is  the  case  with 
the  positive  conductor,  but  by  communication.  If  it  be  re- 
quired to  accumulate  positive  electricity,  a  chain  must  be  car- 
ried from  the  negative  conductor  (which  of  course  is  insulated) 
to  the  ground.  If  on  the  other  hand,  negative  electricity  be 
required,  then  the  conductor  must  be  put  in  communication 
with  the  earth,  and  the  rubber  insulated. 

The  plate  electrical  machine  is  shown  in  fig.  4.  It  consists 
of  a  circular  plate  of  thick  glass,  revolving  vertically  by  means 
of  a  winch  between  two  uprights :  two  pairs  of  rubbers,  formed 
of  slips  of  elastic  wood,  covered  with  leather,  and  furnished 
with  silk  flaps,  are  placed  at  two  equi-distant  portions  of  the 
plate,  on  which  their  pressure  may  be  increased  or  diminished 
by  means  of  brass  screws.  The  prime  conductor  consists  of 
hollow  brass,  supported  horizontally  from  one  of  the  up- 
rights ;  its  arms,  where  they  approach  the  plate,  being  furnished 
with  points. 

With  respect  to  the  merits  of  these  two  forms  of  the  electri- 
cal machine,  it  is  difficult  to  decide  to  which  to  give  the  pref- 
erence. For  an  equal  surface  of  glass,  the  plate  appears  to  be 
the  most  powerful ;  it  is  not,  however,  so  easily  arranged  for 
negative  electricity,  in  consequence  of  the  uninsulated  state 
of  the  rubbers,  though  several  ingenious  methods  of  obviating 
this  inconvenience  have  been  lately  devised. 

DISTRIBUTION    OF    ELECTRICITY. 

When  a  substance  be-  Fig.  5. 

comes  charged  with  elec- 
tricity, it  is  extremely 
probable,  in  the  opinion 
of  philosophers,  that  the 
fluid  is  confined  to  its 
surface,  or,  at  any  rate, 
that  it  does  not  penetrate 
into  the  mass  to  any  extent.  This  is  a  question  difficult  to 
demonstrate,  and  my  observations  have  induced  me  to  believe, 
that  in  the  case  of  voltaic  currents  the  electricity  moves  upon 
or  at  the  surface,  but  that  the  interior  of  the  metallic  conductor 
is  under  the  influence  of  the  fluid,  though  in  a  state  of  rest. 

Experiments  have  been  made  with  static  or  frictional  elec- 
tricity by  Biot,  and  the  following  facts  were  arrived  at :  A  ball 

5 


66  STATIC    ELECTRICITY. 

formed  of  any  kind  of  material,  will  be  equally  electrified 
whether  it  "be  solid  or  hollow,  and  if  it  he  hollow,  the  charge 
which  it  receives  will  he  the  same  whether  the  shell  of  matter 
of  which  it  is  formed  he  thick  or  thin. 

A  sphere  of  conducting  matter,  A,  is  insulated  by  a  silk 
thread,  and  two  thin  hollow  hemispheres,  B  B,  made  of  metallic 
foil  or  gilt  paper,  and  provided  with  glass  handles,  correspond- 
ing with  the  shape  and  magnitude  of  the  conductor.  The 
sphere  A,  is  electrified,  and  the  covers  are  then  applied,  being  held 
by  the  glass  handles.  After  withdrawing  them  from  A,  they 
are  found  to  be  charged  with  the  same  kind  of  electricity  as 
was  communicated  to  A,  and  the  ball  will  be  found  to  have 
lost  the  whole  of  its  charge,  proving  that  the  electricity  resided 
on  the  surface  only. 

Fig  6. 


To  further  demonstrate  that  the  electricity  holds  its  position 
on  the  surface,  fig.  6  is  to  illustrate.  At  the  ends  of  the  cyl- 
inder, are  attached  an  electroscope,  composed  of  two  elder- 
pith  balls,  suspended  to  linen  threads.  The  whole  is  to  be 
electrified,  and  the  pith-balls,  a  a,  will  diverge  as  seen  in  the 
figure.  In  this  state  take  hold  of  the  silken  thread  at  6,  and 
then  unroll  the  metallic  ribbon  b.  When  it  is  unrolled,  the 
pith-balls  will  come  into  or  near  a  contact.  Replace  the  rib- 
bon, and  the  balls  diverge  again.  When  the  metallic  ribbon 
is  taken  off,  it  carries  from  the  cylinder  the  whole  of  the  elec- 
tric charge.  The  outer  layer  of  the  metallic  ribbon,  when 
around  the  cylinder,  is  charged  plus,  as  compared  with  the  inner 
layer,  but  as  soon  as  the  ribbon  has  been  taken  from  its  circu- 
lar position,  the  electricity  immediately  distributes  itself  equally 
throughout  the  ribbon's  surface.  Restore  the  ribbon  around  the 
cylinder,  and  the  plus  will  be  found  on  the  exterior  surface. 


ATTRACTION    AND    REPULSION. 


67 


Figure  7  is  another  illustration  of  the  diffusion 
of  electricity  on  the  outside  of  vessels.  This  is  a 
cylinder  made  of  wire- gauze.  Let  the  insulated 
B  he  lowered  into  a  wire-gauze  cylinder,  A,  fig.  7, 
when  electrified  and  mounted  on  an  insulating 
stand.  It  may  touch  every  part  of  the  interior 
without  receiving  any  portion  of  the  electricity, 
with  which  the  exterior  surface  is  charged,  though 
the  slightest  touch  on  the  other  side  of  the  open 
wire  mesh  communicates  electricity  to  the  hall. 

I  am  fully  sensible  of  the  fact,  that  this  import- 
ant principle  in  philosophy  has  not  been  clearly 
demonstrated  in  the  foregoing,  but  the  room  allowed 
in  this  work  renders  further  explanations  impossible,  and  the 
reader  must  refer  to  the  standard  works  on  electricity  for  ful- 
ler information  in  the  premises. 

PHENOMENA    OF    RESISTANCE    TO    INDUCTION. 
Fig.  8. 


Figure  8  represents  the  resistance  to  induction  and  discharge 
offered  by  any  given  media,  such  as  atmospheric  air,  &c.  The 
glass  tube,  a  b,  two  feet  long,  is  furnished  at  either  end  with  a 
brass  ball  projecting  into  its  interior,  and  carefully  exhausted 
of  its  air  by  means  of  an  air-pump ;  on  connecting  the  end  #, 
with  the  prime  conductor,  and  the  end  £,  with  the  earth,  when 
the  machine  is  turned,  a  becomes  positive,  and  induces  the  con- 
trary state  on  the  ball  b  ;  induction  taking  place  with  facility, 
in  consequence  of  the  atmospheric  pressure  being  removed — 
and  is  followed  by  a  discharge  of  the  two  electricities  in  the 
form  of  a  beautiful  blue  flame  filling  the  whole  tube,  and  closely 
resembling  the  aurora  borealis. 

Fig.  9. 

PHENOMENA  OF  ATTRACTION  AND  RE- 
PULSION. 

The  phenomena  of  attraction  and  re- 
pulsion are  well  illustrated  by  the  ap- 
paratus known  as  the  electric  bells,  fig. 
9.  They  are  suspended  from  the  prime 
conductor  by  means  of  the  hook ;  the 
two  outer  bells  are  suspended  by  brass 
chains,  while  the  central,  and  the  two 
clappers,  hang  from  silken  strings ;  the 


^  4 

J 

fc,  A 

J 

STATIC    ELECTRICITY. 


middle  bell  is  connected  with  the  earth  by  a  wire  or  chain ;  on 
turning  the  cylinder,  the  two  outside  bells,  become  positively 
electrified,  and  by  induction  the  central  one  becomes  negative, 
a  luminous  discharge  taking  place  between  them,  if  the  electricity 
be  in  too  high  a'state  of  tension.  But  if  the  cylinder  be  slowly 
revolved,  the  little  brass  clappers  will  become  alternately  at- 
tracted and  repelled  by  the  outermost  and  inner  bells,  producing 
a  constant  ringing  as  long  as  the  machine  is  worked. 

Fig.  10.  Another  experiment  is  often  given 

with  the  toy-head.  When  attached  to 
the  prime  conductor  of  the  machine, 
the  hairs  stand  erect,  presenting  an 
exaggerated  representation  of  fright,  as 
seen  by  fig.  10. 

Figure  11  represents  an  experiment 
with 'the  dancing  toys.  A  brass  plate 
is  suspended  from  the  prime  conductor, 
and  under  it  is  placed  a  sliding  stand, 
on  which  is  laid  a  little*  bran  or  sand, 
or  little  figures  made  of  pith :  on  turn- 
ing the  machine,  the  bran,  or  sand,  or 
figure  is  attracted  ,and  repelled  by  the  upper  plate  with  such 
rapidity,  that  the  motion  is  almost  imperceptible,  and  appears 
like  a  white  cloud  between  the  plates,  and  the  little  figures  ap- 
pear to  be  animated,  dance,  and  exhibit  very  singular  motions, 
dependent  on  inductive  action. 

Figure  12,  represents  an  inverted 
tumbler,  wiped  thoroughly  dry, 
warmed,  and  the  inside  charged  by 
holding  it  in  such  a  direction  that 
a  wire  proceeding  from  the  prime 
conductor  of  a  machine  in  action, 
shall  touch  it  nearly  in  every  part ; 
then  invert  it  over  a  number  of 
pith-balls ;  they  will  be  attracted 
and  repelled  backward  and  forward, 
and  effect  the  discharge  of  the 
electricity  which  induces  from  the 
interior  toward  the  plate.  They 
will  then  remain  at  rest;  but,  if 
the  electricity  which  has  been  dis- 
engaged on  the  outside,  toward 
surrounding  objects  be  removed  by 
a  touch  of  the  hand,  a  fresh  portion  will  be  set  free  on  the 


Fig.  11. 


IGNITING    GAS    WITH    THE    FINGER. 


69 


interior,  and  the  attraction  and  repulsion  of  the  balls  will  again 
take  place,  and  thus  for  many  times  sue- 
cessively  the  action  will  be  renewed  until 
the  glass  returns  to  its  natural  state. 

IGNITING    GAS    WITH    THE    FINGER. 

A  very  interesting  experiment  is  repre- 
sented by  figure  13,  showing  the  lighting 
of  gas  with  an  electric  spark  from  the  finger. 
In  my  apartments,  it  has  been  the  mis- 
chievous practice  of  my  son,  to  pass  several 
times  around  a  room,  rubbing  or  sliding  his  shoes  on  the  carpet, 
charging  his  body  with  electricity,  in  the  same  manner  as  pro- 
duced by  the  machine.  The  body  being  fully  electrified  in 

Fig.  13. 


this  manner,  he  would  point  his  finger  within  a  few  inches  of 
the  nose  of  some  one  present ;  the  spark  would  pass  with  a 
noise  from  the  finger  to  the  nose,  giving  the  recipient  a  sensible 
shock,  unpleasant  to  the  nose,  but  amusing  to  others  present. 


70  STATIC    ELECTRICITY. 

In  this  manner  he  frequently  lighted  the  gas.  It  is  a  very 
simple  amusement,  and  any  one  can,  in  like  manner,  at  their 
own  homes  perform  the  experiment.  The  room  must  be  warm, 
the  carpet  must  have  a  nap,  and  the  shoes  must  be  perfectly 
dry. 

THE    LEYDEN    JAR    EXPERIMENTS. 

The  principles  of  the  Leyden  jar  have  become  more  or  less 
interesting  to  the  telegrapher,  particularly  with  reference  to 
submarine  and  subterranean  lines.  The  following,  from  Bake- 
well,  contains  a  concise  description  of  the  principles  of  this 
important  apparatus.  It  is  called  a  Leyden  jar  because  it  was 
first  constructed  by  Muschenbroek  and  his  friends,  at  Leyden, 
Holland,  in  the  year  1746. 

"  The  power  of  accumulating  electricity  by  means  of  the 
Leyden  jar  has  placed  in  the  hands  of  electri- 
cians a  force  of  almost  unlimited  extent.     In 
our  sketch  of  the  history  of  electric  science,  we 
have  already  adverted   to  the  nature  of  the 
apparatus.     As  at  present  constructed,  it  con- 
sists of  a  thin  glass  jar  A,  fig.  14,  coated  within 
and  without  with  tin-foil,  which   reaches   to 
about  three  inches  from  the  top.  A  wooden  cover, 
B,  serves  as  a  support  to  a  straight  thick  brass 
wire,  c,  that  passes  through  the  centre  of  the 
cover,  and  has  a  metallic  connection  by  a  chain 
or  wire  with  the  interior  coating.     This  wire 
rises  a  few  inches  above  the  cover,  and  is  sur- 
mounted  by   a    hollow   brass   ball,   which   is 
screwed  on  to  the  top  of  the  wire  to  prevent  the  dispersion  of 
the  electricity  from  the  end.     The  sizes  of  the  jars  vary  from 
half  a  pint  to  ten  gallons.     One  holding  about  a  pint  will  give 
a  shock  as  strong  as  most  persons  like  to  receive. 

To  charge  a  jar  with  positive  electricity,  connect  its  small 
brass  ball  with  the  prime  conductor  of  the  machine,  and  make 
a  connection  between  the  outside  coating  and  the  ground. 
When  fully  charged  it  will  give  indications  of  its  electrical  con- 
dition by  a  muttering  sound  ;  and  in  the  dark,  rays  of  light 
will  be  seen  issuing  from  the  edges  of  the  tin-foil  and  from  the 
ball.  The  notion  of  Muschenbroek,  which  led  to  the  discovery 
of  the  Leyden  jar,  was  to  collect  electricity  within  a  phial  to 
prevent  its  dispersion,  and  thereby  to  store  up  an  increased 
quantity  of  the  electric  fluid ;  but  it  is  now  ascertained  that  a 
jar  when  highly  charged  does  not  contain  more  electricity  than 
it  did  before  it  was  applied  to  the  conductor.  The  effect  pro- 


THE    LEYDEN    JAR    EXPERIMENTS. 


71 


ducedjby  charging  is  not  to  increase  the  quantity,  but  only  to 
disturb  the  natural  electricity  previously  present  in  a  latent 
state  on  the  inside  and  outside  of  the  glass.  There  is  injected 
into  the  inside,  by  connection  with  the  electrical  machine,  an 
amount  of  positive  electricity,  while  an  equal  amount  of  nega- 
tive electricity  is  driven  from  the  outside  by  the  force  of 
electrical  induction ;  and  unless  the  electricity  on  the  outer 
surface  of  the  glass  can  be  thus  driven  off  by  affording  it  a  con- 
nection with  the  ground,  the  inside  cannot  receive  a  charge. 

Let  a  Leyden  jar  be  insulated  from  the  earth  by  placing  it 
on  a  glass  stand,  and  it  will  receive  scarcely  any  electricity 
from  the  conductor  ;  not  more  than  equal  to  the  quantity 
which  can  escape  from  the  outside  to  the  surrounding  air.  If 
the  knob  of  another  insulated  jar  be  connected  with  the  ground, 
and  the  outside  coatings  of  the  two  jars  be  brought  near 
together,  sparks  will  then  pass 
rapidly  from  the  prime  conductor 
to  the  knob  of  the  first,  and  they 
will  also  pass  as  rapidly  between 
the  outside  coatings  of  the  two 
jars.  In  this  manner  both  the 
Leyden  jars  become  charged,  and 
it  will  be  found  that  they  are 
charged  equally,  but  with  electri- 
city of  opposite  kinds.  The  first 
one,  that  derived  its  electricity  di- 
rectly from  the  prime  conductor, 
will  be  charged  positively ;  the 
second,  that  derived  its  charge 
from  the  electricity  escaping  'from 
the  knob  to  the  ground,  will  be 
negative.  Place  the  two  jars  on  the  table,  and  suspend 
between  them  a  pith  ball,  B,  or  other  light  substance,  and  it 
.will  be  attracted  alternately  from  one  to  the  other  in  rapid 
vibrations,  clearly  showing  that  the  electricity  in  the  two  jars 
is  of  opposite  kinds. 

The  phenomena  that  occur  during  the  charge  of  a  Leyden 
jar  have  been  adduced  as  evidence  in  support  of  the  Frank- 
linian  theory  of  a  single  electric  fluid,  the  outside  being  sup- 
posed to  be  in  a  minus  state  after  parting  with  its  natural 
quantity  to  the  other  jar.  But  the  phenomena  are  explicable 
also  on  the  hypothesis  of  two  fluids,  it  being  assumed  that 
they  are  separated  from  their  neutral  state  by  the  coercing 
force  of  the  free  electricity  communicated  to  the  inside  of 
the  jar. 


STATIC    ELECTRICITY. 


Fig.  16. 


Franklin  attempted  to  apply  practically  the  chaiging  of  one 
jar  from  the  escaping  electricity  of  another.  He  inferred,  that, 
if  a  series  of  insulated  jars  were  arranged  with  the  outside 
coatings  and  knobs  alternately  touching,  the  coating  of  the 
last  one  being  connected  with  the  ground,  by  this  arrange- 
ment the  positive  electricity  expelled  from  the  outside  of  the 
first  jar  would  charge  the  second;  that  the  electricity  from  the 
outside  of  the  second  would  charge  the  third  positively,  and  so 
on  to  any  number  ;  and  that  an  immense  electric  force  might 
be  thus  accumulated  from  the  same  quantity  of  electricity  that 
is  required  to  charge  a  single  jar. 

Let  ABC  represent  a  series  of  three  jars,  A  and   B  being 

mounted  on  insulating 
glass  stands,  fig.  16. 
On  making  connection 
from  the  prime  con- 
ductor of  an  electrical 
machine  to  the  knob 
of  A,  that  jar  will  be 
charged  positively,  and 
an  equal  amount  of 
electricity  will  be  ex- 
pelled from  the  outside 
into  B,  which  will  also 
be  positively  charged. 
The  third  jar,  c,  will 
in  like  manner  be 
charged  from  the  out- 
side of  B,  and  the  electricity  which  was  expelled  from  A,  on 
arriving  at  the  outside  of  the  last  jar  of  the  series,  will  be  con- 
ducted to  the  earth. 

To  effect  the  discharge  of  a  jar,  it  is  requisite  that  a  con- 
nection be  made  between  the  positive  electricity  within  and 
the  negative  electricity  without,  so  that  the  equilibrium  may 
be  restored.  Now  if  a  metallic  connection  be  made  from  the 
knob  of  B  to  the  knob  of  A,  there  will  be  a  discharge  of  the  first 
jar  only  ;  for  though  the  connection  is  made  with  the  knob  of 
B,  none  of  the  positive  electricity  within  can  be  discharged,  for 
it  is  restrained  by  the  coercing  force  of  the  opposite  electricity 
on  the  outside  If  metallic  connection  be  made  between  the 
outside  of  B  and  the  knob  of  A,  both  those  jars  will  be  dis- 
charged, and  the  third  will  remain  charged  ;  but  by  bringing 
a  wire  from  the  outside  of  c  to  the  knob  of  A,  the  three  jars 
will  be  at  once  discharged. 

The  phenomena  exJiibited  in  charging  the  Leyden  jar  has 


THE    LEYDEN    JAR    EXPERIMENTS.  73 

been  explained  ;  the  cause  of  its  accumulating  electricity,  and 
discharging  the  force  instantaneously,  will  be  next  considered. 
"We  have  stated  that  the  cause  depends  on  inductive  action 
operating  through  the  substance  of  the  non-conducting  glass. 
Exemplifications  of  this  action  through  glass  have  been  pre- 
viously given.  A  pane  of  glass  when  excited  by  friction  on 
one  side  has  negative  electricity  induced  on  the  other,  and  a 
glass  tumbler  may  be  charged  with  electricity  by  exposing  the 
inside  to  the  influence  of  an  electrified  point,  while  the  outside 
is  grasped  by  the  hand.  The  electricity  thus  collected  on  the 
surfaces  of  the  pane  of  glass  and  the  tumbler  is  sluggish  in  its 
action,  and  is  dissipated  by  slow  degrees,  on  account  of  the 
non-conducting  property  of  the  glass  surfaces ;  but  if  metal 
plates  be  applied  on  each  side  of  the  pane  of  glass,  the  elec- 
tricity is  instantly  concentrated  at  any  point,  and  on  connecting 
the  two  surfaces  with  a  wire,  a  discharge  takes  place,  exactly 
as  in  the  Ley  den  jar.  The  charged  tumbler  might  also  be 
converted  into  a  Ley  den  jar  by  the  application  of  interior  and 
exterior  casings  of  metal  foil,  to  serve  as  conductors,  to  concen- 
trate at  any  point  the  electricity  distributed  over  the  surface 
of  the  glass. 

To  prove  most  conclusively  that  the  charge  of  a  Leyden  jar 
is  retained  on  the  surface  of  the  glass,  and  not  in  the  metallic 
coatings,  Leyden  jars  are  made  with  tin  inside  and  outside 
casings,  so  contrived  that  they  may  be  easily  removed.  A  jar 
of  this  kind,  when  charged  and  placed  on  an  insulating  stand, 
.may  have  the  metal  casings  removed  and  others  substituted 
for  them ;  yet  after  this  change  the  jar  will  be  found  to  retain 
its  charge.  The  metal  serves  only  to  conduct  the  electricity 
simultaneously  from  all  parts  of  the  glass. 

A  plate  of  glass  affords  the  most  convenient  mode  of  illus- 
trating that  the  electrical  charge  is  retained  by  the  glass  and 
not  by  the  metal.  Let  a  pane,  of  glass,  about  one  foot  square, 
•be  covered  on  one  side  with  tin- foil,  and  laid  horizontally  on 
the  table.  To  the  other  side  apply  the  insulated  metal  disk  of 
an  electrophorus ;  connect  the  disk  with  the  prime  conductor, 
and  a  few  turns  of  the  machine  will  charge  the  glass.  Remove 
the  disk  by'  the  insulating  handle,  and  it  will  manifest  scarcely 
any  trace  of  electricity.  Let  the  same  or  another  disk  be  again 
applied  to  the  surface  of  the  glass,  and  on  making  connection 
between  the  metals  on  the  opposite  sides  a  strong  discharge  will 
take  place.  A  moveable  metal  disk  might  be  applied  to  each 
surface  of  the  glass  with  similar  results  ;  but  the  arrangement 
indicated  is  more  convenient. 

When  a  more  powerful  charge  of  electricity  is  required  than 


74  STATIC    ELECTRICITY. 

a  single  jar  will  retain,  several  are  combined  to  form  an 
electrical  battery.  For  convenience,  the  jars  are  placed  in  a 
box  with  divisions,  the  bottom  being  lined  with  tin- foil,  to 
make  connection  with  all  the  exterior  coatings.  The  knobs  of 
the  jars  are  connected  together  by  wires,  as  represented  in 
fig.  16  ;  and  there  is  a  metal  hook  projecting  from  the  side  of 
the  box  connected  with  the  tin- foil  lining.  Thus  all  the  interior 

Fig.  17. 


and  all  the  outside  coatings  of  the  jars  are  connected ;  and 
when  communication  is  made  between  the  prime  conductor 
and  any  of  the  knobs  of  the  jars,  the  whole  are  simultaneously 
charged.  They  are  also  discharged  simultaneously  by  making 
connection  between  the  projecting  hook  and  any  one  of  the 
knobs. 

The  combination  of  several  small  jars  is  found  better  than 
having  a  smaller  number  of  large  ones,  because  the  thickness 
of  the  glass  necessary  in  jars  of  large  size  obstructs  induction 
through  it.  By  an  arrangement  of  many  jars,  an  amount  of 
electric  force  may  be  accumulated  that  would  almost  equal  the 
destructive  power  of  lightning.  The  battery  used  by  Faraday 
in  his  experiments  consisted  of  fifteen  equal  jars,  coated  eight 
inches  upward  from  the  bottom,  and  twenty-three  inches  in 
circumference  ;  so  that  each  contained  one  hundred  and  eighty- 
four  square  inches  of  glass  coated  on  both  sides,  independently 
»of  the  bottoms  of  the  jars,  which  were  of  thicker  glass,  and 
contained  each  about  fifty  square  inches.  The  total  coated 
surface  of  the  battery  consequently  comprised  three  thousand 
five  hundred  square  inches  of  coated  surface.  The  electrical 
battery  at  the  Polytechnic  Institution  exposes  a  coated  surface 
of  nearly  eighty  square  feet.  To  receive  the  full  charge  of 
such  a  battery  would  be  instant  death.  A  battery  of  nine 


THE  LEYDEN  JAR  EXPERIMENTS.  75 

quart  jars  is  sufficient  to  exhibit  the  deflagrating  effects  of 
electricity  on  a  small  scale ;  nor  would  it  be  safe  to  receive  a 
shock  from  a  battery  of  that  size. 

It  is  a  fact  deserving  consideration  that  the  accumulation  ot 
quantity  diminishes  the  intensity  of  electricity.  For  instance, 
an  electrical  machine  when  in  good  action  will  emit  sparks 
four  inches  long.  When  a  Leyden  jar  is  charged  with  twelve 
such  sparks,  the  accumulated  electricity  will  not  force  its  pas- 
sage through  more  than  a  quarter  of  an  inch  ;  and  if  the  same 
quantity  be  distributed  among  the  jars  of  an  electrical  battery, 
the  discharge  will  not  take  place  through  the  eighth  of  an  inch. 
The  quantity  of  electricity  is  in  each  case  the  same,  but  the 
state  of  intensity  diminishes  in  proportion  to  the  surface  over 
which  it  is  diffused.  The  difference  between  quantity  and 
intensity  is  still  more  remarkably  manifested  in  the  different 
conditions  of  frictional  and  voltaic  electricity,  as  will  be  subse- 
quently noticed. 

One  of  the  peculiar  phenomena  of  the  electrical  battery  is 
the  residual  charge.  When  communication  is  made  between 
the  inside  and  outside  coatings  of  a  battery  consisting  of  seve- 
ral jars,  the  whole  of  the  electricity  is  not  immediately  dis- 
charged. On  again  making  connection  between  the  inside  and 
outside  coatings,  after  a  short  interval,  a  second  discharge  will 
occur,  which,  though  comparatively  feeble,  might  occasion  a 
disagreeable  shock.  The  cause  of  this  residual  charge  is  partly 
attributable  to  the  accumulation  of  electricity  on  those  parts 
of  the  jar  just  above  the  metallic  coating ;  which  portions,  not 
being  in  direct  contact  with  the  metal,  are  not  conducted  with 
equal  rapidity.  Part  of  the  charge  also  enters  into  the  pores 
of  the  glass,  and  is  thus  removed  from  immediate  contact  with 
the  metal. 

The  simplest  kind  of  instrument  employed  for  discharging  a 
Leyden  jar  or  an  electrical  battery  is  a  thick  curved  piece  of 
brass  wire,  fitted  with  a  small  ball  at  each  end.  One  of  these 
balls  is  applied  to  the  outside  coating,  and  when  the  other  is 
brought  near  to  the  knob  of  the  jar  the  electricity  instantly 
passes  through  the  wire  with  a  smart  snap  or  report,  connection 
being  thus  made  between  the  two  charged  surfaces  of  the  jar. 
When,  however,  a  discharger  of  this  kind  is  employed  for  an 
electrical  battery  a  slight  shock  is  felt,  owing  to  what  is  termed 
the  lateral  discharge;  therefore,  to  avoid  the  inconvenience 
and  the  danger  that  might  arise  from  holding  the  wire  in  the 
hand,  an  insulated  wire  is  generally  employed.  Its  form  is 
represented  in  fig.  18,  as  applied  in  discharging  a  Leyden  jar. 
Two  thick  brass  wires,  a  a,  of  equal  lengths,  and  terminated 


76  STATIC  ELECTRICITY. 

with  brass  balls,  are  jointed  together  at  c  for  the  convenience 
of  adjustment,  and   are  cemented  to  a  glass  handle,  £,  which 
serves  to  insulate  the  wires  from  the  hand,  and  prevents  the 
Fi    lg  liability  of  any  perceptible 

portion  of  the  charge  being 
received  by  the  operator. 

There  has  been  much 
discussion  among  electri- 
cians on  the  subject  of 
lateral  discharges,  in  refer- 
ence more  particularly  to 
the  safety  of  lightning- 
conductors  ;  we  shall  there- 
fore notice  in  this  place  the 
cause  of  the  phenomenon. 
It  is  the  case  with  electricity,  even  to  a  greater  extent  than 
with  all  fluid  bodies,  that  it  will  discharge  itself  into  every 
channel  that  is  open  to  it.  Thus,  as  in  a  mountain  torrent 
some  portion  of  the  water  will  deviate  from  the  straight  and 
broad  course  into  circuitous  and  narrow  crevices,  so  will  the 
highly  tensive  electric  fluid  force  its  passage  through  every  con- 
ducting medium.  Thus  when  a  Leyden  jar  is  discharged  with 
an  insulated  wire,  a  small  part  of  the  charge  passes  through 
the  circuitous  and  comparatively  obstructive  course  offered  by 
the  body  of  the  operator,  by  the  floor,  and  by  the  table  where- 
on the  jar  is  placed.  In  the  case  of  a  single  jar,  the  quantity 
of  electricity  that  passes  in  that  direction  is  imperceptibly 
small ;  but  when  several  jars  are  combined,  the  lateral  dis- 
charge may  become  unpleasantly  strong,  especially  if  the  wire 
of  the  discharging-rod  be  not  very  thick.  Even  when  an  insu- 
lated discharging-rod  is  employed,  it  may  be  inferred  that  some 
portion  of  electricity  will  force  its  way  along  the  glass  ;  but  it 
is  so  infinitesimally  small  as  to  be  inappreciable. 

Applying  the  experience  and  inferences  deducible  from  ex- 
periments with  the  electrical  battery  to  the  more  powerful 
effects  of  lightning,  we  are  led  to  consider  that  every  flash  of 
lightning  must  be  accompanied  by  lateral  discharge,  and  that 
the  quantity  thus  diverted  from  the  direct  and  easiest  path 
between  the  clouds  and  the  earth  will  depend  on  the  amount 
of  resistance  which  that  direct  course  offers.  Therefore,  though 
lateral  discharge  must,  to  some  extent  always  occur,  it  may 
be  rendered  entirely  innocuous  by  a  sufficiently  thick  and 
unbroken  lightning  conductor. 


VOLTAIC  ELECTRICITY. 


CHAPTER    VI. 

Electrical  Phenomena  Discovered  by  Galvani — Origin  of  the  Voltaic  Pile — Science 
of  the  Voltaic  Battery — Ohm's  Mathematical  Formulae  —Chemical  and  Electri- 
cal Action  of  the  Battery — The  Daniell,  the  Smee,  the  Bunson,  the  Grove 
and  the  Chester  Voltaic  Batteries — Comparative  Intensity  and  Quantity  of  the 
Grove,  Daniell,  and  Smee  Batteries. 

ELECTRICAL    PHENOMENA  DISCOVERED   BY  GALVANI. 

THAT  remarkable  form  of  electricity,  known  by  the  name  of 
Galvanism  or  Voltaism*  owes  it  origin  to  an  accidental  circum- 
stance connected  with  some  experiments  on  animal  irritability, 
which  were  being  carried  on  by  Galvani,  a  professor  of  anatomy 
at  Bologna,  in  the  year  1790.  It  happened  that  the  wife  of 
the  professor,  being  consumptive,  was  advised  to  take  as  a  nu- 
tritive article  of  food,  some  soup,  made  of  the  flesh  of  frogs : 
several  of  these  animals,  recently  killed  and  skinned,  were 
lying  on  a  table  in  the  .laboratory,  close  to  an  electrical  ma- 
chine, with  which  a  pupil  of  the  professor  was  making  experi- 
ments. While  the  machine  was  in  action,  he  chanced  to  touch 
the  bare  nerve  of  the  leg  of  one  of  the  frogs  with  the  blade  of  a 
knife  that  he  held  in  his  hand,  when,  suddenly,  the  whole  limb 
was  thrown  into  violent  convulsions.  Galvani  was  not  himself 
present  when  this  occurred ;  but  received  the  account  from  his 
wife,  and  being  struck  with  the  singularity  of  the  phenomenon, 
he  lost  no  time  in  repeating  the  experiment,  and  investigating 
the  cause  :  he  found  that  it  was  only  when  a  spark  was  drawn 
from  the  prime  conductor,  and  when  the  knife  or  any  other 
good  conductor  was  in  contact  with  the  nerve,  that  the  con- 
tractions took  place;  and  pursuing  the  investigation  with  un- 
wearied industry,  he  at  length  discovered  that  the  effect  was 
independent  of  the  electrical  machine,  and  might  be  equally 


78  VOLTAIC     ELECTRICITY. 

well  produced  "by  making  a  metallic  communication  between 
the  outside  muscle  and  crural  nerve.  He  did  not  for  one  mo- 
ment suppose  that  the  manifestation  of  electricity  was  the 
result  of  the  chemical  action  upon  the  metals. 

Gralvani  had  previously  entertained  notions  respecting  the 
agency  of  electricity,  in  producing  muscular  action:  these  new 
experiments,  therefore,  as  they  seemed  to  favor  his  views,  had 
with  him  more  than  ordinary  interest.  He  immediately 
ascribed  the  convulsive  movement  in  the  limb  to  electrical 
agency,  and  explained  them  by  comparing  the  muscle  of  an 
animal  to  a  Leyden  vial,  charged  by  the  accumulation  of 
electricity  on  its  surface,  while  he  imagined  that  the  nerve 
belonging  to  it  performed  the  function  of  a  wire,  communicating 
with  the  interior  of  the  vial,  which  would,  of  course,  be 
charged  negatively.  In  this  state  of  things,  if  a  communica- 
tion by  a  good  conductor  were  made  between  the  muscle  and 
nerve,  a  restoration  of  the  electric  equilibrium,  and  a  contrac- 
tion of  the  fibres,  would  ensue. 

It  is  curious  to  notice  how  frequently  the  progress  of  dis- 
covery in  the  sciences  is  influenced  by  fortuitous  circumstances, 
and  in  no  case  is  it  more  striking  than  in  the  present.  Had 
G-alvani  been  as  good  an  electrician  as  he  was  anatomist,  it  is 
probable  that  the  convulsions  of  the  frog  would  have  occasioned 
him  no  surprise;  he  would  "immediately  have  seen  that  the 
animal  formed  part  of  a  system  of  bodies  under  induction^  and 
he  would  have  considered  the  movements  of  the  limbs  of  the 
frog,  as  evidence  of  nothing  more  than  a  high  electroscopic 
sensibility  in  its  nerves. 

To  perform  the  experiment  with  the  frog's  legs  successfully, 
the  legs  of  the  frog  are  to  be  left  attached  to  the  spine  by  the 
crural  nerves  alone,  and  then  a  copper  •  and  a  zinc  wire  being 
either  twisted  or  soldered  together  at  one  end,  the  nerves  are 
to  be  touched  with  one  wire,  while  the  other  is  to  be  applied 
to  the  muscles  of  the  leg.  Figure  1  shows  the  arrangement. 
There  are  several  ways  of  varying  this  experiment.  If  a 
piece  of  copper,  as  a  penny,  be  laid  on  a  sheet  of  zinc,  and  if  a 
common  garden  snail  be  put  to  crawl  on  the  latter,  he  will  be 
observed  to  shrink  in  his  horns  and  contract  his  body  whenever 
he  comes  into  contact  with  the  penny  :  indeed,  after  one  or 
two  contacts  he  will  be  observed  to  avoid  the  copper  in  his 
iourney  over  the  zinc. 

The  experiments  of  Gralvani  excited  much  attention  among 
the  men  of  science  of  that  period :  they  were  repeated  and 
varied  in  almost  every  country  in  Europe,  and  ascribed  to  va- 
rious causes.  Some  imagined  them  the  effect  of  a  new  and 


ORIGIN    OF    THE     VOLTAIC    PILE.  79 

unknown  agent:  others  adopted  the  views  of  the  discoverer, 
and  recognized  them  as  peculiar  modifications  of  electricity. 
The  hypothetical  agent  which  passed  under  the  name  of  the 

Fig.  1. 


"nervous  fluid,"  now  gave  way  to  electricity,  which,  for  a 
time,  reigned  as  the  vital  principle,  by  which  "  the  decrees 
of  the  understanding,  and  the  dictates  of  the  will,  were  con- 
veyed from  the  organs  of  the  brain  to  the  obedient  member  of 
the  body ;"  and  this  theory  for  a  time  so  fascinated  physiologists, 
that  it  was  with  difficulty  that  the  explanations  of  Volta,  viz. 
that  the  electric  excitement  is  due  to  the  mutual  contact  of 
two  dissimilar  metals — that  by  the  contact  the  natural  elec- 
tricity was  decomposed,  the  positive  fluid  passing  to  one  metal, 
and  the  negative  one  to  the  other — and  that  the  muscle  of 
the  frog  merely  played  the  part  of  a  conductor — obtained  assent. 

ORIGIN  OF  THE  VOLTAIC  PILE. 

It  is  to  Professor  Yolta,  of  Pavia,  that  we  are  indebted  for 
the  first  galvanic  or  voltaic  instrument,  viz.  the  voltaic  pile  ; 
it  was  described  by  him  in  the  Philosophical  Transactions  of 
1800,  and  to  him,  therefore,  the  merit  of  laying  the  foundation 
of  this  highly  interesting  branch  of  science  is  due.  The  main 
difference  between  common  and  voltaic  electricity  (which  are 
modifications  of  the  same  force)  will  be  found  to  be  this :  the 
first  produces  its  effects  by  a  comparatively  small  quantity  of 
electricity,  insulated,  in  a  high  state  of  tension,  having  remark- 
able attractive  and  repulsive  energies,  and  power  to  force  its 
way  through  obstructing  media :  the  latter  is  more  intimately 
associated  with  other  bodies,  is  in  enormous  quantity,  but  rarely 
attains  a  high  state  of  tension,  and  exhibits  its  effects  while 
flowing  in  a  continuous  stream  along  conducting  bodies. 


80 


VOLTAIC    ELECTRICITY. 


Gralvani  was  an  anatomist  and  not  an  electrician.  He  was 
firmly  impressed  with  the  idea  that  the  convulsion  of  the  frog's 
limb  was  owing  to  muscular  action  caused  by  animal  electrici- 
ty. He  advocated  this  theory  with  the  utmost  zeal,  and  his 
whole  efforts  were  directed  toward  maintaining  this  error. 
Electricians  doubted  the  correctness  of  Galvani's  philosophy, 
and  on  the  other  hand  physiologists  gave  countenance  to  his 
notions,  and  throughout  the  continent  they  contended  th#t  the 
convulsions  were  produced  by  animal  electricity. 

The  extraordinary  zeal  that  was  displayed  by  Gralvani  and 
his  friends  to  maintain  their  physiological  theory,  caused  elec- 
tricians to  investigate  its  correctness,  and  among  them  was 
Yolta,  of  Pavia.  In  this  state  of  the  question  G-alvani  died,  at 
the  close  of  the  year  1798. 

Two  years  after  the  death  of  Gralvani,  Volta  produced  his 
"  pile  "  which  demonstrated  the  correctness  of  his  theory,  as 
mainly  advocated  by  him  for  several  years  previous.  The 
electricians  rejoiced  over  the  practical  illustration  exhibited  by 
the  voltaic  pile.  It  dispelled  all  faith  in  the  erroneous  reason- 
ings of  Gralvani  and  his  friends,  that  the  motion  of  the  frog 
was  by  animal  electricity.  Yolta's  triumphant  success  in  de- 
monstrating that  the  convulsions  were  produced  by  chemical 
action  of  the  metals,  was  received  with  great  joy  by  the  elec- 
tricians. It  was  a  contest  between  anatomists  and  electricians, 
and  the  latter  were  the  victors.  The  most  strange  part  of  the 
history  was,  that  the  achievement  of  Volta,  was  called  Galvan- 
ism instead  of  Voltaism,  as  more  modernly  termed. 

The  original  instrument  of  Volta  is  shown  in  fig.  2.  It  con- 
Fig.  2.  sists  of  a  series  of  silver  and  zinc 
plates,  arranged  one  above  the  other, 
with  moistened  flannel  or  pasteboard 
between  each  pair.  A  series  of 
thirty  or  forty  alternations  of  plates, 
four  inches  square,  will  cause  the 
gold  leaf  electroscope  to  diverge ; 
the  zinc  end  with  the  positive,  and 
the  silver  with  the  negative  elec- 
tricity ;  a  shock  will  also  be  felt  on 
touching  the  extreme  plates  with  the 
finger,  when  moistened  with  water. 
This  latter  effect  is  much  increased 
when  the  flannel,  or  pasteboard,  is 
moistened  with  salt  and  water; 

in  this  case  a  small  spark  will  be  decomposed;  from  this  we 
learn  that  the   increase  of  chemical  action,  by  the  addition  of 


SCIENCE    OF    THE  VOLTAIC  BATTERY.  81 

the  salt,  materially  increases  the  quantity  of  electricity  set  in 
motion  ;  but  the  pile  will  not  in  any  sensible  manner  increase 
the  divergence  of  the  gold  leaves,^its  intensity,  therefore,  is 
not  materially  augmented. 

The  pile,  represented  by  fig.  2,  is  connected  at  each  end 
with  a  wire ;  A  B  c  is  the  frame  to  hold  the  plates ;  s  s  are  the 
silver  plates,  and  z  z  are  zinc  plates ;  i  i  are  the  moistened 
flannels,  and  i  i  the  top  and  bottom  end  boards  ;  p,  the  positive 
pole,  is  connected  with  the  wire  at  the  top,  and  at  the  bottom 
N,  the  negative,  to  the  wire.  This  was  the  voltaic  pile  as 
originally  introduced  by  that  distinguished  philosopher  Volta, 
of  Pavia,  in  the  year  1800. 

In  order  to  increase  the  intensity  of  the  voltaic  or  electric 
current,  it  is  necessary  to  increase  the  number  of  the  plates ; 
and  to  develop  the  greater  quantity  current,  it  is  attained  by 
the  increase  of  the  size  of  the  plates.  The  centre  of  the  battery 
or  column  is  neutral,  but  the  ends  are  in  opposite  electrical 
states ;  the  zinc  extremity  negative,  and  the  gold,  silver,  pla- 
tinum or  other  metallic  applications,  positive. 

THE  SCIENCE  OF  THE  VOLTAIC  BATTERY. 

The  action  of  the  voltaic  pile  gradually  diminishes  from  the 
time  it  is  first  put  together,  until  at  length  the  effect  appears 
to  cease.  This  diminution  of  power  is  more  rapid  in  proportion 
to  the  energy  given  to  the  pile  in  the  first  instance  by  the 
larger  quantity  of  acid  mixed  with  the  water.  To  restore  the 
original  energy,  it  is  necessary  to  decompose  the  pile,  to  clean 
the  zinc  and  copper  disks,  and  to  moisten  the  cloths  again. 
Such  an  apparatus  is  therefore  attended  with  much  trouble. 
To  obviate  it,  Yolta  contrived  another  arrangement,  which  he 
called  d  couronne  de  tasses.  He  connected  a  piece  of  zinc  to  a 
piece  of  copper  by  soldering  to  them  a  short  length  of  bent  copper 
wire.  Having  procured  a  number  of  such  connected  plates, 
he  put  them  into  a  row  of  glasses  containing  acidulated  water, 
taking  care  so  to  dispose  them  that  the  zinc  and  the  copper 
connected  together  should  be  in  separate  glasses,  in  the  man- 
ner represented  in  figure  3. 

To  the  copper  plate  in  glass  1,  a  wire  is  attached  to  serve  as 
a  conductor  for  forming  connection.  In  the  same  glass  there  is 
a  zinc  plate  connected  with  the  copper  immersed  in  glass  2. 
In  this  manner  each  glass  contains  a  zinc  and  copper  plate 
connected  by  a  wire,  which  are  kept  apart  in  the  fluid,  and  the 
series  may  be  continued  to  any  extent.  By  bringing  the  wire 
attached  to  the  first  plate  in  connection  with  a  similar  wire 

6 


82  VOLTAIC  ELECTRICITY. 

soldered  to  the  zinc  plate  in  the  last  glass  of  the  series,  the 
action  immediately  commences,  and  it  is  more  or  less  intense 
according  to  the  number  of  plates.  This  arrangement  is,  in 

Fig.  3. 


many  respects,  very  superior  to  the  pile.  A  much  larger  quan- 
tity of  fluid  can  he  brought  to  act  on  each  plate,  consequently 
the  effect  does  not  so  rapidly  diminish ;  the  plates  can  be  readily 
removed  when  the  apparatus  is  not  wanted,  and  the  acidulated 
water  may  remain  ready  for  the  immersion  of  the  plates  when 
experiments  are  renewed. 

The  arrangement  d  couronne  de  tasses,  as  invented  by  Volta, 
continues,  with  some  modifications  for  convenience  in  use,  to 
form  the  voltaic  battery  that  is  most  generally  employed.  A 
series  of  this  kind,  consisting  of  one  hundred  plates  of  copper 
and  zinc  four  inches  square,  will  generate  electricity  in  suffi- 
cient quantity  to  exhibit  in  a  powerful  manner  most  of  the 
phenomena  of  frictional  electricity. 

The  metals  that  excite  electricity  by  their  mutual  actions 
are  ranged  in  the  following  order  ;  those  placed  first  acting  in 
reference  to  those  beneath  as  copper  does  to  zinc. 

Platinum.  Mercury.  Tin. 

Gold.  Copncr.  Iron. 

Silver.  Lead.  Zinc. 

Any  two  of  the  foregoing  series  will  constitute  what  is  termed 
a  voltaic  circuit.  Thus  zinc  will  excite  voltaic  action  in  com- 
bination with  iron  ;  iron  will  take  the  place  of  zinc  when  com- 
bined with  tin  ;  and  tin  will  take  the  place  of  iron  when  com- 
bined with  copper.  The  energies  of  these  combinations  increase 
as  the  metals  are  more  distant  from  each  other  in  the  scale,  the 
most  powerful  practical  combination  being  zinc  and  platinum, 
the  most  incorrodible  of  all  metals. 

Though  two  plates  are  necessary  in  such  an  arrangement, 
only  one  of  them  is  active  in  Ihe  excitement  of  electricity,  the 
other  plate  serving  merely  as  a  conductor  to  collect  the  force 
generated.  A  metal  plate  is  generally  used  for  that  purpose^ 


SCIENCE    OF    THE    VOLTAIC  BATTERY.  83 

"because  metals  conduct  electricity  much  better  than  other  sub- 
stances exposing  an  equal  surface  to  the  fluids  in  which  they 
are  immersed  ;  but  other  conductors  may  be  used,  and  when  a 
proportionately  larger  surface  is  exposed  to  compensate  for  in- 
ferior conducting  power,  they  answer  as  well,  and  in  some 
instances  even  better  than  metal  plates. 

The  chemical  action  that  gives  rise  to  the  excitement  of 
electricity,  takes  place  during  the  decomposition  of  the  liquid 
in  which  the  plates  are  immersed.  It  is  essential,  therefore,  to 
the  formation  of  an  active  voltaic  arrangement,  that  the  liquid 
employed  should  be  capable  of  being  decomposed.  Water  is 
most  conveniently  applicable  for  the  purpose.  Its  elements, 
oxygen  and  hydrogen,  are  separated  by  the  superior  affinity  of 
the  oxygen  for  the  zinc;  especially  when  that  affinity  is 
heightened  by  the  connection  of  the  zinc  with  an  incorrodible 
metal,  to  which  the  hydrogen  gas  of  the  decomposed  molecules 
of  water  is  attracted.  Whether  the  electricity  evolved  be  the 
cause  or  merely  the  effect  of  chemical  action  is  at  present  un- 
known. In  whichever  way.  the  phenomenon  be  regarded,  the 
electricity  appears  to  be  excited  at  the  surface  of  the  active 
plate,  thence  to  be  transferred  to  the  conducting  plate,  and 
back  again  through  the  connecting  wire  to  the  zinc,  forming 
what  is  termed  an  electric  current.  The  terms  "  electric  fluid  " 
and  "  electric  current,"  which  are  frequently  employed  in 
describing  electrical  phenomena,  are  calculated  to  mislead  the 
student  into  the  supposition  that  electricity  is  known  to  be  a 
fluid,  and  that  it  flows  in  a  rapid  stream  along  the  wires.  Such 
terms,  it  should  be  understood,  are  founded  merely  on  an  as- 
sumed analogy  of  the  electric  force  to  fluid  bodies.  The  nature 
of  that  force  is  unknown,  and  whether  its  transmission  be  in 
the  form  of  a  current,  or  by  vibrations,  or  by  any  other  means, 
is  undetermined.  At  the  meeting  of  the  British  Association  for 
the  Advancement  of  Science  at  Swansea,  a  discussion  arose  on  the 
nature  of  electricity,  and  Dr.  Faraday  was  called  on  to  give  his 
opinion.  He  then  said,  "  There  was  a  time  when  I  thought  I 
knew  something  about  the  matter :  but  the  longer  I  live,  and 
the  more  carefully  I  study  the  subject,  the  more  convinced  I 
am  of  my  total  ignorance  of  the  nature  of  electricity."  After 
such  an  avowal  from  the  most  eminent  electrician  of  the  age, 
it  is  almost  useless  to  say  that  any  terms  which  seem  to  desig- 
nate the  form  of  electricity  are  merely  to  be  considered  as  con- 
venient conventional  expressions. 

Water  being  a  very  imperfect  conductor,  it  offers  so  much 
resistance  to  the  passage  of  the  electric  current  that  a  very 
small  quantity  of  voltaic  electricity  can  be  excited  when  water 


84  VOLTAIC  ELECTRICITY. 

alone  is  employed ;  especially  when  the  plates  are  at  a  con- 
siderable distance  apart.  By  the  addition  of  an  acid  or  a  neu- 
tral salt  to  the  water,  the  conducting  power  is  greatly  in- 
creased, and  the  excitement  is  augmented  in  a  corresponding 
degree.  It  is  a  disputed  point  whether  the  increased  action 
from  the  addition  of  acids  arises  from  the  improved  conducting 
power  alone,  or  whether  it  is  to  he  attributed  also  to  the  in- 
creased affinity  of  the  oxygen  to  the  zinc.  The  effect  is  most 
probably  owing  to  the  joint  effort  of  the  two  forces. 

In  the  opinion  of  Faraday,  the  conduction  of  electricity 
through  liquids  is  accompanied  by,  if  it  be  not  owing  to,  the 
successive  decomposition  of  the  intervening  particles.  When  a 
copper  and  zinc  plate,  for  example,  are  connected  together  and 
immersed  in  diluted  acid,  the  oxygen  in  the  particle  of  liquid 
contiguous  to  the  plate  enters  into  combination  with  the  metal, 
and  its  equivalent  quantity  of  hydrogen  is  disengaged.  The 
hydrogen  is  not  immediately  liberated,  but  is  transferred  from 
particle  to  particle  of  the  liquid  in  a  continuous  chain  till  it 
reaches  the  conducting  plate,  where,  not  meeting  with  any 
more  liquid  particles  to  which  it  can  be  transferred,  it  is  libera- 
ted in  the  gaseous  form.  The  intervening  particles  are  sup- 
posed to  undergo  temporary  decomposition  during  this  transfer 
from  plate  to  plate,  and  to  assume  a  polar  condition,  the  oxygen 
and  hydrogen  occupying  opposing  places  in  each  particle  of 
liquid. 

The  annexed  diagram,  fig.  4,  shows,  in  an  exaggerated  form, 

the  chain  of  particles  of  water 
through  which  the  decompo- 
sing influence  is  supposed  to 
be  transmitted.  Voltaic  ac- 
tion having  been  established 
through  water  in  the  vessel  A 
from  the  zinc  plate  z  to  the 
copper  plate  at  c,  the  particles 
between  the  two  metals  are 
thrown  into  a  polar  state ;  the 
oxygen  of  each  being  directed  toward  z,  and  the  hydrogen 
toward  c.  The  zinc  plate  absorbs  the  oxygen  of  the  particle 
nearest  to  it,  and  the  liberated  hydrogen  combines  with  the 
oxygen  of  the  next  adjoining  particle,  and  in  this  manner  a 
continuous  interchange  takes  place.  According  to  this  view 
of  the  conducting  power  of  fluids,  no  fluid  can  conduct  electrici- 
ty unless  it  be  capable  of  being  decomposed  ;  the  conduction 
being  necessarily  accompanied  bv  a  train  of  successively  de- 
composed particles. 


OHM'S  MATHEMATICAL  FORMULAE.  85 


The  causes  that  obstruct  the  development  of  electricity  in  a 
current,  have  been  minutely  investigated  by  Professor  Ohm, 
of  Naremburg,  who  has  reduced  them  to  mathematical  formu- 
lae. The  free  development  of  electricity  is  opposed,  in  the  first 
place,  by  the  affinity  of  the  elements  of  the  exciting  liquid  for 
each  other,  tending  to  resist  decomposition ;  secondly,  by  the 
imperfect  conduction  of  the  fluid  itself;  and  in  the  third  place, 
by  the  resistance  of  the  conducting  wires.  As  the  formulse 
deduced  by  Professor  Ohm  from  these  investigations  have  re- 
ceived general  acceptance  among  electricians,  it  is  desirable 
to  insert  them : 

"  E  =  electromotive  force,  equivalent  to  the  affinity  of  the 
exciting  liquid  for  the  generating  metal,  and  corresponding  to 
the  amount  of  electricity  which  would  appear  in  current  if  all 
opposing  causes  were  removed. 

"  R  =  resistance  opposed  to  E  by  the  contents  of  the  cell, 
arising  for  the  most  part  from  the  affinity  of  the  elements  of 
the  exciting  liquid  for  each  other. 

"  r  —  external  resistance,  arising  chiefly  from  the  imperfect- 
ly conducting  nature  of  the  wires  used  to  convey  the  current, 

"  a  —  active  force,  or  the  amount  of  electricity  which  really 
reaches  the  end  of  the  conducting  wire. 


"  The  theoretical  value  of  E  is  diminished  materially  in  prac- 
tice by  the  affinity  of  the  conducting  plate  for  the  ingredient 
of  the  exciting  fluid,  which  tends  to  combine  with  the  genera- 
ting plate ;  this  affinity,  however  weak,  is  still  seldom  absolute- 
ly null.  The  mutual  affinity  of  the  separated  elements  of  the 
fluid  evolved  at  the  surfaces  of  the  plates  also  lessens  the  in- 
tensity of  E. 

"  The  internal  resistance,  R,  varies  directly  with  the  dis- 
tance, D,  between  the  two  plates,  and  is  inversely  as  the  area  of 
the  section,  s,  of  the  exciting  liquid.  Thus  the  real  resistance 
is  equal  to  the  former  divided  by  the  latter,  or 

D 
R  =  — 

S 

"  r,  or  the  external   resistance,  so  far  as  it  is  dependent  on 


86  VOLTAIC  ELECTRICITY. 

the   conducting  wire,  varies  inversely  as  the  square  of  the 
diameter  of  the  wire,  S,  and  directly  as  its  length  /,  or 


From  these  formulae  are  deduced  the  following  general  laws  : 

1st.  The  electro-motive  force. of  a  voltaic  circuit  varies  with 
the  number  of  the  elements,  and  with  the  nature  of  the  metals 
and  liquids  which  constitute  each  element ;  but  it  is  in  no  de- 
gree dependent  on  the  dimensions  of  any  of  their  parts. 

2d.  The  resistance  of  each  element  is  directly  proportional 
to  the  distances  of  the  plates  from  each  other  in  the  liquid,  and 
to  the  specific  resistance  of  the  liquid;  and  it  is  also  inversely 
proportional  to  the  surface  of  the  plates  in  contact  with  the 
liquids. 

3d.  The  resistance  of  the  connecting  wire  of  the  circuit  is 
directly  proportional  to  its  section. 

It  must  he  remarked  that  the  foregoing  estimate  of  electrical 
force  and  resistance  does  not  take  into  account  the  actual  loss 
of  electricity  "by  the  want  of  proper  direction.  The  chemical 
action  that  converts  any  given  quantity  of  zinc  into  a  metallic 
salt,  develops,  with  the  best  arrangement,  a  given  quantity  of 
electricity.  Let  it  be  assumed  that  one  ounce  of  zinc  will 
generate  an  amount  of  electricity  equivalent  to  1000  ;  that 
quantity  will  not  be  diminished  by  the  resistances  considered 
by  Professor  Ohm.  Those  resistances  relate  exclusively  to  the 
time  in  which  a  given  amount  of  electricity  can  be  generated, 
and  have  no  relation  to  actual  loss  of  electric  force.  Thus,  in 
a  well-constructed  voltaic  apparatus  no  more  electricity  is 
generated  than  can  flow  in  a  current  through  the  conducting 
wire.  If  the  resistance  to  the  current  be  increased  by  diminish- 
ing the  thickness  of  the  wire  or  by  adding  to  its  length,  the 
action  of  the  generating-plate  is  diminished  in  a  corresponding 
degree,  so  .that  if  only  half  the  electricity  is  developed,  only 
half  the  quantity  of  zinc  is  consumed  ;  and  to  whatever  extent 
the  resistances  are  increased  the  ounce  of  zinc  will,  theoretically 
at  least,  produce  its  equivalent  of  electricity,  though  in  a  longer 
time. 

CHEMICAL      AND    ELECTRICAL    ACTION    OF    THE     BATTERY. 

In  practice,  however,  an  actual  loss  of  electricity  does 
generally  occur,  arising  principally  from  what  is  called  "  local 
action  "  in  the  generating-plate.  If  a  plate  of  zinc  were  per- 


ACTION    OF    THE    BATTERY.  87 

fectly  pure  and  homogeneous,  no  chemical  action  would  ensue 
when  it  was  immersed  in  diluted  acid.  But  zinc,  as  it  is  com- 
monly procured,  contains  copper,  iron,  and  other  impurities, 
which  serve  to  set  up  voltaic  action  over  its  whole  surface 
when  exposed  to  diluted  acids,  which  cause  a  rapid  decompo- 
sition of  the  liquid.  The  positive  and  negative  electricities 
thus  generated  immediately  combine,  and  are  neutralized  im- 
perceptibly, and  thus  so  much  electric  force  is  absolutely  \psi. 
This  local  action  is  in  a  great  measure,  though  not  entirely, 
prevented  by  amalgamating  the  zinc  plates  with  mercury  :  this 
is  readily  done  by  first  dipping  them  in  diluted  sulphuric  acid, 
and  then  sprinkling  a  few  drops  of  mercury  on  the  surface  and 
rubbing  them  over  with  a  cork.  The  effect  of  amalgamation 
is  to  produce  a  homogeneous  surface,  and  to  protect  the  zinc 
from  the  action  of  the  diluted  acid  until  the  affinity  of  the 
liquid  for  the  metal  is  increased  by  the  agency  of  the  con- 
ducting plate. 

The  electricity  generated  by  a  single  pair  of  plates  possesses 
a  very  low  degree  of  intensity.  The  quantity  is  only  limited 
by  the  size  of  the  plates,  but  no  increase  of  size  alone  will  add 
to  the  intensity  of  the  force.  Thus,  though  a  pair  of  large 
zinc  and  copper  plates,  excited  by  diluted  sulphuric  acid,  will 
fuse  any  of  the  metals,  they  cannot  decompose  a  drop  of  water ; 
because  in  the  latter  case  the  force  is  not  sufficiently  energetic 
to  overcome  the  resistance  of  the  fluid. 

In  tracing  the  course  of  the  electric  current  thus  established, 
no  notice  has  been  taken  of  the  action  of  the  second  zinc  plate. 
If  that  be  considered  as  inactive,  except  as  a  conductor,  the 
quantity  of  electricity  transmitted  would  be  very  small,  owing 
to  the  resistance  of  the  imperfectly  conducting  liquid.  But  the 
zinc  plate  in  the  second  cell  is  acted  on  by  the  diluted  acid 
equally  with  that  in  the  first ;  and  the  effect  is  to  nearly  double 
the  energy  of  the  electric  current  excited  by  the  action  of  the 
acid  on  the  first  zinc  plate. 

According  to  this  view  of  the  action  of  a  voltaic  battery  con- 
sisting of  two  pairs  of  plates,  the  electricity  excited  by  the  first 
zinc  is  transferred  to  the  second,  where  its  force  is  doubled  by 
the  excitement  of  an  equal  quantity,  and  both  united  traverse 
the  wire  of  the  return  circuit.  On  arriving  at  the  first  zinc, 
half  the  quantity  is  parted  with ;  but  an  equal  quantity  of 
fresh  electricity  is  excited,  and  is  carried  on  to  the  second  zinc, 
where  the  same  process  is  repeated  ;  and  thus  the  electrical 
equilibrium  is  continually  disturbed  and  restored  after  traversing 
the  wires  that  connect  the  plates  at  the  ends.  "When  greater 
numbers  of  zinc  and  copper  plates  are  united  in  a  series,  a 


VOLTAIC  ELECTRICITY. 

similar  transference  of  electricity  from  place  to  place  takes 
place  with  a  progressively  increasing  quantity  and  intensity 
of  force,  the  action  being  continued  as  long  as  the  series  re- 
mains unbroken,  or  until  the  fluid  becomes  saturated  with 
sulphate  of  zinc,  and  further  chemical  action  is  prevented. 

It  is  necessary  to  state  that  the  preceding  explanation  of  the 
action  of  the  voltaic  battery  differs  from  the  view  taken  of  it  by 
Dr.  Faraday,  and  after  him  by  most  other  writers  on  the  sub- 
ject. In  the  opinion  of  Dr.  Faraday,  addition  to  the  number 
of  plates  in  a  series  occasions  no  addition  to  the  quantity  of 
electricity  generated  by  the  first  pair  of  plates,  but  merely 
serves  to  give  increased  intensity  to  that  quantity.  Thus  the 
most  powerful  effects  produced  by  a  voltaic  battery  consisting 
of  1000  pairs  of  plates  are  assumed  to  be  caused  by  the  same 
quantity  of  electricity  that  is  excited  by  a  single  pair  only  of 
the  series ;  the  exalted  action  in  the  former  case  being  attribu- 
ted to  an  increase  of  intensity  without  any  addition  to  quantity. 

This  view  of  the  nature  of  the  action  of  the  voltaic  battery 
is  supported  by  numerous  ingeniously- contrived  and  apposite 
experiments  ;  but  though  fully  disposed  to  pay  the  highest  pos- 
sible respect  to  so  great  an  authority  as  Dr.  Faraday,  an  opinion 
is  entertained  that  he  has  failed  to  establish  the  position  that 
increased  intensity  is  not  accompanied  by  addition  to  quantity. 

THE    CRUIKSHANK    VOLTAIC    BATTERY. 

There  are  many  arrangements  of  voltaic  batteries  for  the 
development  of  accumulated  electric  force  in  different  modes, 
but  they  all  depend  on  the  same  principle.  The  most  com- 
pact is  Cruikshank's  modification  of  the  voltaic  pile,  fig.  5. 

Fig.  5. 


Zinc  and  copper  plates  of  equal  size  are  soldered  together,  and 
then  cemented  into  a  wooden  trough.  Each  pair  of  plates  is 
fixed  less  than  half  an  inch  from  each  other,  care  being  taken 
that  all  the  zinc  and  copper  surfaces  are  turned  the  same  way. 
The  compartments  between  the  plates  form  water-tight  cells, 
into  which  diluted  acid,  or  other  exciting  liquid,  is  poured.  A 
piece  of  wire  is  introduced  at  each  end  to  complete  the  circuit 
through  any  substances  to  be  subjected  to  the  voltaic  action. 


THE    CRUIKSHANK    VOLTAIC    BATTERY. 


89 


A  series  of  fifty  small  double  plates  may  be  cemented  into  a 
trough  two  and  a  half  feet  long  ;  and  two  such  batteries,  with 
plates  two  inches  square,  will  give  a  rapid  succession  of  smart 
shocks,  and  will  exhibit  most  of  the  phenomena  of  voltaic 
electricity.  The  disadvantages  of  a  battery  of  this  kind  are, 
that  the  exciting  liquid  cannot  be  emptied  at  the  end  of  each 
experiment  without  much  trouble,  and  there  is  some  difficulty 
in  cleaning  the  plates  when  they  become  corroded.  By 
emptying  the  cells  as  soon  as  Dossible  and  washing  them 
with  water,  a  battery  of  this  -  Fig.  Q. 

construction   may,  however,       y « 

be  kept  in  order  for   a  con-  ^"^  ®^\ 

siderable  time ;  and  when 
voltaic  electricity  of  high  in- 
tensity and  small  quantity  is 
required,  a  Cruikshank  bat- 
tery with  plates  about  two 
inches  square,  is  very  con- 
venient. 

Figs.  6  and  7  represent  the 
full  battery.  Fig.  7  is  the 
trough  divided  into  cells  in- 
sulated each  from  the  other. 
Fig.  6  is  a  wooden  board  having  attached  to  it  copper  and  zinc 
plates,  the  white  are  copper  and  the  dark,  zinc.  These  plates 
fit  into  the  cells,  and  may  or  may  not  rest  upon  the  bottom 

The  original  form  of  the  trough  has  been  recently  very  ex- 
tensively used  for  the  electric  telegraph,  though  made  of  other 
materials  than  earthenware.  Most  of  the  batteries  of  the 
Electric  Telegraph  Company,  until  very  recently,  were  con- 
structed in  wooden  troughs,  with  partitions  of  slate  made  water- 
tight by  means  of  marine  glue.  These,  again,  are  being  sup- 
planted by  troughs  made  of  gutta-percha,  which  are  very  much 
lighter,  and  the  cells  can  be  more  effectually  prevented  from 
leaking.  The  plates  of  these  batteries  are  connected  by  strips 
of  copper,  which  are  bent  into  arches,  so  as  to  admit  of  each 
unattached  pair  of  plates  being  inserted  into  separate  cells. 
The  zinc  plates  are  well  amalgamated,  and  are  allowed  to  re- 
main in  the  cells  day  and  night,  the  local  action  being  in  a 
great  measure  prevented  by  filling  each  cell  with  fine  sand, 
and  by  using  sulphuric  acid  diluted  with  about  twelve  parts 
of  water:  A.  voltaic  battery,  with  sand  and  diluted  sulphuric 
acid,  will  continue  in  good  action,  with  occasional  additions  of 
acid,  for  two  months  before  the  zinc  plates  require  to  be 
cleaned  or  re-amalgamated. 


90  VOLTAIC  ELECTRICITY. 

Batteries  in  which  graphite  is  substituted  for  plates  of  cop- 
per, have  been  introduced  by  Mr.  C.  V.  Walker  in  working  the 
electric  telegraphs  of  the  Southeastern  Railway  Company, 
and  with  very  good  results.  One  of  these  batteries  of  twelve 
pairs,  of  which  a  record  was  taken,  was  kept  in  daily  action 
for  ninety-seven  weeks  without  having  been  washed  or  having 
the  sand  changed.  It  was  supplied  with  about  a  dessert-spoon- 
ful of  acid-water  twenty-one  times  during  the  period  it  was  in 
action,  and  six  times  with  merely  warm  water.  In  one  in- 
stance it  did  duty  for  seventy-seven  days  without  having  been 
touched. 

Dr.  Wollaston  contrived  the  arrangement  shown  in  fig-  8 

for    obtaining    the    greatest 
-  8*  amount  of  power  from  a  given 

surface  of  zinc.  The  copper 
plates  c  c  c  are  doubled,  so 
as  to  expose  a  conducting 
surface  to  both  sides  of  the 
zinc  plates,  B  B  B.  The  plates 
are  also  brought  as  close 
together  as  possible  without 
actual  contact.  They  are 
secured  to  a  bar  of  wood,  and 
are  kept  apart  by  pieces  of 
cork.  With  a  battery  of  this 
kind,  consisting  of  a  few  pairs  of  large  plates,  prodigious  heat- 
ing power  is  produced,  though  the  intensity  of  the  electricity 
is  too  feeble  to  communicate  a  shock. 


THE  DANIELL  VOLTAIC  BATTERY. 

The  battery  invented  by  Professor  Daniell,  is  constructed  on 
a  different  principle.  It  is  found  in  the  voltaic  arrangements, 
that  the  zinc  and  copper  plates  immersed  in  the  same  cell  are 
liable  to  have  their  action  impeded,  and  ultimately  altogether 
arrested,  by  the  transfer-  of  zinc  to  the  copper  surface.  The 
action  of  the  conducting  plate  is  also  greatly  retarded  by  the 
accumulation  of  hydrogen  gas  ;  so  much  so,  indeed,  that  very 
frequently,  after  the  first  minute  the  battery  has  been  put  in 
action,  not  more  than  one  tenth  of  the  original  power  is  ob- 
tained. In  Professor  Daniell's  battery  the  zinc  and  copper 
plates  are  kept  apart  by  means  of  porous  earthenware  cells,  or 
by  pieces  of  animal  membrane,  which,  though  sufficient  to 
prevent  the  passage  of  metallic  particles,  do  not  materially  in- 
terrupt the  voltaic  action. 


THE    DANIELL      VOLTAIC    BATTERY. 


91 


Fig.  9  shows  an  arrangement  of  a  single  cell  of  this  kind :  c 
is  a  copper  cylindrical  vessel,  with  a  binding  screw  B,  soldered 
to  one  edge  for  the  purpose  of  holding  a  connecting  wire.  Into 
this  copper  cylinder  a  porous  tube  D,  closed  at  the  bottom,  is 
introduced  ;  and  into  the  tube  is  placed  a  rod  of  amalgamated 
zinc  z,  with  a  bending  screw  at  the  top.  A  solution 
of  muriate  of  soda  (common  salt)  is  poured  into 
the  porous  tube,  and  the  outer  copper  vessel  is 
nearly  filled  with  a  saturated  solution  of  sul- 
phate of  copper  to  which  a  little  sulphuric  acid 
has  been  added. 

When  metallic  connection  is  made  between 
the  rod  of  zinc  and  the  copper  cylinder,  ac- 
tive excitement  of  voltaic  electricity  oc- 
curs. The  oxygen  of  the  acid  combines  with 
the  zinc,  and  the  liberated  hydrogen  passes 
through  the  porous  cell  to  the  copper.  It  does 
not,  however,  escape  in  the  form  of  gas,  but  it 
enters  into  combination  with  the  oxygen  of  the 
sulphate  of  copper,  and  the  metal  being  thus  deprived  of  its 
oxygen,  becomes  "  revived,"  and  is  deposited  in  a  metallic 
form  on  the  inner  surface  of  the  cylinder.  By  the  continued 
absorption  of  hydrogen  by  the  sulphate,  and  the  deposition  of 
copper,  a  bright  conducting  surface  is  maintained ;  and  this 
constant  renewal  of  the  conducting  surface  not  only  increases 
the  intensity  of  the  action,  but  maintains  it  with  a  steadiness 
that  cannot  be  attained  by  any  of  the  batteries  previously 
described. 

Fig.  10  represents  a  vertical 
section  of  the  Daniell  battery, 
used  on  some  of  the  American 
telegraph  lines,  in  the  local  cir- 
cuits. It  consists  of  a  double 
cylinder  of  copper  c  c,  with  a 
bottom  of  the  same  metal,  which 
answers  the  purpose  both  of  a 
voltaic  plate  and  of  a  vessel  to 
contain  the  solution.  The  space 
between  the  two  copper  cylin- 
ders receives  the  solution.  There  is  a  moveable  cylinder  of 
zinc,  marked  z,  in  the  sectional  view,  which  is  let  down  into 
the  solution  whenever  the  battery  is  to  be  put  in  action.  It 
hangs  suspended  in  the  solution,  and  presents  its  two  opposite 
surfaces  to  the  action  of  the  liquid,  and  to  the  inner  and  outer 
cylinders  respectively.  The  binding  screw  N  is  connected  with 
the  zinc,  and  the  screw  p  with  the  copper  cylinder. 


Fig.  10. 


VOLTAIC  ELECTRICITY. 


Fig.  11.  Fig.  11  is  a  perspective  view  of  the 

same  battery.  The  liquid  employed 
to  put  this  battery  in  action,  is  a  so- 
lution of  sulphate  of  copper,  or  com- 
mon blue  vitriol,  in  water.  To  pre- 
pare it,  a  saturated  solution  of  the 
salt  is  first  made,  and  to  this  solution 
is  then  added  as  much  more  water. 
A  pint  of  water  is  capable  of  dis- 
solving one  fourth  of  a  pound  of  blue 
vitrol,  so  that  the  half-saturated  solu- 
tion employed,  will  contain  about  two 
ounces  of  the  salt  to  the  pint.  A 

small  portion  is  sometimes  added  to  increase  the  permanence  of 

its  action. 

Fig.  12. 


Fig.  12  represents  the  union  of  the  cells  of  this  battery,  as 
in  common  use  on  some  of  the  telegraph  lines.  Fig.  13  is  a 
section  of  it,  being  the  zinc  and  the  porous  cylinder.  Fig.  14 
is  a  covered  cell  and  is  called  a  protective  battery. 

Fig.  13.  Fig.  14. 


The  Daniell  battery,  having    thus  been    described   in  its 
especial  arrangement,  I  will  add  a  few  explanations  relative  to 


THE    SMEE    VOLTAIC    BATTERY. 


93 


its  peculiar  advantages.  It  is  called  a  "constant"  or  "  sus- 
taining" battery,  from  the  regularity  and  duration  of  its 
action.  Mr.  Smee  denies  the  correctness  of  this  name.  He 
says,  "  It  is  often  thought  to  signify  long-continued  action, 
whereas  these  properties  are  really  different ;  for  a  battery 
may  he  constant,  but  only  remain  in  action  for  a  a  short 
period ;  and,  again,  a  battery  might  remain  in  action  for 
years,  and  not  be  constant  in  its  action."  Among  practical 
electricians,  however,  the  Daniell  battery  is  recognized  as  a 
"  constant  battery,"  and  as  such  it  has  been  used  in  the  local 
circuits  of  many  telegraph  lines,  with  much  economy  and 
satisfaction. 


THE  SMEE   VOLTAIC  BATTERY. 


The  voltaic  arrangement  contrived  by  Mr.  Smee  deserves  spe- 
cial notice  from  its  general  utility.     The  principal  differences 


Fig.  15. 


between  it  and  a  battery  of  Dr.  Babing- 
ton's  arrangement  consist  in  the  material 
of  the  conducting  plate  and  in  the  mode 
of  placing  it.  The  conducting  plate  is 
made  of  silver-foil  platinized  ;  that  is,  a 
thin  coat  of  platinum  is  deposited  on  the 
silver  by  the  electrotype  process.  The 
minutely-divided  particles  of  platinum 
that  thus  cover  and  adhere  to  the  silver, 
present  a  greatly-enlarged  surface  to 
liquid  in  which  it  is  immersed,  by  which 
means  a  smaller-sized  plate  answers 
equally  with  a  much  larger  one  of  smooth 
metal.  Platinum  also  being  a  metal  less 
readily  oxydized  than  copper,  the  effect  of 
the  voltaic  arrangement  is  heightened  by 
the  greater  dissimilarity  of  the  two 
metals.  The  platinized  silver-foil  is  fixed 
in  the  centr>  \>f  a  wooden  frame  s,  and  two  zinc  plates,  z  z,  well 
amalgamated,  are  attached  to  the  upper  rim  of  the  frame  by  a 
brass  clamp,  which  has  a  binding  screw  connected  with  it. 
By  this  arrangement  the  zinc  plates  can  be  very  readily  re- 
moved and  cleaned.  In  this  respect  a  Smee'»  battery  is  more 
convenient  than  any  other  ;  its  action  also  approaches  a  Dan- 
iell's  battery  in  constancy.  These  are  important  advantages, 
which  render  this  form  of  voltaic  battery  the  best  that  can  be 
used  for  general  purposes. 

The  substitution  of  graphite  for  the  platinized  silver  plates 


94 


VOLTAIC    ELECTRICITY. 


promises  to  be  a  still  further  improvement.  "With  graphite 
conducting  plates  there  is  no  occasion  for  the  wooden  frame. 
A  single  zinc  plate,  with  a  binding-screw  soldered  to  it,  occu- 
pies the  central  place,  instead  of  the  platinized  foil,  and  two 
flat  pieces  of  graphite  may  be  clamped  on  each  side  ;  care  being 
taken  to  insulate  the  zinc  from  the  graphite  by  small  strips  of 
varnished  wood.  It  will  be  observed  that  in  this  disposition,  of 
the  apparatus  with  the  graphite,  the  position  of  the  exciting 
zinc  in  reference  to  the  conducting  surfaces  is  transposed,  as 
well  as  the  proportions  of  each  to  the  other  being  reversed  ;  a 
single  plate  of  zinc  being  placed  between  two  conducting  sur- 
faces instead  of  the  conducting  surface  being  in  the  centre, 
with  a  zinc  plate  on  each  side. 

Fig.  16  is  another  form  of  the  Smee  cell  as  practically  ap- 
plied by  Mr.  Hall  of  Boston,  with  great  success  as  to  its  effi- 


Fig.  16. 


Fig.  17. 


ciency  and  long  service.  The  zinc  plates  are  large,  and  the 
platinized  sheet  very  thin.  Fig.  17  is  composed  of  three  cells 
united  by  the  wires,  one  connecting  with  the  copper  and  the 
other  with  the  zinc,  the  two  poles  of  the  battery. 

The  object  in  every  case  is  to  obtain  from  a  given  quantity 
of  the  exciting  metal  the  greatest  possible  amount  of  current 
electricity,  without  allowing  the  power  to  be  wasted  in  other 
ways.  The  consumption  of  a  given  weight  of  zinc  cannot,  by 
any  possible  combination,  excite  more  electricity  than  will  de- 
compose a  quantity  of  water  equivalent  to  that  which  is  de- 
composed by  the  chemical  affinity  of  the  metal  for  oxygen. 
Thus,  supposing  two  grains  of  water  to  be  decomposed  in  the 
generating  cell,  and  eight  grains  of  zinc  to  be  oxydized,  the 
electricity  generated  during  the  process  cannot  be  more  than 


THE  BUNSEN  VOLTAIC  BATTERY. 


95 


sufficient  to  decompose  another  two  grains  of  water.  The 
power  obtained,  even  by  the  best  arrangements  hitherto  con- 
trived, seldom  amounts  to  so  much.  By  increasing  the.  chemi- 
cal action  of  the  liquid  on  the  generating  plates,  the  energy  of 
the  battery  is  increased,  but  most  frequently  not  in  proportion 
to  the  consumption  of  zinc.  By  bringing  the  plates  in  the 
generating  cells  nearer  together,  the  energy  of  the  battery  is 
also  increased,  by  diminishing  the  intervening  fluid  resistance; 
but  this  may  be  attended  with  waste  of  power  if  the  plates  be 
brought  too  close. 

THE  BUN  SEN  VOLTAIC  BATTERY. 

Professor  Bunsen  has  substituted  carbon  for  platinum,  in 
nitric  acid  batteries,  with  good  effect.  To  overcome  the  diffi- 
culty of  shaping  graphite  into  the  required  form,  he  made  a 
composition  of  coke  and  coal  in  fine  powder,  which  were  heat- 
ed together  in  iron  moulds,  and  thus  formed  a  solid  mass  of 
carbon  of  the  required  form.  To  give  further  solidity  to  the 
mass,  it  is  plunged  into  a  syrup  of  sugar,  afterward  dried,  and 
then  subjected  to  intense  heat  in  covered  vessels.  The  form 
which  Professor  Bunsen  prefers  for  his  carbon  conducting  sur- 
faces is  cylindrical,  and  the  shape  of  his  battery  resembles  that 
of  Daniel  1's.  To  make  a  good  connection  between  the  carbon 
and  the  connecting  wire,  a  ring  of  copper  is  fixed  round  the 
top  of  the  carbon  cylinder  to  which  the  wire  is  soldered.  The 
accompanying  diagram  shows  the  several  parts  of  one  of  the 
cells  of  a  Bunsen's  battery,  A  being  the  carbon  cylinder,  with 
its  copper  ring  and  attached  wire,  B  the  porous  cell  into  which 
it  is  introduced,  c  the  cylinder  of  amalgamated  zinc  that  sur- 
rounds the  porous  cell,  D  is  the  external  earthenware  jar,  and 
E  represents  the  arrangements  of  the  whole  completed. 

Fig.  18. 


JL*  /V 

Bunsen's  battery  is  extensively  used  on  the  Continent,  and 


96  VOLTAIC    ELECTRICITY. 

it  is  represented  to  be,  when  in  good  action,  nearly  equal  to 
Grove's  in  power,  and  superior  to  it  in  constancy. 

I  noticed  this  battery  on  the  German  lines.  Telegraphers 
expressed  themselves  highly  in  favor  of  it.  Its  intensity  was 
highly  commensurate  with  the  wants  of  the  telegraph. 

Nitric  acid,  mixed  with  its  own  bulk  of  water,  is  poured  into 
the  vessel  in  contact  with  the  carbon.  A  mixture  of  sulphuric 
acid  1  part,  water  25  parts,  by  measure,  is  poured  into  the 
porous  cup  in  contact  with  the  zinc.  This  arrangement  may 
be  varied  by  using  a  solid  cylinder  of  carbon  in  the  porous 
earthen  vessel  in  the  centre,  and  a  zinc  cylinder  outside  next 
to  the  glass.  This  latter  method,  I  noticed  in  the  central  office 
in  Paris,  from  which  place  a  battery  of  40  such  couples  worked 
all  the  lines  from  Paris.  The  batteries  are  renewed  every  week. 
A  current  of  great  intensity  is  generated  by  this  combination. 

In  Denmark,  Prussia,  Austria  and  other  German  states,  I 
noticed  the  carbon  batteries  in  very  extensive  use,  but  no  nitric 
acid  was  employed ;  weak  sulphuric  acid,  1  of  acid  to  20  of 
water,  by  measure,  is  placed  in  contact  with  the  zinc,  which  is 
well  amalgamatedj  and  acid  of  1  part  sulphuric,  to  9  parts  water, 
is  used  in  contact  with  the  carbon  plate.  All  telegraphers  with 
whom  I  discussed  the  relative  merits  of  the  carbon,  with  that 
of  the  platina,  were  of  the  opinion  that  for  telegraphic  service 
the  former  was  the  best,  and  that  without  the  use  of  the  nitric 
acid,  a  current  of  sufficient  intensity  could  be  generated. 

THE  GROVE  VOLTAIC  BATTERY. 

The  most  powerful  voltaic  battery  that  has  yet  been  brought 
before  the  public,  is  that  of  Professor  Grove,  invented  about 
1839.  The  intensity  of  its  action  depends  on  associating  two 
metals  the  most  dissimilar  in  their  chemical  characters,  and 
exposing  one  of  them  separately  to  the  strongest  exciting  acid. 
This  can  only  be  done  by  using  a  porous  cell,  which  keeps  the 
zinc  from  the  distinctive  action  of  the  powerful  acids  employed, 
and  to  which  platinum  is  exposed  in  a  separate  compartment. 

This  battery  has  been  in  use  on  nearly  all  the  telegraph 
lines  in  America  until  some  five  years  since,  when  many  of 
them  adopted  a  modification  of  the  Smee  battery,  invented  by 
Mr.  C.  T.  Chester.  The  following  is  a  description  of  the  Grove 
battery  as  used  on  the  American  telegraphs. 

Figure  19  represents  the  zinc  cylinder  about  four  inches 
high,  and  three  pounds  in  weight.  Fig.  20  is  a  cylinder  with 
the  platina  strip  soldered  to  the  arm  B  at  c.  Between  A  A  is  D, 
an  opening,  to  give  free  action  to  the  chemicals. 

The  porous  cup,  fig.  21,  is  made  of  the  same  materials  as 
stone-ware,  and  baked  without  being  glazed.  A  represents 


THE    GROVE    VOLTAIC    BATTERY. 


97 


the  rim  surrounding  the  top.     From  the  under  side  of  the  rim 
to  the  bottom,  it  is  three  inches  long,  and  one  and  one  quarter 


Fig.  19. 


Fig.  20. 


Fig.  21. 


Fig..  22. 


in  diameter.  The  rim  projects  one  quarter  of  an  inch,  and  the 
shell  of  the  cup  is  one  eighth  of  an  inch  thick. 

These  several  parts  are  placed  together  thus  :  The  porous 
cup  is  set  in  the  hollow  of  the  zinc  cylinder,  represented  by  H, 
with  the  rim  of  the  cup  resting  upon  the  top  of  the  zinc  at  i. 
The  zinc  cylinder  is  then  placed  in  the  glass  tumbler.  The 
whole  is  represented  in  fig.  22. 

D  represents  the  porous  cup,  F  the  zinc  cylinder,  G  the  glass 
tumbler,  A  the  projecting  arm  of  the  zinc,  c  the  platinum  plate, 
and  B  the  overlapping  of  the  platinum  plate  upon  the  zinc  arm, 
where  it  is  soldered  to  it. 

It  is  now  in  a  condition  to  receive  the  acids,  which  are  two : 
first,  pure  nitric  acid,  and  second,  sulphuric  acid,  diluted  in 
the  proportion  of  one  part  of  sulphuric  acid  to  twelve  of  water. 
First  fill  the  porous  cup  with  the  nitric  acid,  to  within  one 
quarter  of  an  inch  of  the  top ;  then  fill  the  glass  with  the  dim- 

7 


98 


VOLTAIC     ELECTRICITY. 


ted  sulphuric  acid,  till  it  reaches  to  a  level  with  the  nitric  acid 
in  the  porous  cup.  One  cell  of  the  battery  is  now  ready  for 
use  ;  and  as  all  the  other  members  of  the  battery  are  similarly 
constructed,  and  are  to  be  prepared  and  filled  with  their  appro- 
priate acids  in  the  same  manner,  the  above  description  will 
suffice.  There  remains,  however,  some  further  explanation  in 
regard  to  the  extremities  of  the  series  of  glasses,  that  is,  the 
mode  of  connecting  the  zinc  of  the'  first  glass  with  the  wire 
leading  from  it,  and  also  the  mode  of  connecting  the  platinum 
of  the  last  glass  with  the  wire  leading  from  that  end  of  the 
series  of  glasses.  Figure  23  represents  their  arrangement. 

Fig.  23. 


The  glasses  being  all  separately  supplied  with  their  acids, 
and  otherwise  prepared,  they  are  put  together  upon  a  table.  A 
A,  perfectly  dry,  and  made  of  hard  wood.  The  first  member 
of  the  series  has  soldered  to  its  zinc  arm  a  strip  of  copper,  c, 
which,  extending  downward,  has  its  end,  previously  brightened 
and  amalgamated,  immersed  in  a  cup  of  mercury  at  N,  the 
cup  being  permanently  secured  to  the  table.  Then  the  second 
glass  is  taken,  and  the  platinum,  B,  at  the  end  of  the  zinc  arm, 
is  gently  let  fall  into  the  porous  cup,  so  that  it  shall  be  in  the 
centre  of  the  cup,  and  reaching  down  as  far  as  its  length, 
when  the  glass  rests  upon  the  table.  The  third  glass  is  then 
taken  and  placed  in  the  same  manner,  and  so  on  to  the  last.  The 
last  glass  has,  in  its  porous  cup,  the  platinum  plate,  D,  soldered 
to  a  stripper,  E,  which  is  so  constructed  as  to  turn  at  the  top, 
and  admit  of  the  easy  introduction  of  the  platinum  into  the 
porous  cup,  while  the  other  end  is  fastened  to  the  metallic  con- 
nection with  the  line  wire.  The  line  wire  is,  also,  connected 
with  the  mercury  cup  N.  Sometimes  the  line  wires  are  fasten- 
ed with  binding  screws  to  the  batteries  as  represented  by  fig. 
24.  When  a  large  battery  is  required,  the  cells  are  placed  in 
regular  order  as  represented  by  fig.  25  excepting  it  is  not  uni- 


THE  GROVE  VOLTAIC  BATTERY. 


99 


versal  to  place  the  batteries  in  boxes.  There  are  Fig-  24. 
many  contrivances  having  in  view  the  insulation 
of  the  battery,  to  prevent  local  action,  and  cross 
currents  from  one  cell  to  the  other,  generating  va- 
rious circuits  of  quantity  electricity.  I  have  seen 
the  batteries,  set  upon  tables  covered  with  a  sheet 
of  gutta-percha,  at  other  times  I  have  seen  the 
cells  placed  on  the  flat  surface  of  glass,  or  on  the 
edges  of  strips,  cut  an  inch  wide,  and  fastened  in 
saw  grooves.  The  glass  strips  were  placed  an  inch  apart.  This 

Fig.  25. 


was  quite  an  effective  insulation.  The  best  arrangement  for 
insulating  the  cells,  one  from  the  other,  has  been  gotten  up  by 
Mr.  J.  H.  Wade,  of  the  Western  Union  lines.  The  Wade  in- 
sulator is  squared  flat  at  the  top,  and  it  is  set  on  wooden  pins, 
coated  with  gum  lac,  and  fixed  in  the  table.  With  this  appli- 
cation there  can  be  no  cross  currents,  and  the  full  voltaic  force 
of  intensity  can  be  thrown  over  the  lines  for  the  uses  of  tele- 
graphing. 

Fig.  26. 


Fig.  26  represents  a  sectional  view  of  the  Grove  battery, 
as  practically  employed  on  many  lines,  A  is  the  platinum  or 
positive  pole  of  the  battery,  and  B  the  zinc  or  negative  pole. 
The  chemicals  act  upon  the  zinc,  and  the  platinum  leads  the 
electrical  force  generated  in  the  cell,  to  the  next  in  course  and 
thence  on.  The  current  is  indicated  by  the  arrow,  running 
from  the  platina  end  to  the  zinc  or  negative  pole  of  the  battery ; 


100  VOLTAIC    ELECTRICITY. 

the  circuit  is  thus  completed.  While  the  action  proceeds,  the 
zinc  end  is  charged  with  negative,  the  copper  with  positive 
electricity.  The  current  moves  from  the  zinc  to  the  copper  or 
platina  in  the  fluid,  and  from  the  latter  by  the  intermediate 
wire  to  the  zinc.  Thus  the  wire  attached  to  the  copper  or 
platina  is  positive,  and  that  to  the  zinc  is  negative.  If  the  cir- 
cuit be  several  hundred  miles  the  philosophy  will  be  the  same. 
On  the  telegraph  lines,  one  end  of  the  battery  is  connected  with 
the  earth,  and  the  other  with  the  line  wire,  thence  to  the  ter- 
minal station,  where  that  end  of  the  wire  is,  also,  connected 
with  the  earth.  The  opinion  is  entertained  by  some,  and  dis- 
puted by  others,  that  the  current  flows  over  the  line  and  re- 
turns through  the  earth.  I  have  entertained  the  belief  that  the 
current  does  return  to  the  source  of  its  generation.  It  is  a 
question,  however,  that  no  one  is  able  to  determine  by  the 
present  known  state  of  the  science. 

The  Grove  battery  has  proved  its  superiority  for  the  greatest 
intensity.  In  getting  this  intensity — the  power  to  overcome 
long  distances — the  telegraph  incurs  a  very  great  expense. 
The  zincs  of  a  main  line  battery  have  to  be  renewed  about 
every  three  months,  and  the  consumption  of  nitric  acid  is  very 
great. 

Before  using  a  zinc  it  should  be  well  amalgamated  with 
mercury,  which  penetrates  the  zinc  if  they  are  first  immersed 
in  water  diluted  with  muriatic  acid.  It  was  my  practice  to  use 
but  gV  part  sulphuric  acid  in  the  water  for  the  battery  service, 
and  every  night  the  porous  cups  were  emptied  into  a  vessel  and 
kept  closed  until  morning.  The  zincs  were  removed  from  the 
tumblers  and  placed  inverted  in  a  trough  of  water  acidulated 
with  sulphuric  acid.  In  the  morning,  the  zincs  were  rubbed 
with  a  brush  and  the  mercury  caused  to  be  diffused  over  the 
zinc.  To  every  ten  cups  of  nitric  acid  used  in  the  battery,  one 
additional  cup  of  pure  acid  was  mixed.  By  this  process  of 
mixing  fresh  acid  every  morning,  the  battery  produced  a  steady 
and  an  even  current  on  the  line.  The  water,  diluted  with  sul- 
phuric acid,  should  be  removed  from  the  tumblers  twice  each 
week.  Great  care  should  be  observed  not  to  injure  the  con- 
nection between  the  zinc  and  the  platina.  On  soldering  platina  to 
the  zinc,  the  greater  the  surface  of  the  platina  applied  to  the 
zinc,  the  greater  will  be  the  power  of  the  battery.  The  con- 
ductibility  of  the  metals  and  fluids  employed,  should  be  com- 
mensurate, one  with  the  other,  in  order  to  have  the  chemical 
and  electrical  action  of  the  different  elements  uniform. 

It  is  advisable  for  the  telegrapher  to  make  every  connection 
*f  the  different  metals  full,  with  the  greatest  amount  of  surface 


THE  GROVE  VOLTAIC  BATTERY. 


101 


contact  possible.  The  strength  and  efficiency  of  a  battery  of  in- 
tensity, or  of  quantity,  can  always  be  determined  by  the  fixed 
laws  concerning  the  conductibility  of  the  respective  elements 
employed  in  the  voltaic  organization. 

In  the  construction  of  the  battery,  care  should  be  taken  to 
insulate  each  cup  or  cell  from  the  other.  I  have  frequently 
seen  a  battery  set  upon  a  wet  table,  and  the  tumblers  wet  with 
moisture.  When  thus  arranged,  the  chemical  action  of  the  bat- 
tery will  be  more  than  ordinary,  and  several  local  circuits  will 
be  in  electrical  action.  To  prevent  such  hinderances  to  the 
efficiency  of  the  battery,  and  to  concentrate  the  greatest  amount 
of  electrical  intensity,  for  purposes  of  the  line,  Mr.  William  M. 
Swain,  the  President  of  the  Magnetic  Telegraph  Company,  had 
constructed  tumblers  with  feet,  as  represented  by  figs  27  and  28. 


Fig.  27. 


Fig.  28. 


Fig.  29. 


Fig.  27  is  a  sectional  view  of  a  tumbler.  Beneath  it  is  concave 
as  seen  by  fig.  3,  with  the  rim  1.  The  feet  2,  project  from  the 
hollow  below  the  rim  1.  If  moisture  collects  upon  the  glass 
it  falls  from  the  rim  1,  or  it  remains  upon  the  glass  in  globules. 
The  arrangement  is*  simple  but  of  great  importance  to  the  effi- 
ciency of  the  voltaic  organization,  and  no  battery  should  be  con- 
structed without  tumblers  thus  manufactured.  The  ordinary 
tumbler,  fig.  29,  sets  upon  the  battery  table,  and  the  moisture 
gathered  upon  the  glass  soon  forms  a  watery  connection  from 
one  glass  to  the  other,  producing  local  action  on  many  local  cir- 
cuits. The  plan  adopted  by  Mr.  Swain  economises  the  use  of 
the  battery,  and  attains  a  battery  of  intensity,  so  indispensable 
in  the  working  of  the  line,  and  prevents  the  action  of  innumer- 
able local  circuits  in  the  generation  of  quantity  electricity. 

The  local  battery,  generally  composed  of  two  or  three  cells, 
is  more  active,  generating  a  quantity  current  for  the  working 
of  the  register.  The  circuit  is  confined  to  the  station,  the  wire 
is  larger  in  the  register  coils  than  in  the  relay,  and  the  battery 
is  more  consuming  than  the  main  line  series.  The  acids  are 


102 


VOLTAIC    ELECTRICITY. 


renewed,  sometimes  every  day,  but  generally  whenever  the 
register  magnet  requires  an  increased  efficiency  for  the  mag- 
netization of  the  soft  iron  in  the  register  spools. 


THE  CHESTER  VOLTAIC  BATTERY. 

The  next  organization  requiring  especial  notice  is  that  gen- 
erally known  as  the  Chester  battery,  and  extensively  used  on 
the  American  lines,  both  on  the  local  and  main  circuits.  The 
advantages  in  its  use  are,  economy  in  the  use  of  material, 
labor  in  taking  care  of  it,  and  its  uniform  efficiency  in  genera- 
ting a  voltaic  current  suitable  for  practical  telegraphing. 

Fig.  30  is  a  representation  of  the  Chester  main  battery,  A  A 
are  insulated  wooden  bars,  B  B  are  brass  clamps  with  the  bind- 

Fig.  30. 


THE  CHESTER  VOLTAIC  BATTERY.  103 

mg  screw  attached,  z  z  are  the  zinc  plates  fastened  by  the 
clamp  on  the  one  side  of  the  wooden  bar  ;  p  p  are  platinized 
plates  fastened  by  the  clamps  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  wood- 
en bar  from  the  zinc  plates,  T  T  are  the  elongated  tumblers. 
In  battery  1  the  wooden  bars  rest  upon  the  glasses,  and  in  bat- 
tery 2  they  rest  upon  iron  brackets  fastened  to  supports.  The 
wooden  bar  is  covered  with  lac  to  prevent  it  from  being  de- 
stroyed by  the  acid.  G-utta-percha  and  hard  rubber  bars  have 
been  used  on  some  of  the  batteries,  and  they  have  served  well. 
In  the  bottom  of  the  tumblers  are  set  small  glass  cups,  in  which 
are  placed  about  two  tablespoonfuls  of  mercury. 

This  battery  has  been  widely  extended  over  the  American 
continent,  to  South  America,  Australia,  and  the  Islands.  Its 
cheapness,  freedom  from  poisonous  fumes,  and  long  use  with- 
out renewal,  has  gained  for  it  many  friends. 

The  battery  is  very  cleanly,  and  can  be  placed  on  shelves  or 
ornamented  casings  on  the  side  of  the  wall  in  the  operating 
room.  Each  zinc  plate  being  supplied  with  a  cup  of  mercury, 
the  amalgamation  continues,  undisturbed  by  destroying  acids. 
Tne  zincs  thus  arranged  continue  in  service  about  one  year. 
The  platinized  plate  with  care  in  handling  will  not  decay.  The 
battery  requires  to  be  renewed  or  rebuilt  about  four  times  a 
year. 

The  following  relative  computations  have  been  made  in  re- 
gard to  the  Grrove,  the  Daniell,  and  the  Chester  batteries : 

The  Grrove  battery  consumes  1J  pounds  of  nitric  acid,  1J 
pounds  of  zinc,  1  pound  of  sulphuric  acid. 

The  Daniell  battery  consumes  4  pounds  of  sulphate  of  copper, 
1^  pounds  of  zinc,  1  pound  of  sulphuric  acid. 

The  Chester  battery  consumes  1 J  pounds  of  zinc,  3  pounds 
of  sulphuric  acid. 

The  only  acid  used  in  the  Chester  battery  is  sulphuric,  in 
pure  water  and  in  very  small  quantities. 

In  a  telegraph  main-battery,  the  great  object  to  be  attained 
is  the  greatest  degree  of  intensity,  or  energy  of  action  or -motion, 
to  overcome  distance  ;  this  intensity  is  obtained  by  increasing 
the  number  of  the  cells. 

In  a  telegraph  local  battery,  a  quantity  current  is  necessary. 
The  circuit  is  short,  and  intensity  current  is  not  necessary. 
A  quantity  current  depends  upon  the  surface  of  the  plates  ;  and, 
to  increase  the  quantity  force,  it  is  necessary  to  increase  the 
size  of  the  plates  employed.  These  are  the  indispensable  con- 
siderations to  be  regarded  in  the  organization  of  any  battery  for 
telegraphic  service. 

Fig.  31  represents  the  Chester  local  battery,  as  practically 
empoyed  on  many  of  the  American  lines,  z  is  the  zinc  cylin- 


104 


VOLTAIC    ELECTRICITY. 


ders ;  p  c  the  porous  cup  ;  c  is  the  perforated  copper  chamber, 
attached,  and  G  is  the  glass  tumbler.     It  is  arranged  upon  the 

Fig.  31. 


principles  of  the  Daniell  battery.  A  quantity  current  is  genera- 
ted by  this  combination  fully  equal  to  the  requirements  of  the 
local  circuit.  The  peculiar  form  of  the  metallic  parts,  present 
to  the  acidulated  chemicals  surface  sufficient  to  produce  the 
desired  results.  This  form  of  battery  has  been  very  extensive- 
ly used,  and  with  advantages  worthy  of  appreciation. 

INTENSITY  AND  QUANTITY   OF  THE  GROVE,  DANIELL,  AND  SMEE 

BATTERIES. 

The  following  facts  have  been  determined  relative  to  the 
comparative  intensity  and  quantity  powers  of  the  Grove,  Daniell 
and  Smee  batteries : 

Intensity.  Quantity. 

Grove 87  Grove 44 

Daniell 43fc  Daniell 12 

Smee,  No.   1,  open 27J-  Smee,  No.  1,  open 42 

Smee,  approximated  plates ...  32  Smee,  approximated    plates . .  49 

Thus,  it  appears,  that  nearly  equal  quantities  of  electricity 
are  excited  by  equal  surfaces  of  Grove's  and  Smee's  batteries, 
but  that  the  intensity  of  the  nitric  acid  battery,  is  rather  more 
than  three  times  that  of  Smee's.  Daniell's  arrangement  holds 
an  intermediate  position  with  regard  to  intensity,  but  is  de- 
ficient in  quantity. 


MAGNETISM. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

Native  Magnetism  of  the  Load-Stone — Attractive  and  Repulsive  Forces  of  Per- 
manent Magnets — Component  parts  of  the  Magnet — Induced  Magnetism. 

NATIVE    MAGNETISM    OF    THE    LOAD-STONE. 

As  a  preliminary  to  the  consideration  of  electro-magnetism, 
it  is  necessary  to  explain  the  mysterious  existence  of  the  at- 
tractive and  repulsive  nature  of  matter  commonly  known  as 
permanent  magnetism.  This  is  the  more  necessary  as  some  of 
the  telegraph  systems  have,  as  parts  thereof,  the  conjunctive 
force  of  permanent  and  electro-magnetism. 

Fig.  1  represents  the  native 
load-stone,  found  in  the  earth  in 
different  parts  of  the  world.  In 
the  figure,  the  polarity  of  the 
stone  is  shown  and  its  attractive 
force,  by  nails  suspended  by  it. 

It  is  an  ore  of  iron,  compound- 
ed of  iron  and  oxygen.  Recent- 
ly, I  saw  large  quantities  of 
this  ore  near  St.  Louis,  Missouri. 
It  was  in  a  mountain  of  iron.. 
The  discovery  of  the  load-stone 
has  been  attributed  to  a  shep- 
herd, named  Magnes,  who  ob- 
served its  attraction  to  his  iron 
crook,  when  tending  his  flock 
on  Mount  Ida,  and  from  whom 
it  is  supposed  the  name  of  mag- 
net is  derived  ;  though,  accord- 
ing to  other  accounts,  the  load-stone  first  came  from  Hera- 
clea,  in  Magnesia,  and  one  of  its  ancient  names  was  lapis 


106  MAGNETISM. 

Heracleus.      Plato  and  Euripides   called    it    the    Herculean 
stone,  because  it  commanded  iron,  the  strongest  of  all  metals. 

VARIATION  OF  THE   NEEDLE  DISCOVERED  BY  COLUMBUS. 

To  what  extent  the  earth  is  filled  with  the  load-stone  no  one 
can  form  any  idea.  In  connection  with  this,  may  be  considered 
the  magnetic  polarity  of  the  earth,  and  the  magnetic  or  mari- 
ners' needle.  The  needle  has  been  used  for  several  centuries, 
but  the  variation  of  the  compass  needle,  in  different  latitudes, 
was  first  noticed  by  the  discoverer  of  America.  Irving's  Colum- 
bus says,  viz. :  "  On  the  13th  of  September,  1492,  he  perceived 
about  nightfall  that  the  needle,  instead  of  pointing  to  the  north 
star,  varied  but  half  a  point,  or  between  five  and  six  degrees, 
to  the  northwest,  and  still  more  on  the  following  morning. 
Struck  with  this  circumstance,  he  observed  it  attentively  for 
three  days,  and  found  that  the  variation  increased  as  he  ad- 
vanced. He  at  first  made  no  mention  of  this  phenomenon, 
knowing  how  ready  his  people  were  to  take  alarm  ;  but  it  soon 
attracted  the  attention  of  the  pilots,  and  filled  them  with  con- 
sternation. It  seemed  as  if  the  laws  of  nature  were  changing 
as  they  advanced,  and  that  they  were  entering  into  another 
world,  subject  to  unknown  influences.  They  apprehended 
that  the  compass  was  about  to  lose  its  mysterious  virtues ;  and 
without  this  guide,  what  was  to  become  of  them  in  a  vast  and 
trackless  ocean  ?  Columbus  tasked  his  science  and  ingenuity 
for  reasons  in  which  to  allay  their  terrors.  He  told  them  that 
the  direction  of  the  needle  was  not  to  the  polar  star,  but  to 
some  fixed  invisible  point.  The  variation  was  not  caused  by 
any  failing  in  the  compass,  which,  like  the  other  heavenly 
bodies,  had  its  changes  and  revolutipns,  and  every  day  described 
a  circle  around  the  pole.  The  high  opinion  that  the  pilots  en- 
tertained of  Columbus  as  a  profound  astronomer,  gave  weight 
to  his  theory,  and  their  alarm  subsided." 

THE  FORCES  OF  PERMANENT  MAGNETS. 

Fig.  2.  Place  the  ends  of  a  magnet  un- 

der a  piece  of  paper  on  which  are 
scattered  some  iron  filings ;  in  a 
moment  the  filings  will  be  seen  to 


magnet,  and  spreading  out  in  cur- 
vilinear directions  toward   the   two   ends.     Very  few  of  the 


FORCES  OF  PERMANENT  MAGNETS. 


10T 


filings  will  collect  on  the  spot  over  the  centre  of  tne  magnet. 
When  thus  arranged,  each  one  of  the  filings  is  magnetic,  with 
distinct  polarity,  with  attractive  and  repulsive  powers,  as  the 
magnet  beneath  the  paper.  The  magnetism  in  the  particles,  as 
to  quantity,  depends  upon  their  respective  proximities  to  the 
magnet  poles.  The  farther  they  are  from  it,  the  less  is  their 
power.  The  curves  formed  are  owing  to  the  more  distant  attrac- 
tive influence  affecting  them. 

A  straight  perma-  Fig.  3. 

nent  magnet  is  rep- 
resented by  figure  3. 
This  form  is  called  a 
compound  permanent 
magnet,  because  it  is  made  of  more  than  one  bar,  and  it  retains 
magnetism.  By  this  uniting  of  several  magnets,  the  power  is 
increased.  The  similar  poles  of  each  must  be  placed  together. 

Fig  4  is  a   horseshoe  or  U-magnet.     It  is  the  bar    -pig.  4. 
magnet  bent  in  the  form  represented  in  the  figure, 
for  the  purpose  of  getting  the  attractive  force  of  the 
two  ends  of  the  magnet  to  act  at  the  same  time  upon 
the  same  matter.     Figure  5  is  the  same  as  figure  4, 
compounded.     The  two  poles  of  the'  magnet  are  exer- 
cised in  the  attraction  of  the  piece  of  iron  A,  which  is 
called  the  keeper*     It  is  called  thus,  because  it  aids 
to  keep  the  magnetism  in  the  bars.     The  moment  that 
A  comes  in  contact  with  the   poles  N  and  s,  it  be- 
comes magnetic,  with  distinct  polarities.     The  south 
pole  of  it,  is  next  to  the  N,  or    north  pole  of  the 
magnet.     The  terms  north  and  south,  to  indicate 
the  polarity  of  the  magnet,  was  given  to  the  needle 
about  the  year  1600,  conformably  to  the  views  en- 
tertained of  terrestrial  magnetism.     The   end  of 
the  needle  that  pointed  toward  the  north  was  call- 
ed the  south  pole,  and  that  toward    the  south  was 
called  the  north  pole.     The  poles  of  the  earth  were 
supposed  to  be  magnetic,  and  that  the  needle  was 
affected  by  them,  upon  the  principles  of  the  pres- 
ent known  laws,  concerning  the  attractive  and  re- 
pulsive nature  of  magnets.     Like  poles  repel,  and  opposite  poles 
attract.     The  north  pole  of  one  magnet  attracts  the  south  pole 
of  the  other. 

In  examining  the  distribution  of  electricity,  in  a  circular 
plane,  it  was  found  that  the  thickness  of  the  electric  stratum 
was  almost  constant  from  the  centre,  to  within  a  very  small 
distance  of  the  circumference,  when  it  increased  all  on  a  sud- 


108  MAGNETISM. 

den  with  great  rapidity.  It  has  been  believed  that  a 
similar  distribution  of  magnetism  took  place  in  the  trans- 
verse section  of  a  magnetic  bar  ;  and  by  a  series  of  magnetic 
experiments,  results  have  induced  some  philosophers  to  be- 
lieve that  the  magnetic  power  resides  on  the  surface  of 
iron  bodies,  and  is  entirely  independent  of  their  mass.  On 
the  other  hand  some  are  of  the  opinion  that  the  magnetic  force 
commences  as  a  focus  at  the  centre  of  the  mass,  and  fully  culmi- 
nates at  the  surface. 

COMPONENT  PARTS  OF  THE  MAGNET. 

A  magnet  is  considered  as  composed  of  minute  invisible  par- 
ticles or  filaments  of  iron,  each  of  which  has  individually  the 
properties  of  a  separate  magnet.  It  is  assumed  that  there  are 
two  distinct  fluids — the  austral  and  boreal ;  and  under  the  in- 
fluence of  either  in  a  free  state,  the  bar  of  iron  or  other  metal 
will  point  to  the  north  or  south  poles  of  the  earth,  according  to 
circumstances.  It  is  within  these  small  particles  or  metallic 
elements  that  the  displacement  or  separation  of  the  two  attrac- 
tive powers  take  place  ;  and  the  particles  may  be  the  ultimate 
atoms  of  iron.  A  magnetic  bar  may,  there-  -p.  6 

fore,  as  represented  in  figure  6,  be  composed 
of  minute  portions,  the  right  hand  extremi- 
ties of  each  of  which  possess  one  species  of 
magnetism,  and  the  left  hand  extremities  the 
other  species;  the  shaded  ends  being  sup- 
posed to  possess  boreal,  and  the  light  end 
austral  magnetism.  The  ends  of  the  bar, 
when  either  straight  or  U  shaped,  are  charged 
with  boreal  or  austral  magnetism,  and  the 
ends  are  called  by  those  respective  terms. 
More  commonly  the  ends  of  the  magnet  are 
called  the  "  north  "  and  "  south  "  poles,  for 
the  reasons  before  mentioned. 

These  fluids  exist  in  a  combined  state,  and  in  certain  propor- 
tions they  are  united  to  each  molecule  or  atom  of  the  metal, 
from  which  they  can  never  be  disunited  except  by  their  de- 
composition into  separate  fluids,  one  of  which  in  a  permanent 
magnet  is  always  collected  on  one,  and  the  other  on  the  oppo- 
site side  of  each  molecule. 

INDUCED  MAGNETISM. 

In  order  to  communicate  magnetism  from  a  natural  or  arti- 
ficial magnet,  to  unmagnetized  iron  or  steel,  it  is  not  necessary 
that  the  two  bodies  should  be  in  contact.  The  communica- 


INDUCED  MAGNETISM.  109 

tion  is  effected  as  perfectly,  though  more  feebly,  when  the  bodies 
are  separated  by  space. 
Figure  7  represents  a  bar, 
magnet  M,  and  an  iron  rod 
B,  near  together.  By  the 
influence  of  the  magnet  M  upon  the  principles  of  induction,  the 
rod  B  partakes  of  the  magnetism  of  M,  the  end  N  becoming 
boreal  and  the  end  s  austral.  If  the  rod  B  be  brought  in  con- 
tact with  the  bar  M,  the  induction  will  be  much  stronger. 

If    to    the  north  pole  (fig.  Fi     8 

8)  of  an  artificial  steel  mag-  A  BCD 

net  A,  is  placed  a  soft  iron  bar,  <tr—  g—      s       s       j 

B,   the   end   s    of  B    will  in-  ~ 

stantly  acquire  the  properties  of  a  south  pole,  and  the  oppo- 
site end  N,  those  of  the  north  pole.  The  opposite  poles  would 
have  been  produced  at  N  and  s,  if  the  south  pole  s  of  the  mag- 
net A,  had  been  placeed  near  the  iron  B.  In  like  manner,  the 
piece  of  soft  iron  B,  though  only  temporarily  magnetic,  will  ren- 
der another  piece  of  iron,  c,  and  this  again  another  piece,  D, 
temporarily  magnetic,  north  and  south  poles  being  produced 
at  the  ends.  This  represents  compound  induction. 

It  is  important  for  the  reader  to  observe  the  pointed  analogy 
between  the  phenomena  of  magnetic  attraction  and  repulsion, 
and  those  of  electricity.  In  both  there  exists  the  same  char- 
acter of  double  agencies  of  opposite  kind,  capable,  when  sepa- 
rate, of  acting  with  great  energy,  and  being,  when  combined 
together,  perfectly  neutralized,  and  exhibiting  no  signs  of  ac- 
tivity. As  there  are  two  electrical,  so  there  are  also  two  mag- 
netic powers  ;  and  both  sets  of  phenomena  are  governed  by  the 
same  characteristic  laws.  So  also  in  the  last  experiment,  the 
magnetism  inherent  in  B,  c,  D,  is  said  to  be  induced  by  the 
presence  of  the  real  magnet ;  and  the  phenomena  are  exactly 
analogous  to  the  communication  of  electricity  to  unelectrified 
bodies  by  induction,  the  positive  state  inducing  the  negative, 
and  the  negative  the  positive,  in  the  parts  of  a  conductor  placed 
in  a  state  of  insulation,  near  an  electrified  body.  Where  two 
or  more  wires  are  suspended  on  the  same  set  of  poles,  the 
voltaic  current  transmitted  on  one  wire  will  escape  to  the  other 
wire  by  induction,  though  not  to  a  very  great  extent.  If  the 
wires  are  placed  near  together,  more  or  less  of  the  electric  in- 
fluence will  pass  from  one  to  the  other  Figure  9  is  another 
representation  of  the  inductive  principle.  Plunge  a  U-magnet 
into  a  cask  of  nails  and  on  withdrawing  it  the  nails  will  ad- 
here to  the  magnet  and  to  each  other  as  represented  in  the 
figure.  If  the  magnet  be  placed  in  connection  with  iron  filings, 
they  will  collect  on  the  poles  as  seen  in  figure  10. 


HO  MAGNETISM. 

If  the  north  pole  of  a  bar  magnet,  figure  11,  be  placed  on 

the  centre  of  a  circular  plate  of  iron,  a  south  polarity  is  given 

Fig.  9.  Fig.  10.  Fig.  11. 


to  the  metal  or  plate  touching  the  bar,  and  the  under  part  be- 
comes north,  and  from  it  will  be  suspended  iron  filings  when 
they  are  brought  in  contact  with  the  plate.  If  the  plate  is  cut 
in  the  form  of  a  star,  as  represented  by  figure  12,  each  point 
becomes  a  stronger  north  pole.  The  part  of  the  plate  in  con- 


INDUCED  MAGNETISM. 


Ill 


tact  with  the  bar  is  south,  and  the  line  of  induction  extends 
to  the  points.  If  nails  be  suspended  from  the  points  the  polarity 
of  the  respective  pieces  will  be  as  represented  in  the  figure. 

If  the  north  pole  be  placed  on  the  middle  of  the  bar  of  iron, 
as  seen  in  figure  13,  the  part  of  the  horizontal  bar  becomes  a 
south  pole,  and  the  respective  ends  become  north.  The  bar 
N  N.  becomes  magnetically  two  pieces  of  iron,  each  with  its 
south  pole  terminating  at  the  bar  s  N.  If  pieces  of  iron  wire 
of  equal  lengths  be  suspended  from  a  magnetic  pole,  they  will 
not  hang  parallel.  The  lower  ends  will  diverge  from  each  other 
in  consequence  of  their  having  the  same  polarity,  as  seen  by 
figure  13. 

If  a  bar  magnet  be  broken  into  two  pieces  the  polarity  of 
each  piece  will  at  once  be 

f  1  1  CL 

formed  as  seen  by  figure 
14.     These  halves  may  be 
broken  with  the   same  re- 
sult, each  section  having  a  full  charge  of  the  magnetic  influence. 
The  magnetic  needle  is  a  very  slender, magnet  mounted  on 
a  pivot,  as  seen  in  figure  15,  or  it  may  be  otherwise  suspended. 
Fig.  15. 


Fig.  16. 


112 


MAGNETISM. 


One  end  of  the  needle  is  north  and  the  other  end  is  south. 
Figure  16  represents  a  bar  magnet,  and  the  three  needles  or 
arrows,  indicate  the  direction  of  the  magnetic  force.  The  ar- 
row-heads are  of  north  polarity,  and  the  two  to  t'he  right  are 
influenced  by  the  south  polarity  of  the  magnet  bar  N  s.  The 
south  pole  of  the  bar  and  the  north  poles  of  the  needles  attract 
each  other.  The  needle  over  the  centre  of  the  bar  magnet 
is  equally  influenced  by  the  polarity  of  the  bar  N  s,  and  it  can- 
not deviate  from  a  parallel.  Figure  17  represents  the  different 
positions  necessary  to  place  magnets  to  make  them  harmonize 
in  their  respective  influences  or  forces  one  with  the  other.  If 
the  various  small  pieces  were  arrows,  their  polarities  would  be 
as  represented  in  figure  17,  conjunctively  with  the  larger 
magnet  in  the  centre. 

An  unmagnetized  bar,  suspended  in  the  direction  of  north 
and  south,  formed  as  figure  15,  will  assume  temporary  mag- 
netism inductively  from  the  earth.  The  end  of  the  suspended 
rod  directed  toward  the  north  pole,  becomes  south,  and  the  end 
toward  the  south  will  receive  north  polarity.  Figure  18  repre- 
sents a  bar  of  iron,  A  B,  placed  in  a  horizontal  position  to  the 


Fig.  18. 


north  pole  of  a  magnetic  needle,  N  s.  The  pole  as  thus  placed  is 
attracted  by  the  bar.  Keeping  the  end  B  in  the  same  place 
raise  the  end  A  so  as  to  bring  the  bar  into  the  position  c  D. 
As  the  bar  is  raised,  the  north  pole  recedes  from  c,  as  indicated 
by  the  dotted  lines  in  the  figure.  The  strongest  action  is  ex- 
erted when  the  bar  is  in  the  line  of  the  dip,  or  in  this  latitude, 
nearly  vertically  over  the  needle.  Change  the  positions  of  the 
bar,  and  the  needle  will  be  changed.  By  this  experiment  the 
reader  will  find  that  the  bar  of  iron  has  become  polarized  with 
magnetism. 


INDUCED  MAGNETISM. 


113 


Fig.  19. 


Figure  19  represents  the  charging  of  a  bar  of  iron  by  percus- 
sion. Hold  the  bar  in  the  line  of  the  dip,  and  its  lower  end 
brought  near  to  the  north  pole  of 
a  magnetic  needle.  In  conse- 
quence of  the  polarity  of  the  iron, 
received  from  the  earth,  the  needle 
will  slightly  swing  from  its  nor- 
mal position.  Strike  the  end  of 
the  iron  rod  with  a  hammer,  and 
immediately  the  magnetic  force 
in  the  bar  becomes  greatly  in- 
creased, and  the  needle  swings  to 
the  bar  as  seen  in  the  figure,  the 
south  pole  of  the  needle  to  the 
north  pole  of  the  bar. 

Take  a  piece  of  iron  wire,  place 
it  in  a  vertical  position,  and  twist 
it  powerfully.  The  twist  will  be 
seen  to  sustain  iron  filings  as  seen 
by  figure  20.  This  is  very  often 
seen  by  the  telegrapher  when 
making  joints  in  the  wire.  Bal- 
ance the  twist  on  a  pivot,  and  it 
will  at  once  assume  polarity.  'The 
end  which  was  downward  be- 
comes the  north  pole.  The  tele- 
grapher will  observe,  when  filing 
the  wire  to  make  the  joints,  filings 
adhere  to  the  ends  of  the  wire. 
This  magnetism  is  produced  upon 
the  principles  of  percussion. 

I  have  thus  briefly  presented  a 
few  explanations  of  the  magnetic 
force  imparted  to  metals,  and  for 
further  and  more  detailed  informa- 
tion the  reader  can  refer  to  the  standard  works  on  electrical 
and  magnetic  phenomena. 


ELECTRO-MAGNETISM. 


CHAPTEE    VIII. 

Discovery  of  Electro-Magnetism  by  (Ersted — Discoveries  of  Schweigger,  Arago, 
and  Ampere — Discoveries  of  Sturgeon  and  Henry — Recapitulation  of  the 
Discoveries  on  Electro-Magnetism — English  Tetegraph  Electrometers — 
Magnetometers — The  De  La  Rive  Ring,  and  other  Experiments. 

DISCOVERY    OF    ELECTRO-MAGNETISM    BY    (ERSTED. 

THE  art  of  tne  electric  telegraph  is  based  upon  the  science 
of  electro-magnetism.  The  brilliant  discovery  of  this  science 
was  made  in  the  year  1819,  by  Professor  Christian  (Ersted, 
of  Copenhagen. 

In  the  year  1854,  I  visited  Copenhagen,  and  the  first  object 
of  my  curiosity  was  to  see  the  laboratory  of  (Ersted.  Through 
the  generous  attention  of  M.  Faber,  the  director-general  of 
the  telegraphs  of  Denmark,  my  desire  was  gratified.  I  saw 
the  room  in  which  electro-magnetism  was  discovered,  and  the 
small  compass  that  developed  it. 

Professor  (Ersted  was  engaged  in  arranging  some  wires  con- 
nected with  the  voltaic  battery,  preparatory  to  making  some 
electrical  experiments  which  he  had  in  view.  "While  thus 
adjusting  the  wire  conductor,  he  had  in  his  hand  a  small 
compass,  some  two  and  a  half  inches  in  diameter.  Sometimes 
his  hand,  with  the  compass,  was  above  the  wires,  and  at  other 
times  below  them.  He  observed  the  needle  of  the  compass  to 
move,  and  his  attention  being  once  directed  to  the  develop- 
ment, the  discovery  followed  as  a  sequence.  That  discovery, 
at  the  time,  was  made  known  in  the  following  language,  viz. : 
"  When  a  magnetic  needle  is  properly  poised  on  its  pivot  at 
rest  in  the  magnetic  meridian,  and  a  wire  arranged  over  and 
parallel  to  the  needle,  in  the  same  vertical  plane,  and  the  ends 
of  the  wire  made  to  communicate,  respectively,  with  the  poles 
of  a  voltaic  battery,  the  needle  will  be  deflected." 


DISCOVERY    OF    SCHWEIGGER.  115 

This  was  the  simple  announcement,  giving  the  whole  of  the 
discovery.     It  was  enough  to  immortalize  CErsted. 

Fig.  1  represents  the  discovery  made  by  CErsted,  excepting 
the  needle  s  N  is  poised  upon  an  exposed  pivot,  instead  of  being 
enclosed  in  a  brass  compass  case.  If  the  wire  charged  with 
an  electric  current  is  placed  hori- 
zontally over  the  compass  needle, 
the  pole  of  the  needle  which  is 
nearest  to  the  negative  end  of  the 
battery  always  moves  westward  : 
if  it  be  placed  under^  the  same 
pole  moves  to  the  east.  If  the 
wire  be  parallel  with  the  needle, 
that  is,  brought  into  the  same 
horizontal  plane  in  which  the 
needle  is  moving,  then  no  motion 
of  the  needle  in  that  plane  takes 
place,  but  a  tendency  is  exhibited 
in  it  to  move  in  a  vertical  circle, 
the  pole  nearest  the  negative  side  of  the  battery  being  depressed 
when  the.  wire  is  to  the  west  of  it,  and  elevated  when  placed 
on  the  eastern  side. 

In  the  example  given  by  the  figure,  the  current  is  flowing 
on  the  wire  north  and  south,  from  A  to  B.  The  needle  s  N 
deflects  from  the  parallel  line,  and  the  north  pole  of  the  needle 
will  turn  to  the  west,  and  if  it  be  below  the  wire,  it  will 
turn  to  the  east  to  the  extent,  respectively,  as  represented  by 
the  dotted  lines  a  b  and  c  d  in  the  figure. 

The  force  exerted  by  the  electric  current  on  the  magnetized 
needle  diminishes  in  intensity  in  proportion  *  as  the  distance 
between  the  current  and  the  needle  increases.  It  has  been 
determined,  as  a  law,  that  when  the  current  is  rectilinear,  and 
the  length  of  the  wire  considerable,  so  that  in  relation  to  that 
of  the  needle,  it  may  be  regarded  as  infinite,  the  intensity  of 
the  electro-magnetic  force  is  in  inverse  ratio  to  the  simple  dis- 
tance of  the  thing  magnetized  from  the  current. 

DISCOVERIES  OF   SCHWEIGGER,  ARAGO,  AND  AMPERE. 

Immediately  after  the  discovery  of  CErsted,  which  was  made 
in  1819,  and  published  in  1820,  M.  Schweigger  discovered  that 
the  surrounding  of  a  needle  with  many  coils  of  wire  increased 
the  deflecting  power  of  the  voltaic  current.  This  improve- 
ment was  announced  in  the  German  "Literary  Gazette," 
November,  1820,  No.  296.  Since  that  time  the  arrangement 
of  circling  the  wire  around  a  magnetized  needle  has  been  called 


116  ELECTRO-MAGNETISM. 

"  Schweigger's  multiplier,"  because  it  multiplied  the  power  of 
the  deflection.  Take  a  small  compass,  about  two  and  a  half 
inches  in  diameter,  and  then  wind  around  it — in  the  course 
or  direction  of  the  needle,  north  and  south — fine  insulated 
wire.  The  turns  may  be  two  or  a  hundred,  and  the  principle 
will  be  the  same.  Transmit  through  the  wire  thus  wound 
round  the  compass,  and  the  needle  will  rapidly  leave  its  north 
and  south  positions,  and,  if  the  current  be  strong  enough,  it 
will  assume  the  east  and  west  directions.  Reverse  the  current 
through  the  wire,  and  the  needle  will  immediately  change  its 
position  and  point  in  the  opposite  direction  to  that  first  assumed. 
Remove  the  current  from  the  wire,  and  the  needle  will  imme- 
diately take  its  normal,  or  north  and  south  position. 

In  the  year  1820,  M.  Arago,  of  France,  found  that  if  the  wire 
which   connects  the  two  extremities  of  a  voltaic  battery  be 
^     2.  plunged  into  fine  iron  filings, 

a  considerable  portion  of 
them  will  be  attracted,  and 
will  remain  attached  to  the 
wire  as  long  as  the  cur- 
rent continues  to  circulate 
through  it;  on  breaking  the  circuit,  the  filings  will  imme- 
diately drop  off.  If  small  steel  needles  be  laid  across  the  wire, 
they  will  be  attracted,  and  on  removing  them  they  will  be 
found  to  be  permanently  magnetized. 

In  the  year  1820,  Ampere,  of  France,  made  some  important 
experiments,  and  he  found  that  two  wires,  through  which 
voltaic  currents  were  passing  in  the  same  direction,  attracted, 
and  in  the  opposite  direction  repelled,  each  other.  Upon  the 
theories  of  Ampere,  Arago  adopted  the  method  of  magnetizing 
needles.  He  placed  in  a  glass  tube  a  needle,  and  wound 
around  the  tube  a  wire  composing  a  part  of  the  voltaic  circuit ; 
the  needle  was  magnetized.  He  also  found  that  the  polarity 
of  the  needle,  as  a  magnet,  depended  upon  the  direction  of  the 
current  around  the  glass  tube.  If  a  right-handed  spiral,  the 

Fig.  3. 


boreal  pole  would  be  formed  at  the  end  at  which  the  current 
entered,  that  is,  the  positive  end  ;  if  a  left-handed  helix,  the 
bar  acquired  an  austral  polarity.  The  wire  was  wound  around 
the  glass  tube,  so  that  its  spirals  would  not  touch.  In  the 
glass  tube  was  laid  an  ordinary  sewing  needle. 


DISCOVERIES    OF    STURGEON    AND    HENRY. 


117 


Fig.  4. 


DISCOVERIES    OF    STURGEON    AND    HENRY. 

The  next  grand  step  taken  in  the  science  of  electro-magnet- 
ism was  by  Sturgeon  in  1825.  He  "bent  a,  piece  of  iron  wire 
in  the  form  of  a  horse-shoe.  He 
the*n  insulated  the  iron  wire,  bent 
as  a  horse-shoe,  by  covering  it 
with  varnish;  and  having  thus 
covered  the  iron  to  be  magnetized, 
he  wound  around  it  a  copper  wire, 
and  placed  the  spirals  so  that  they 
would  not  touch,  in  order  to  pre- 
vent the  current  from  passing 
from  one  spiral  to  the  other  with- 
out circulating  around  the  iron. 
The  result  was  a  complete  success.  The  ends  of  the  bent 
iron  wire  were  found  to  be  magnetic  when  the  current  was  on 
the  spiral  wire ;  and  when  off,  it  was  not  magnetic.  This 
experiment  was  an  advance  of  Arago  and  Ampere.  Fig.  4 
represents  the  plan  adopted  by  Sturgeon.  It  is  an  exact  copy 
of  the  original  drawing  published  in  the  "  Annals  of  Philos- 
ophy," 1826. 

Upon  the  theory  advanced  by  Ampere,  Arago  coiled  wire 
around  the  glass  tube  to  magnetize  the  needles  ;  Sturgeon, 
instead  of  using  the  glass  tube  to  insulate  the  electric  copper 
wire  from  the  iron  core  to  be  magnetized,  used  varnish  as  an 
insulator.  It  was  a  non-conductor,  and  separated  the  electric 
wire  from  the  iron.  Besides  the  improvement  in  the  idea  of 
the  insulation,  he  bent  the  wire  in  the  form  of  a  u,  which  was 
a  very  important  progress  from  the  straight  bar  or  needle. 

Professor  Joseph  Henry,  of  America,  in  his  philosophical 
researches,  in  1828,  continued  in  1829  and  1830,  was  led  to 


Fig.  5. 


Fig.  6. 


make  farther  advances,  and  he  perfected  the  construction  of 
the  electro-magnet  as  now  known  in  the  science.     He  con- 


118  ELECTRO-MAGNETISM. 

ceived  the  idea  of  covering  or  insulating  the  wire,  instead  of 
covering  or  insulating  the  iron  to  be  magnetized,  as  had  been 
done  by  others.  He  effected  this  by  insulating  a  long  wire 
with  silk  thread,  and  winding  this  around  the  rod  of  iron 
in  close  coils,  as  is  seen  in  fig.  5,  from  one  end  to  the  other. 
The  same  principle  was  extended  by  employing  a  still  longer 
insulated  wire,  and  winding  several  strata  of  this  over  the  first, 
care  being  taken  to  insure  the  insulation  between  each  stratum 
by  a  covering  of  silk  ribbon.  By  this  arrangement  the  rod 
was  surrounded  by  a  compound  helix,  formed  of  many  coils, 
instead  of  a  single  helix  of  a  few  coils. 

In  the  peculiar  arrangement  of  the  coils,  Professor  Henry 
advanced  new  ideas.  Arago  and  Sturgeon  wround  their  wires 
not  precisely  at  right  angles  to  the  axis  of  the  rod,  as  they 
should  have  been,  to  produce  the  effect  required  by  the  theory 
of  Ampere,  but  they  were  placed  obliquely  around  the  rod  to  be 
magnetized ;  therefore,  each  turn  tended  to  develop  a  separate 
magnetism  not  coincident  with  the  axis  of  the  bar.  In  winding 
the  wire  over  itself,  as  done  by  Henry,  the  obliquity  of  the 
several  turns  compensated  each  other,  and  the  resultant  action 
was  at  right  angles  to  the  bar.  The  ends  attained  by  Henry 
were  of  the  greatest  importance.  The  multiplied  turns  of  the 
wire,  and  their  peculiar  conjunctive  action  in  the  generation 
of  magnetic  force  in  the  iron  rod,  were  complete  in  success. 
He  found  that,  after  a  certain  length  of  wire  had  been  coiled 
upon  the  iron,  the  power  diminished  with  a  further  increase  of 
the  number  of  turns.  This  was  due  to  the  increased  resistance 
which  the  longer  wire  offered  to  the  conduction  of  electricity. 
As  an  improvement,  he  increased  the  number  of  independent 
coils  around  the  u  shaped  rod,  as  represented  by  fig.  6.  Another 
was  to  increase  the  number  of  cells  of  the  battery  to  obtain  a 
current  of  greater  intensity,  for  the  purpose  of  overcoming  the 
increased  length  of  the  wire,  so  as  to  produce  or  develop  the 
maximum  power  of  the  iron.  Fig.  6  represents  the  manner  of 
coiling  around  the  iron  bar  the  insulated  wire  in  several  inde- 
pendent sections.  Each  of  these  sections  was  united  with  a 
Cruikshank  voltaic  battery.  The  experiment  proved,  that,  in 
order  to  produce  the  greatest  amount  of  magnetism  from  a 
battery  of  a  single  cup,  a  number  of  helices  is  required ;  but 
when  a*  compound  battery  is  used,  then  one  long  wire  must  be 
employed,  making  many  turns  around  the  iron  core.  The 
magnetic  force  generated,  will  be  commensurate  with  the  pro- 
jectile power  of  the  battery. 

In  describing  the  results  of  these  experiments,  Professor 
Henry  has  used  the  terms  intensity  and  quantity  magnets. 


DISCOVERIES    OF    STURGEON    AND    HENRY. 


119 


Fig.  7. 


By  the  former  is  meant,  that  when  a  piece  of  soft  iron,  so  sur- 
rounded with  wire  that  its  magnetic  power  could  be  called 
into  operation  by  an  intensity  battery,  the  magnet  was  called 
an  "  intensity  magnet ;"  when  it  was  acted  upon  by  a  quantity 
battery  through  a  number  of  separate  coils,  so  that  its  magnet- 
ism could  be  fully  developed,  it  was  called  a  "  quantity 
magnet."  The  terms  are  technical,  and  very  appropriate. 

Fig.  7  represents  the  Sturgeon  magnet,  A,  and  the  Henry 
magnet,  B.  Around  the 
former  (A)  are  wound  the 
spirals  apart  from  each 
other — the  iron  core  be- 
ing insulated,  and  the 
copper  wire  not  insulated.' 
Around  the  latter,  B,  the 
wire  is  insulated  with 
silk  thread,  and  the  coils 
are  multiplied.  '  This  was 
the  magnet  invented  by 
Henry,  and  which  at  the  time  astonished  the  scientific  world. 
With  the  same  battery,  at  least  a  hundred  times  more  mag- 
netism was  produced  by  Henry's  magnet  than  could  have  been 
obtained  by  Sturgeon's  magnet.  The  developments  were  con- 
sidered at  the  time  of  much  importance  in  a  scientific  point  of 
view, .  and  they  subsequently  furnished  the  means  by  which 
magneto-electricity,  the  phenomena  of  dia-magnetism,  and  the 
magnetic  effects  on  polarized  light,  were  discovered.  They  gave 
rise  to  the  various  forms  of  electro-magnetic  machines  which 
have  since  distinguished  the  age.  Upon  Henry's  electro- 
magnet are  based  the  various  electro- magnetic  telegraphs. 

The  following  may  be  considered  as  laws  relative  to  electro- 
magnetism  : 

1st.  The  magnetic  force  developed  in  the  iron  is  in  propor- 
tion to  the  quantity  and  intensity  of  the  current. 

2d.  The  force,  if  the  current  be  equal,  is  independent  of 
the  thickness  of  the  wire  or  shape  of  the  iron. 

3d.  Within  certain  limits,  in  a  continuous  coil  wound  in 
layers,  like  a  spool  or  bobbin  of  silk,  the  external  turns  are 
as  efficacious  as  those  close  to  the  iron. 

4th.  The  total  action  of  the  spiral  is  equal  to  the  sum  of  the 
actions  of  each  turn. 

Thus,  by  increasing  the  force  of  the  battery  so  that  its 
intensity  is  augmented  twofold,  threefold,  fourfold,  the  force 
of  the  electro-magnet  increases  in  the  same  degree.  Of  course 
this  force  will  find  its  maximum  in  the  conductibility.of  the 
metal  employed  in  the  voltaic  circuit. 


120  ELECTRO-MAGNETISM. 


RECAPITULATION  OF  THE  DISCOVERIES  OF  ELECTRO-MAGNETISM. 

The  discoveries  of  Henry  were  published  to  the  world  in 
1831,  and  were  the  subject  of  discussion  among  scientific  men 
on  both  continents.  Since  then  there  has  not  been  any  advance 
in  the  principles  pertaining  to  the  organization  of  the  electro- 
magnet. Mechanically,  it  has  been  brought  to  a  smaller  size 
and  made  more  convenient  for  the  purposes  of  its  use. 

From  the  preceding  it  will  be  seen  that  the  following  are 
the  facts  relative  to  the  progress  of  electro-magnetism  : 

1st.  In  the  year  1819,  (Ersted  discovered  that  a  magnetic 
needle  would  be  deflected  when  situated  near  a  wire  charged 
with  a  current  of  voltaic  electricity. 

2d.  In  the  year  1820,  Schweigger  discovered  that  the 
power  of  deflecting  the  needle  would  be  increased  by  surround- 
ing it  with  the  electric  wire. 

3d.  In  the  year  1820,  Arago  and  Ampere  coiled  around  a 
glass  tube,  and  magnetized  sewing  needles  placed  in  the  tube. 

4th.  In  the  year  1826,  Sturgeon  insulated  an  iron  wire  bent 
like  a  horse-shoe,  and  then  wound  around  it  a  copper  wire. 
When  a  current  of  electricity  was  sent  through  the  copper  wire 
the  insulated  iron  wire  was  magnetized. 

5th.  In  the  years  1828,  '29,  and  '30,  Henry  wound  an  insu- 
lated copper  wire  around  an  uninsulated  iron  rod,  shaped  like 
a  horse-shoe.  He  passed  a  current  of  electricity  through  the 
copper  wire,  and  the  bent  iron  rod  was  magnetized. 

6th.  In  the  same  years  Henry  increased  the  convolutions  of 
the  insulated  copper  wire,  and  on  passing  a  current  of  elec- 
tricity through  the  copper  wire,  the  magnetic  power  of  the 
bent  iron  rod  was  greatly  increased. 

The  above  presents  the  true  state  of  the  science  of  electro- 
magnetism  before  the  invention  of  the  electro-magnetic  tele- 
graph, of  either  continent,  as  none  of  them  can  date  earlier 
than  1832.  Without  the  discoveries  above  described,  made  by 
Sturgeon  and  Henry,  the  electro-magnetic  telegraph  would 
still  be  in  the  womb  of  time,  awaiting  the  allotted  hour  for  its 
birth — distinguishing,  for  aught  we  know,  a  generation  yet 
unborn,  instead  of,  as  it  has  done  with  singular  grandeur, 
"  the  age  in  which  we  live." 

Fig.  8  represents  the  magnet  as  applied  in  the  telegraph. 
The  wire  is  insulated  with  silk,  and  wound  around  the  iron 
bar.  Fig.  9  is  another  form  adopted  in  the  making  of  the 
magnet.  The  insulated  silk  wire  is  wound  around  hard  rub- 
ber spools,  and  the  U-shaped  iron  is  moveable.  One  of  the 
advantages  in  the  use  of  the  moveable  cores  consists  in  the 


ARRANGEMENT    OF    THE    WIRE. 


121 


facility  of  demagnetizing  them  when  charged  with  permanent 
magnetism. 

The   attention  of  the   student  of  telegraphing-  should  he 

Fig.  8. 


directed  to  the  proper  arrangement  of  the  wire  around  the 
cores.  The  wire  should  be  well  insulated,  wound  as  regular 
as  possible,  and  in  the  direction  indicated  by  the  preceding 

Fig.  9- 


figures.  I  once  knew  the  working  of  a  station  to  be  hindered 
by  the  operator  re-winding  his  wire,  so  that  the  magnetism 
could  not  be  imparted  to  the  iron.  The  arms  should  be 
wound,  as  represented  by  fig.  7. 


122 


ELECTRO-MAGNETISM. 


ENGLISH  TELEGRAPH  ELECTROMETERS. 

The  English  electric  telegraphs  are  organized  upon  the  prin- 
ciple of  Schweigger's  multiplier,  and  so  true  is  this,  that  Mr. 
Cooke  in  the  invention  of  the  first  needle  telegraph  adopted  the 
multiplier.  .  « 

Arago  used  ordinary  needles  in  his  glass  tubes,  and  they 
were  magnetized  by  the  coiling  of  the  wire  around  the  tubes, 
but  the  principle  in  the  use  of  the  needles  in  the  English  tele- 
graph is  precisely  the  original  (Ersted  discovery,  as  extended 
by  Schweigger.  The  latter  multiplied  the  coils  around  a 
magnetic  needle,  which  was  caused  to  move,  as  seen  by 
(Ersted,  whenever  the  wire  composing  the  coils  was  charged 
with  electricity. 

Figure  10  represents  a  Schweigger  multiplier  improved  by 
mechanism  ;  i  k  are  two  coils,  through  the  interior  of  which 

Fig.  10. 


swing  a  magnetized  needle.  When  the  current  traverses  the 
coils,  the  needle  changes  its  position  from  a  perpendicular  to  a 
horizontal,  or  to  the  extent  influenced  by  the  current  The 


ENGLISH    TELEGRAPH    ELECTROMETERS.  123 

exterior  needle  h  may  be  magnetic,  or  it  may  not  be.     It  is 

Fig.  li. 


Fig.  12. 


often  made  of  light  material,  so  as 
to  easily  swing  upon  the  same  axle 
with  the  interior  needle.  This  in- 
strument is  called  an  "  Electrom- 
eter." 

Another  view  of  the  electrometer 
is  represented  by  fig.  11,  showing 
the  coils  A  A  and  the  needle  sus- 
pended between  them.  L  L  are 
binding  screws  fastened  to  the  frame 
B  B.  The  line  wires  are  fastened  to 
L  L.  c  is  a  brace  band  to  hold  the 
coils  of  fine  wire  A  A.  The  arrows 
indicate  the  route  of  the  voltaic 
current.  Fig.  12  represents  a  side 
view  of  the  same  instrument.  To 
the  right  is  seen  the  needle  and  its 
polarity  s  N  ;  in  the  interior  is  seen 
the  other  magnetic  needle  and  its 
polarity  N  s  ;  the  arrows  indicate 
the  route  of  the  voltaic  current. 


124 


ELECTRO-MAGNETISM. 


Fig.  13  represents  the  face  of  the  electrometer  used  in  nearly 
all  the  European  telegraph  stations.  This  is  a  small  box  about 
five  inches  square,  with  a  glass  cover.  The  index  finger  acts 
co-operative  with  the  needle  suspended  between  the  coils,  and 
its  movement  to  the  right  or  to  the  left  indicates  the  quantity 
of  the  current  and  its  polarity,  whether  negative  or  positive. 
It  would  be  a  useful  instrument  on  the  American  lines.  At 
this  time,  there  is,  perhaps,  not  one  in  use  on  any  of  the  lines, 
nor  has  there  been  since  the  experimental  line  of  1844. 

Fig,  13. 


ELECTROMETERS    GENERALLY. 

Fig.  14  represents  another  form  of  an  electrometer.  The 
wire  is  wound  around  a  frame  not  given  in  the  figure.  The 
needle  N  s  rests  upon  a  pivot  on  the  stand  c  D.  The  battery 
wires  are  fastened  at  the  binding  posts  A  B,  which  connect  with 
wires  near  c  D  respectively.  The  wire  is  wound  upon  the  same 
principle  as  in  the  making  of  the  magnets  hereinbefore  men- 
tioned. When  the  electricity  passes  around  the  coil,  the 
needle  moves  to  the  right  or  to  the  left,  according  to  the  course 
of  the  current. 

Fig.  15  represents  an  upright  electrometer.     The  principle 


MAGNETOMETERS.  125 

of  this  instrument  is  precisely  the  same  as  the  one  above 

Fig.  14.  _ — s 


Fig.  15.  described.     It  is  nearer  .the  simple  multi- 

plier devised  by  Schweigger. 

Fig.  16  represents  the  compass  form 
electrometer.  The  coil  of  wire  is  made  to 
surround  an  ordinary  pocket  compass,  and 
the  strength  of  the  electric  current  is 
measured  by  the  deflection  of  the  needle. 
The  circle  is  divided  into  divisions  as  mi- 
nute as  may  be  required  for  the  purposes 
of  its  use.  It  is  a  very  convenient  instru- 
ment, and  will  be  useful  in  the  practice  of 
telegraphing. 

Fig.  17  represents  the  most  delicate  form 
of  electrometer.  It  is  capable  of  being 
influenced  by  the  slightest  presence  of  elec- 
tricity. On  the  base  are  placed  two  coils 
of  wire,  as  represented  by  fig.  10,  between  which  is  suspended 
a  delicate  magnetic  needle,  with  its  mate  or  index  needle 
above  a  dial  plate.  The  needle  is  suspended  by  a  cocoon 
thread  from  the  top.  Over  the  whole  is  placed  a  glass  cover. 
If  there  is  any  electricity  in  the  coils,  the  index  needle  will 
exhibit  it  and  the  quantity. 

MAGNETOMETERS. 

Various  contrivances  have  been  made  to  measure  the  mag- 
netic force  of  electro-magnets.     Fig.  18  is  one  gotten  up  by 


126  ELECTRO-MAGNETISM. 

Mr.  Charles  T.  Chester,  of  New- York,  as  an  attachment  to  the 
electro-magnet  used  on  the  Morse  telegraph.  The  ends  of  the 
coils  are  seen  below ;  the  measurement  scale  is  seen  above. 
The  armature  of  the  magnet  is  connected  with  the  index 
finger,  and  the  slightest  magnetic  influence  will  be  exhib- 
ited. 

Fig.  19  represents  Hoarder's  magnetometer.  A  B  is  a  strong 
base  of  wood,  about  four  feet  long  and  one  foot  wide,  to  which 
are  attached  four  levelling  screws  ;  D  D  are  two  strong  iron 
uprights,  firmly  screwed  into  the  base  and  connected  at  the 
top  by  a  stout  iron  cross  piece,  E,  having  a  hole  in  the  centre, 
through  which  passes  the  screw,  F,  of  the  strong  double  sus. 

Fig.  16. 


pension  hook  G.  Two  iron  nuts,  H  H,  serve  to  fix  the  suspen- 
sion hook  at  any  height.  1 1  is  a  light  and  delicate,  but  strong 
steel  yard,  being  graduated  on  one  side  to  correspond  with  the 
distance  between  the  knife-edge  K  and  M  ;  these  are  respec- 
tively one  and  two  inches  apart.  Different  weights  may  be 
employed  ;  on  the  arm  N  is  a  rest  to  support  the  long  arm  of 
the  lever,  and  it  is  capable  of  being  adjusted  to  any  height  by 
a  tightening  screw  in  the  hollow  socket  o.  The  different  parts 
of  the  scale  are  marked  by  letters,  each  of  which  will  be  readily 
understood  by  the  reader.  The  magnet,  u  u,  is  wound  with 


MAGNETOMETERS. 


127 


the  conducting  or  electric  wire ;  this  arrangement  will  give 
the  strength  of  the  magnetic  force.     It  can  be  made  upon  any 

Fig.  17. 


Fig.  18. 


128 


ELECTRO-MAGNETISM. 


required  scale,  and  its  application  in  testing  the  strength  of  the 
magnets  for  telegraphic  purposes  might  subserve  a  good  end. 

Fig.  19. 


Before  concluding  this  chapter,  I  desire  to  notice  a  few 
experiments,  having  in  view  the  further  illustration  of  the  rela- 
tive forces,  electricity  and  magnetism 

DE-LA-RIVE    RING    AND    OTHER    EXPERIMENTS. 

Fig.  20  represents  the  De-la-Rive  ring,     s  N  is  a  permanent 

Fig.  20. 


THE    DE-LA-RIVE    RING. 


129 


magnet ;  c  is  a  coil  of  wire  fastened  to  zinc  and  copper  pieces, 
which  are  placed  in  a  vessel  of  acid.  An  electric  current  is 
generated,  and  traverses  the  coil  c,  as  indicated  by  the  arrow. 
The  vessel  D,  with  the  coil  c,  floats  in  a  bowl  of  water.  When 
the  magnet  M  is  placed  near  the  bowl,  the  ring  c  will  be 
repelled  or  attracted,  according  to  the  polarity  of  the  magnet 
directed  toward  the  ring — the  electric  coil  moves  from  or  to 
the  more  powerful  permanent  magnet. 

Fig.  21  represents  a  spiral  wire  suspended.  The  lower  end 
is  connected  with  a  mercury  cup.  A  current  of  electricity  is 
made  to  traverse  the  spiral.  In  fig.  22  a  permanent  magnet  is 
placed  in  the  spiral.  The  moment  the  magnet  is  thus  placed, 


Fig.  22. 


Fig.  21. 


the  spiral  wire  will  move  up  and  down,  opening  and  closing 
the  circuit  in  the  mercury  cup.  If  the  battery  is  strong,  a 
blue  flame  will  be  made  when  the  wires  come  in  contact  with 
the  mercury. 

Fig.  23  represents  the  mode  of  communicating  permanent 
magnetism  to  a  steel  bar  by  an  electro-magnet.  N  s  is  a  steel 
bar,  which  is  drawn  from  the  bend  to  the  extremities  across 
the  poles  of  the  electro-magnet  in  such  a  way,  that  both  halves 
of  the  bar  may  pass  at  the  same  time  over  the  poles  to  which 
they  are  applied. 

Fig.  24  represents  the  principle  of  axial  magnetism,  invented 

y 


130 


ELECTRO-MAGNETISM. 


by  Professor  Charles  Gr.  Page,  of  America.  For  the  purpose  of 
explaining  the  principle,  the  following  will  suffice.  The  coil 
consists  of  a  number  of  layers  of  wire,  and  has  a  small  central 
opening.  An  iron  bar  passed  within  it  becomes  strongly  mag- 
netic. When  the  coil  is  in  a  vertical  position,  the  iron  bar  is 
sustained  within  it  in  consequence  of  the  force  with  which  it  is 

Fig.  23. 


drawn  toward  the  middle  of  the  coil.  With  a  large  battery,  a 
considerable  weight  may  be  suspended  from  the  bar  without 
any  visible  support  The  action  of  the  coil  is  the  same,  except 
in  the  amount,  as  that  of  a  single  circular  turn  of  wire.  At 
any  two  points  of  the  circle,  diametrically  opposite,  the  direc- 

Fig.  24. 


tions  of  the  current  are  also  opposite.  The  resultant  of  the  forces 
exerted  by  all  the  points,  tends  to  bring  the  centre  of  the  mag- 
netized bar  within  the  circle.  The  action  of  all  the  circles  oi 
which  the  helix  is  composed  draws  the  bar  into  it,  until  its 
middle  lies  within  the  middle  of  the  helix,  in  which  position 
only  can  the  forces  neutralize  each  other.  This  is  termed  an 
"  axial  magnet." 

The  axial  magnet  performs  an  important  part  in  the  House 
telegraph,  the  particular  construction  of  which  I  have  fully 
described  elsewhere  in  this  work.  The  American  apparatus  is 
the  only  telegraph  employing  this  species  of"  magnetic  action. 


THE    AXIAL    MAGNET.  131 

It  has  subserved  the  purposes  of  its  introduction,  and  acts  in 
beautiful  harmony  with  other  parts  of  that  most  wonderful  and 
beautiful  combination  of  mechanism. 

It  is  due  to  the  memory  of  the  lamented  Alfred  Yaii,  to 
acknowledge  that  he  rendered  great  service  in  the  discovery  of 
the  phenomena  of  axial  magnetism.  He  instituted  a  series  of 
experiments,  and  promulgated  many  of  them  to  the  world. 


EARLY  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPHS. 


CHAPTER   IX. 

Suggestions  of  Science — The  Telegraph  of  Lomond — Keizen's  and  Dr.  Salva's 
Electric  Spark  Telegraph — Baron  Schilling's,  Gauss  and  Weber's,  and  Alex- 
ander's Telegraphs. 

SUGGESTIONS    OF    SCIENCE. 

THE  various  discoveries  in  the  sciences,  made  from  time  to 
time,  developed  the  idea  of  an  electric  telegraph.  With  many 
of  the  discoverers,  nothing  more  was  done  by  them  toward  the 
production  of  a  practical  telegraph,  than  suggesting  to  others 
the  application  of  the  sciences  to  the  arts,  which,  in  their 
opinion,  would  accomplish  the  great  achievement.  Philoso- 
phers dislike  to  vend  to  the  world,  commercially,  their  discoveries. 
They  remove  the  coverings  from  the  long-closed  vaults  con- 
taining the  hidden  treasures  of  a  mysterious  providence ;  and 
as  soon  as  they  catch  a  single  gleam  from  the  brilliancy  of  the 
gem,  the  world  is  informed  of  it.  The  myriads  of  discoveries 
of  the  present  age  compose  a  galaxy  more  brilliant  in  glory  than 
those  of  any  other  century. 

Among  those  who  aided  by  developing  science,  suggestive 
of  the  telegraph,  may  be  mentioned  Prof.  Henry,  of  America, 
who,  in  1830,  wrote  an  article,  which  was  published  in  Silli- 
man's  Journal,  in  1831,  in  which  he  stated  "the  fact,  that 
the  magnetic  action  of  a  current  from  a  trough  is,  at  least  ^  not 
sensibly  diminished  by  passing  through  a  long  wire,  is  directly 
applicable  to  Mr.  Barlow's  project  of  forming  an  Electro- 
Magnetic  Telegraph,  and  also  of  material  consequence  in  the 
construction  of  the  galvanic  coil."  Ampere,  Jacobi,  Faraday, 
Sturgeon,  and  others,  have  also  aided  by  their  discoveries  the  per- 
fection of  the  art  of  telegraphing,  as  now  practically  employed 
throughout  the  civilized  world. 

LOMOND'S  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH. 

It  is  stated  in  Young's  Travels  in  France  (1787,  4th  ed.,  vol. 
i.  p.  79),  that  a  Mr.  Lomond  had  invented  a  mode  by  which, 


REIZEN'S  ELECTRIC  SPARK  TELEGRAPH.  133 

from  his  own  room,  he  held  communication  with  a  person  in  a 
neighboring  chamber,  by  means  of  electricity.  He  employed 
the  common  electrical  machine  placed  at  one  station,  and  at 
the  other  an  electrometer  constructed  with  pith  balls.  These 
instruments  were  connected  by  means  of  two  wires  stretched 
from  one  apartment  to  the  other,  so  that,  at  each  discharge  of 
the  Leyden  vial,  the  pith-balls  would  recede  from  each  other, 
until  they  came  in  contact  with  the  return  wire.  His  system 
of  telegraphic  correspondence  is  not  related.  We  must  suppose 
from  the  character  of  his  invention,  having  but  one  movement, 
that  of  the  divergence  of  the  balls,  and  using  an  apparatus  ex- 
tremely delicate,  that  his  means  of  communication  could  not 
have  been  otherwise  than  limited,  and  required  a  great  amount 
of  time. 

The  only  mode  in  which  it  appears  possible  for  him  to  hava 
transmitted  intelligence,  seems  to  be  this :  a  single  divergence 
of  the  pith  balls,  succeeded  by  an  interval  of  two  or  three  sec- 
onds, may  have  represented  A.  Two  divergences  in  quick 
succession,  with  an  interval  following,  may  have  represented  B ; 
three  divergences,  in  like  manner,  indicated  the  letter  C  ;  and 
so  on  for  the  remainder  of  the  alphabet.  Instead  of  these  move- 
ments of  the  pith  balls  representing  letters,  they  may  have  in- 
dicated the  numerals  1,  2,  3,  &c.,  so  that  with  a  vocabulary  of 
words,  numbered,  conducted  his  correspondence.  This  appears 
to  be  the  first  electrical  telegraph  of  which  we  have  any  ac- 
count; but  does  not  appear  to  have  been  used  upon  extended 
lines. 

REIZEN'S  ELECTRIC  SPARK  TELEGRAPH. 

In  1794,  according  to  Yoigt's  Magazine,  vol.  ix.,  p.  1,  "Reizen 
made  use  of  the  electric  spark  for  telegraphic  purposes.  His 
plan  was  based  upon  the  phenomenon  which  is  observed  when 
the  electric  fluid  of  a  common  machine  is  interrupted  in  its 
circuit  by  breakers  in  the  wire,  exhibiting  at  the  interrupted  por- 
tions of  the  circuit  a  bright  spark.  The  spark  thus  rendered  vis- 
ible in  its  passage,  he  appears  to  have  employed  in  this  manner. 

Fig.  1  is  a  representation  of  the  table  upon  which  were  ar- 
ranged the  letters  of  the  alphabet,  twenty-six  in  number.  Bach 
letter  is  represented  by  strips  of  tin  foil,  passing  from  left  to 
right,  and  right  to  left,  alternately,  over  a  space  of  an  inch 
square  upon  a  glass  table.  Such  parts  of  the  tin  foil  are  cut 
out,  as  will  represent  a  particular  letter.  Thus,  it  will  be  seen 
that  the  letter  A  is  represented  by  those  portions  of  the  tin  foil 
which  have  been  taken  out,  and  the  remaining  portions  answer 
as  the  conductor,  p  and  N  represent  the  positive  and  negative 


134  EARLY  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPHS. 

ends  of  the  strips,  as  they  pass  through  the  table  and  reappear, 
one  on  each  side  of  the  small  dot  at  A.  Those  two  lines  which 
have  a  dot  between,  are  the  ends  of  the  negative  and  positive 
wires  belonging  to  one  of  the  letters.  Now,  if  a  spark  from  a 
charged  receiver  is  sent  through  the  wires  belonging  to  letter 
A,  that  letter  will  present  a  bright  and  luminous  appearance  of 
the  form  of  the  letter  A.  "As  the  passage  of  the  electric  fluid 
through  a  perfect  conductor  is  unattended  with  light,  and  as 
the  light  or  spark  appears  only  where  imperfect  conductors  are 
thrown  in  its  way,  hence  the  appearance  of  the  light  at  those 

Fig.  1. 


"I 


— .=      c; 


ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ    1234567890 

interrupted  points  of  the  tin  foil,  the  glass  upon  which  the  con- 
ductors are  pasted  being  an  imperfect  conductor.  The  instant 
the  discharge  is  made  through  the  wire,  the  spark  is  seen  sim- 
ultaneously at  each  of  the  interruptions  or  breaks  of  the  tin-foil, 


SALVA'S  AND  SCHILLING'S  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPHS.       185 

constituting  the  letter,  and  the  whole  letter  is  rendered  visible 
at  once."  This  table  is  placed  at  any  one  station,  and  the 
electrical  machine  at  the  other,  with  seventy-two  wires  enclosed 
in  a  glass  tube  connecting  the  two  stations.  He  could  have 
operated  with  equal  efficiency  by  using  thirty-seven  wires, 
having  one  wire  for  a  common  communicating  wire,  or  with 
thirty-six  wires,  by  substituting  the  ground  for  his  common 
wire.  It  does  not  appear  that  it  was  ever  operated  to  any  con- 
siderable extent. 


In  1798,  Dr.  Salva,  in  Madrid,  constructed  a  similar  tele- 
graph as  that  suggested  by  Reizen,  as  will  be  found  on  refer- 
ence to  Vorgt's  Magazine,  voL.xi.,  p.  4.  The  "  Prince  of  Peace" 
witnessed  his  experiments  with  much  satisfaction,  and  the  In- 
fant Don  Antonio  engaged  with  Dr.  Salva  in  improving  his  in- 
strument. It  is  stated  that  his  experiments  extended  through 
many  miles  of  wire.  No  description  of  his  plans  were  given  to 
the  public. 


The  following,  in  relation  to  Schilling's  telegraph,  is  taken 
from  the  Polytechnic  Central  Journal,  Nos.  31,  32,  1838 : 

"  Baron  Schilling,  of  Cronstadt,  a  Russian  counsellor  of  state, 
likewise  occupied  himself  with  telegraphs  by  electricity  (see 
Allgem  Bauztg,  1837,  No.  52,  p.  440),  and  had  the  merit  of 
having  presented  a  much  simpler  contrivance,  and  of  removing 
some  of  the  difficulties  of  the  earlier  plans.  He  reckoned  many 
variations  to  the  right  or  left,  following  in  a  certain  Order  for  a 
telegraphic  sign,  as,  indeed,  in  this  manner,  the  needle 
was  strongly  varied,  and  only  came  to  rest  gradually  after 
many  repeated  vibrations ;  he  introduced  a  small  rod  of  plati- 
num, with  a  scoop,  which  dipped  into  a  vessel  of  quicksilver, 
placed  beneath  the  needle,  and,  by  the  check  given,  changed 
the  vibration  of  the  needle  into  sudden  jerks.  In  order  to  ap- 
prise the  attendant  of  a  telegraphic  dispatch,  he  loosed  an 
alarm.  How  much  of  this  contrivance  was  Schilling's  own, 
or  whether  a  portion  of  it  was  not  an  imitation  of  Grauss  and 
Weber,  the  author  cannot  decide  ;  but  that  Schilling  had  already 
experimented,  probably  with  a  more  imperfect  apparatus,  bo- 
fore  the  Emperor  Alexander,  and  still  later  before  the  Emperor 
Nicholas,  is  affirmed  by  the  documents  quoted." 


136  EARLY  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPHS. 

There  may  be  a  mistake  in  the  supposition,  that  the  tele- 
graph of  Baron  Schilling  had  been  exhibited  to  Alexander,  as 
that  Emperor  died  in  1825,  and  there  is  no  evidence  to  show 
that  the  telegraph  had  been  devised  by  Baron  Schilling  thus 
early. 

From  the- report  of  the  "Academy  of  Industry,"  Paris,  Feb- 
ruary, 1839,  I  make  the  following  extract,  in  relation  to  the 
same  subject : 

"  At  the  end  of  the  year  1832,  and  in  the  beginning  of  1833, 
M.  Le  Baron  de  Schilling  constructed,  at  St.  Petersburg,  an 
electric  telegraph,  which  consisted  in  a  certain  number  of  pla- 
tinum wires,  insulated  and  united  in  a  cord  of  silk,  which  put 
in  action,  by  the  aid  of  a  species  of  key,  thirty-six  magnetic 
needles,  each  of  which  was  placed  vertically  in  the  centre  of  a 
multiplier.  M.  de  Schilling  was  the  first  who  adapted  to  this 
kind  of  apparatus,  an  ingenious  mechanism,  suitable  for  sound- 
ing an  alarm,  which,  when  the  needle  turned  at  the  beginning 
of  the  correspondence,  was  set  in  play  by  the  fall  of  a  little  ball 
of  lead,  which  the  magnetic  needle  caused  to  fall.  This  tele- 
graph of  M.  de  Schilling  was  received  with  approbation  by  the 
Emperor,  who  desired  it  established  on  a  larger  scale,  but  the 
death  of  the  inventor  postponed  the  enterprise  indefinitely." 

Dr.  Steinheil,  in  his  article  "  upon  telegraphic  communica- 
tion," published  in  the  London  Annals  of  Electricity,  states, 
that  "  the  experiments  instituted  by  Schilling,  by  the  deflection 
of  a  single  needle,  seems  much  better  contrived  than  the  ar- 
rangement Davy  has  proposed,  in  which  illuminated  letters 
are  shown  by  the  removal  of  screens  placed  in  front  of  them." 

It  would  appear  that  the  French  report  is  either  incorrect,  or 
that  M.  de  Schilling  had  two  plans  in  contemplation.  His  plan 
as  intimated  in  the  first  and  third  extracts,  is  that  of  using  a 
single  needle  in  the  form  of  a  galvanometer,  by  means  of  which 
he  made  his  signals  ;  for  instance,  one  deflection  to  the  right 
might  denote  e,  two  «',  three  b  ;  one  deflection  to*  the  left  /, 
two  s,  three  v.  His  code  of  signals  would  then  be  devised  in 
the  manner  shown  on  the  following  page. 

If,  however,  his  plan  was  that  ascribed  to  him,  by  the 
Academy  of  Industry,  of  using  thirty-six  needles  and  seventy- 
two  wires,  it  was  exceedingly  complicated  and  expensive,  and 
was  similar  to.  that  invented  by  Mr.  Alexander,  with  the  ex- 
ception that  Schilling  used  twice  the  number  of  wires. 

During  my  recent  residence  in  St  Petersburgh,  I  endeavored 
to  obtain  some  further  information  in  regard  to  this  telegraph, 
but  it  was  not  possible  to  discover  more  than  is  embraced  above 


GAUSS  AND  WEBER'S  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH.  137 


rl 

A 

rrrl 

K 

llr 

U 

rrr 

B 

Ir 

r  r 

L 

11 

1 

Y 

rll 

C 

1 

rl* 

M 

rlr 

1 

W 

rrl 

D 

Ir 

N 

Irl 

r 

X 

r 

E 

r 

Ir 

0 

rll 

r 

Y 

r  r  r  r 

F 

11 

r  r 

P 

rlrr 

Z 

1111 

G 

11 

Ir 

Q, 

rrl 

r 

& 

rill 

H 

1 

rr 

R 

Irr 

1 

go  on 

r  r 

I 

11 

S 

Irl 

1 

stop 

rrll 

J 

1 

T 

llr 

1 

finish 

rlr 

Ir 

1 

1 

rlrl 

6 

rrl 

r  r 

2 

r 

r 

llr 

7 

rll 

Ir 

3 

r 

1 

Irr 

8 

Irr 

rl 

4 

1 

1 

rll 

9 

Irrll 

5 

11 

rrl 

0 

This  telegraph  seems,  by  the  best  authorities,  to  have  been 
invented  in  1833,  by  Counsellor  Gauss  and  Professor  Weber, 
at  Gottingen. 

The  deflection  of  the  magnetic  bar,  by  means  of  the  multi- 
plier, through  the  agency  of  the  galvanic  fluid,  excited  by  the 
magneto-electric  machine,  is  the  basis  of  their  plan. 

Fig.  2  represents  a  side  view  of  the  apparatus,  used  at  the  re- 
ceiving station ;  a  a  is  a  side  view  of  the  multiplier,  composed 
of  30,000  feet  of  wire  (almost  five  and  a  half  miles),  upon  a 
table  B  ;  n  s  is  the  magnetic  bar,  weighing  thirty  pounds,  from 
which  rises  a  vertical  stem,  o,  upon  which  is  a  rod  at  right 
angles,  supporting  a  mirror  H,  on  one  end,  and  at  the  other  a 
metallic  ball  i,  as  a  counteracting  weight  to  that  of  9ie  mirror. 
The  magnetic  bar  is  suspended  by  a  small  wire,  fastened  to  the 
vertical  stem,  and  at  the  top  is  wound  round  the  spiral  of  the 
screw  /,  which  turns  in  the  standard  h'  and  /*,  upon  the  plat- 
form A,  and  which  is  secured  to  the  ceiling.  In  the  standards 
h',  there  is  cut  a  female  screw,  of  the  same  gradation  as  that 
upon  which  the  wire  is  wound.  By  this  means,  the  magnetic 
bar  may  be  raised  or  let  down,  by  turning  the  screw,  without 
taking  the  bar  from  its  central  position  in  the  multiplier  ;  g  is 
a  screw  for  fastening  the  spiral  shaft,  when  properly  adjusted, 
p  and  N  are  the  two  ends  of  the  wire  of  the  multiplier.  G  is  a 
stand  for  supporting  the  spy-glass  D,  and  also  the  case  E,  into 
which  slides  the  scale  F.  The  mirror  H  is  at  right  angles  with 


138 


EARLY  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPHS. 


the  magnetic  bar,  and  presents  its  face  to  the  spy-glass  D,  as 
also  to  the  scale  at  E.  It  is  so  adjusted,  that  the  reflection  of 
the  scale  at  E  from  the  mirror,  may  be  distinctly  seen  from  the 
spy-glass.  If  the  magnetic  b^r  turns  either  to  the  right  or  left, 
the  mirror  must  move  with  it,  and  if  a  person  is  observing  it 
through  the  spy-glass,  the  scale  will  appear  to  move  at  the  same 
time,  thereby  presenting  to  the  eye  of  the  observer  another  part 
of  the  scale  than  that  seen  when  the  bar  is  not  deflected.  The 
figures  on  the  scale  will  show  in  what  direction  the  bar  has  < 

Fig.  3. 


JB 

rXi 

F 

1            II                 I 

4-          3         \2         (1        0 

1 



turned,  and  thus  render  it  distinct  to  the  observer,  the  only  ap- 
parent object  of  the  mirror,  spy-glass,  and  scale. 

For  the  purpose  of  generating  the  galvanic  fluid,  they  use 
the  magneto-electric  machine.  There  is  also  required  for  the 
purpose  of  making  the  desired  deflections  of  the  magnetic  bar,  a 
eommunicator  or  pole-changer.  Fig.  2  represents  that  portion 
of  the  apparatus  at  the  receiving"  station.  The  magneto-elec- 
tric machine,  and  the  pole-changer,  properly  connected,  are  the 
instruments  of  the  transmitting'  station.  Two  wires,  or  one 
wire  and  the  ground,  form  the  circuit  between  these  two  sta- 
tions. The  machine  is  put  in  operation  by  turning  the  crank, 
and  the  person  sending  the  intelligence  is  stationed  at  the  com- 


ALEXANDER'S  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH.  139 

mutator,  and  directs  the  current  through  the  extended  wires  to 
the  multiplier  of  the  receiving  station,  so  as  to  deflect  the  "bar 
to  the  right  or  left,  in  any  succession  he  may  choose,  or  sus- 
pend its  action  for  any  length  of  time. 

But  in  the  apparatus  for  observation,  the  observer  looks  into 
the  spy-glass,  and  writes  up  the  kind  and  results  of  the  varia- 
tions of  the  magnetic  needle.  In  order  to  have  a  control  of  the 
recorder,  let  there  be  a  good  number  of  spy-glasses  directed 
toward  the  same  mirror,  in  which  observers  may  watch  inde- 
pendently of  each  other.  Suppose  that  five  variations  of  the 
magnetic  needle  signifies  a  letter,  L  denotes  a  variation  to  the 
left,  and  R  to  the  right.  Then  might  r  r  r  r  r  denote  A,  r  r  r  r  1 
denote  B,  rrrlrc,  rrlrr  denote  D,  and  so  on.  In  the  whole, 
we  obtain  by  the  different  arrangements  of  the  five,  which  are 
made  with  the  two  letters  R  and  L,  thirty- two  different  tele- 
graphic signs,  which  may  answer  for  letters  and  numbers,  and 
of  which  we  ean  select  those  where  the  most  changes  are  in- 
troduced between  r  and  /,  as  the  most  common  letters,  in  jorder, 
in  the  best  possible  manner,  to  notice  the  constant  variations 
of  the  magnetic  needle. 

The  following  would  be  the  alphabetical  and  numerical 
signs,  as  arranged  from  the  above  directions : 


A 

rrrrr    lorY 

llrll 

R 

rrrll 

B 

r  r  r  r  1    K 

Irrrl 

S  or  Z 

rrlrl 

C 

rr  r  Ir    L 

r  Ir  r  r 

T 

llrlr 

D 

rrlrr    M 

rrlll 

U 

r  1  1  1  r 

E 

rlrlr    N 

11111 

Y 

Irrll 

F 

Irrrr    0 

Irlll 

W 

llllr 

a  or 

J  Irlrr    P 

Irlrl 

H 

rlrrl    Q, 

llrrr 

1   'rllll 

6 

rllrr 

2    rrllr 

7 

1  1  Ir  1 

3    rlrll 

8 

llrrl 

4    rllrl 

9 

Irrlr 

5    lllrr 

0 

Irllr 

ELECTRIC    TELEGRAPH. 


A  model  to  illustrate  the  nature  and  powers  of  this  machine 
was  exhibited  at  the  Society  of  Arts  in  Edinburgh,  Scotland, 
November,  1837.  The  model  consists  of  a  wooden  chest,  about 
five  feet  long,  three  feet  wide,  three  feet  deep  at  the  one  end, 
and  one  foot  at  the  other.  The  width  and  depth  in  this  model 


140 


EARLY  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPHS. 


are  those  which  would  probably  be  found  suitable  in  a  working 
machine  ;  but  it  will  be  understood  that  the  length  in  the 
machine  may  be  a  hundred  or  a  thousand  miles,  and  is  limited 
to  five  feet  in  the  model,  merely  for  convenience.  Thirty  copper 
wires  extend  from  end  to  end  of  the  chest,  and  are  kept  apart 
from  each  other.  At  one  end  (which,  for  distinction's  sake, 
we  shall  call  the  south  end)  they  are  fastened  to  a  horizontal 
line  of  wooden  keys,  precisely  similar  to  those  of  a  pianoforte ; 
at  the  other,  or  north  end,  they  terminate  close  to  thirty  small 
apertures,  equally  distributed  in  six  rows  of  five  each,  over  a 
screen  of  three  feet  square,  which  forms  the  end  of  the  chest. 
Under  these  apertures  on  the  outside,  are  painted,  in  black 
paint,  upon  a  white  ground,  the  twenty-six  letters  of  the  al- 
phabet, with  the  necessary  points,  the  colon,  semicolon,  and 
full  point,  and  an  asterisk,  to  denote  the  termination  of  a  word. 
The  letters  occupy  spaces  about  an  inch  square.  The  wooden 
keys,  at  the  other  end,  have  also  the  letters  of  the  alphabet, 

Fig.  3.          ..  r  : 


7 


7  ?  V 


141 

painted  on  them  in  the  usual  order.  The  wires  serve  merely 
for  communication,  and  we  shall  now  describe  the  apparatus 
by  which  they  work. 

This  consists,  at  the  south  end,  of  a  pair  of  plates,  zinc  and 
copper,  forming  a  galvanic  trough,  placed  under  the  keys ;  and 
at  the  north  end,  of  thirty  steel  magnets,  about  four  inches 
long,  placed  close  behind  the  letters  painted  on  the  screen.  The 
magnets  move  horizontally  on  axes,  and  are  poised  within 
a  flat  ring  of  copper  wire,  formed  of  the  ends  of  the  com- 
municating wires.  On  their  north  ends  they  carry  small  square 
bits  of  black  paper,  which  project  in  front  of  the  screen,  and 
serve  as  opercula,  or  covers,  to  conceal  the  letters.  When  any 
wire  is  put  in  communication  with  the  trough  at  the  south 
end,  the  galvanic  influence  is  instantly  transmitted  to  the  north 
end;  and  in  accordance  with  the  well-known  law,  discovered 
by  (Ersted,  the  magnet  at  the  end  of  that  wire  instantly  turns 
round  to  the  right  or  left,  bearing  with  it  the  operculum  oi 
black  paper,  and  unveiling  a  letter.  When  the  key,  A,  for  in- 
stance, is  pressed  down  with  the  finger  at  the  south  end,  the 
wire  attached  to  it  is  immediately  put  in  communication  with 
the  trough ;  and  at  the  same  instant,  letter  A,  at  the  north  end 
is  unveiled,  by  the  magnet  turning  to  the  right,  and  with- 
drawing the  operculum.  When  the  finger  is  removed  from  the 
key,  it  springs  back  to  its  place  ;  the  communication  with  the 
trough  ceases ;  the  magnet  resumes  its  position,  and  the  letter 
is  again  covered.  Thus  by  pressing  down  with  the  finger,  in 
succession,  the  keys  corresponding  to  any  word  or  name,  we 
have  the  letters  forming  that  word,  or  name,  exhibited  at  the 
other  end ;  the  name  VICTORIA,  for  instance,  which  .was  the 
maiden  effort  of  the  telegraph,  on  the  exhibition  before  the 
Society  of  Arts,  above  referred  to. 

The  above  description  is  all  that  I  have  been  able  to  obtain 
in  relation  to  this  plan  of  an  electric  telegraph ;  and  here  intro- 
duce, fig.  3,  to  illustrate  it.  The  thirty  needles  are  represented 
on  the  screen,  each  carrying  a  shade,  which  conceals  the  letter 
when  the  needle  is  vertical.  The  needle  belonging  to  the  letter 
F,  is,  however,,  deflected,  .and  the  letter  is  exposed.  The  screen 
is  supposed  to  be  at  the  receiving  station.  To  the  left  hand  of 
the  screen,  thirty  wires,  e  e,  are  seen  joined  to  one,  a ;  the 
other  thirty  wires,  d  d,  are  seen  below  the  screen. 


SOEMMERING'S  ELECTRO-CHEMICAL 
TELEGRAPH, 


CHAPTEB   X. 

Soemmering's  Electric  Telegraph  of  1809 — The  Apparatus  and  Manipulation 
Described — Signal  Keys  for  opening  and  closing  the  Circuits. 

ELECTRIC    TELEGRAPH    OF    1809. 

THE  telegraph  invented,  in  1809,  by  Mr.  Samuel  Thomas 
Soemmering,  was  an  electro-chemical  telegraph.  He  was  the 
first  to  use  the  voltaic  pile  as  a  generator  of  the  electric  current 
for  telegraphic  purposes. 

Fig.  1. 


From  the  description,  hereinafter  given,  it  will  he  seen  that 
Mr.  Soemmering  contemplated  the  use  of  twenty-six  or  more 
wires,  or,  in  other  words,  a  wire  for  each  letter,  figure,  or 
special  signal.  The  wires  were  to  he  insulated  with  silk,  and 
arranged  as  seen  in  fig.  1,  between  stations  A  A  and  B  B.  The 
mechanical  arrangement  for  putting  the  battery  on  to  any  given 
wire  was  very  perfect,  and  any  two  of  the  wires  could  be 
readily  connected,  so  as  to  have  a  return  of  the  current  to  the 
other  end  of  the  pile,  as  then  deemed  necessary  in  the  forma- 
tion of  electric  currents.  When  the  current  was  thus  sent,  the 


143 

gold  points  connected  with  the  two  wires  at  the  distant  station 
gave  off  bubbles  of  oxygen  and  hydrogen  gases,  and  the  two 
letters  corresponding  therewith  were  thus  denoted. 

In  order  to  have  a  call,  he  proposed  to  liberate  a  wound-up 
alarm,  by  means  of  the  evolution  of  gas,  but  to  what  extent  it 
was  found  practicable  no  evidence  is  to  be  found. 

From  the  experiments  of  Mr.  Soemmering,  as  reported  to  the 
Academy  of  Science  at  Munich,  Germany,  the  instantaneous 
appearance  of  the  gas,  when  the  battery  was  thrown  into  the 
circuit,  seemed  to  be  conclusive,  and  he  concluded  that  the 
passage  of  the  galvanic  force  was  instantaneous.  He  also 
found  that  the  addition  of  2,000  feet  of  wire  in  the  length  of 
his  circuit,  produced  little  or  no  sensible  additional  resistance, 
and  that  for  nearly  3,000  feet  of  wire,  the  decomposition  of  the 
water,  and  the  appearance  of  the  gas  at  the  distant  station, 
commenced  simultaneously  with  the  sending  of  the  current. 

By  a  careful  study  of  the  process  of  telegraphing  devised  by 
Soemmering,  the  reader  will  readily  see  that  there  was  as  much 
in  the  invention  as  was  possible  with  the  then  known  science, 
and  even  to  this  day  there  has  been  but  little  advance  in  electric 
telegraphing,  without  the  aid  of  (Ersted's  discovery  of  electro- 
magnetism,  in  1819.  The  chemical  telegraphs  of  Bain,  Morse, 
and  others,  are  but  a  step  beyond  Soemmering. 

Without  further  remark,  I  will  now  give  a  description  of  this 
early  invention  in  the  language  of  Mr.  Soemmering. 

THE    APPARATUS    AND    MANIPULATION    DESCRIBED. 

"  The  fact  that  the  decomposition  of  water  may  be  produced 
with  certainty  and  instantaneously,  not  only  at  short,  but  at  great 
distances  from  the  voltaic  pile,  and  that  the  decomposition  may 
be  sustained  for  a  considerable  time,  suggested  to  me  the  idea, 
that  it  might  be  made  subservient  for  the  purposes  of  transmit- 
ting intelligence  in  a  manner  superior  to  the  plan  in  common 
use,  and  would  supersede  them.  My  engagements  are  such 
that  I  have  only  been  able  to  test  the  practicability  of  my  plan 
upon  a  smairscale,  and  herewith  submit,  for  the  academy's  pub- 
lication, an  account  of  the  experiment. 

"  My  telegraph  was  constructed  and  used  in  the  following 
manner  :  In  the  bottom  of  a  glass  reservoir,  of  which  A  A,  in 
figs.  1  and  2,  is  a  sectional  view,  are  35  golden  points,  or  pins, 
passing  up  through  the  bottom  of  the  glass  reservoir,  marked 
A,  B,  c,  &c.,  25  of  which  are  marked  with  the  25  letters  of  the 
German  alphabet,  and  the  ten  numerals.  The  35  points  are  each 
connected  with  an  extended  copper  wire,  soldered  to  them,  and 
extending  through  the  tube,  E,  to  the  distant  station,  B  B,  fig. 


144 


SOEMMERING'S  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH. 


2,  are  there  soldered  to  the  35  brass  plates,  upon  the  wooden 
bar,  K  K      Through  the  front  end  of  each  of  the  plates,  there  is 


Fig.  2. 


a  small  hole,  i,  for  the  reception  of  two  brass  pins,  B  and  c ; 
one  of  which  is  on  the  end  of  the  wire  connecting  the  positive 
pole,  and  the  other  the  negative  pole  of  the  voltaic  column,  o, 
fig.  1,  and  as  seen  attached  to  the  voltaic  pile,  fig.  2,  by  the 
wires  c  c.  Each  of  the  35  plates  are  arranged  upon  a  support 
of  wood,  K  K,  to  correspond  with  the  arrangement  of  the  35 
points  at  the  reservoir,  and  are  lettered  accordingly.  When 
thus  arranged,  the  two  pins  from  the  column  are  held,  one  in 
each  hand,  and  the  two  plates  being  selected,  the  pins  are  then 
put  into  their  holes  and  the  communication  is  established.  Gras 
is  evolved  at  the  two  distant  corresponding  points  in  an  in- 
stant :  for  example,  K  and  T.  The  peg  on  the  hydrogen  pole, 
evolves  hydrogen  gas,  and  that  on  the  oxygen  pole,  oxygen 
gas. 

"  In  this  way  every  letter  and  numeral  may  be  indicated  at 
the  pleasure  of  the  operator.     Should  the  following  rules  be  ob- 


SOEMMERING'S  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH.  145 

served,  it  will  enable  the  operator  to  communicate  as  much,  if 
not  more,  than  can  be  done  by  the  common  telegraph. 

"  First  Rule.  As  the  hydrogen  gas  evolved  is  greater  in 
quantity  than  the  oxygen,  therefore,  those  letters  which  the 
former  gas  represents,  are  more  easily  distinguished  than  those 
of  the  latter,  and  must  be  so  noted.  For  example,  in  the 
words  ak,  ad,  em,  ie,  we  indicate  the  letters  a,  a,  e,  i,  by  the 
hydrogen  ;  k,  d,  m,  e,  on  the  other  hand,  by  the  oxygen  poles. 

"  Second  Rule.  To  telegraph  two  letters  of  the  same  name, 
we  must  use  a  unit,  unless  they  are  separated  by  the  syllable. 
For  example,  the  name  anna,  may  be  telegraphed  without  the 
unit,  as  the  syllable  an,  is  first  indicated  and  then  na.  The 
name  nanni,  on  the  contrary,  cannot  be  telegraphed  without 
the  use  of  the  unit,  because  na  is  first  telegraphed,  and  then 
comes  nn,  which  cannot  be  indicated  in  the  same  vessel.  It 
would,  however,  be  possible  to  telegraph  even  three  or  more 
letters  at  the  same  time  by  increasing  the  number  of  wires 
from  25  to  50,  which  would  very  much  augment  the  cost  of 
construction  and  the  care  of  attendance. 

"  Third  Rule.  To  indicate  the  conclusion  of  a  word,  the 
unit  1  must  be  used.  Therefore,  it  is  used  with  the  last  single 
letter  of  a  word,  being  made  to  follow  the  ending  letter.  It 
must  also  be  prefixed  to  the  letter  commencing  a  word,  when 
that  letter  follows  a  word  of  two  letters  only.  For  example  : 
Sie  lebt  must  be  represented  Si,  el,  le,  bt,  that  is  the  unit  1, 
must  be  placed  after  the  first  e.  Er,  lebt,  on  the  contrary, 
must  be  represented,  Er,  11,  eb,  t\ ;  that  is,  the  unit  1  is  pla- 
ced before  the  /.  Instead  of  using  the  unit,  another  signal  may 
be  introduced,  the  cross,  t,  to  indicate  the  separation  of  syllables. 

"  Suppose  now  the  decomposing  table  is  situated  in  one  city, 
and  the  pin  arrangement  in  another,  connected  with  each  other 
by  35  continuous  wires,  extended  from  city  to  city.  Then  the 
operator,  with  his  voltaic  column  and  pin  arrangement  at  one 
station,  may  communicate  intelligence  to  the  observer  of  the 
gas  at  the  decomposing  table  of  the  other  station. 

"  The  metallic  plates  with  which  the  extended  wires  are 
connected  have  conical  shaped  holes  in  their  ends ;  and  the 
pins  attached  to  the  two  wires  of  the  voltaic  column  are  like- 
wise of  a  conical  shape,  so  that  when  they  are  put  in  the  holes, 
there  may  be  a  close  fit,  prevent  oxydation,  and  produce  a  cer- 
tain connection.  It  is  well  known  that  slight  oxydation  of  the 
parts  in  contact  will  interrupt  the  communication.  The  pin 
arrangement  might  be  so  contrived  as  to  use  permanent  keys, 
which  for  the  35  plates  or  rods  would  require  70  pins.  The 

10 


146  SOEMMERING'S  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH. 

first  key  might  be  for  hydrogen  A  ;  the  third  key  for  hydrogen 
B  ;  the  fourth  key  for  oxygen  B,  and  so  on. 

"  The  preparation  and  management  of  the  voltaic  column  is 
so  well  known,  that  little  need  be  said  except  that  it  should  be 
of  that  durability  as  to  last  more  than  a  month.  It  should 
not  be  of  very  broad  surfaces,  as  I  have  proved  that  six  of  my 
usual  plates  (each  one  consisting  of  a  Brabant  dollar,  felt,  and 
a  disk  of  zinc,  weighing  52  grains)  weuld  evolve  more  gas  than 
five  plates  of  the  great  battery  of  our  Academy.  As  to  the  cost 
of  construction,  this  model  which  I  have  had  the  honor  to  ex- 
hibit to  the  Royal  Academy,  cost  30  florins.  One  line  consist- 
ing of  35  wires,  laid  in  glass  or  earthen  pipes,  each  wire  insu- 
lated with  silk,  making  each  wire  22,827  Parisian  feet,  or  a 
Grerman  mile,  or  a  single  wire  of  788,885  feet  in  length,  might 
be  made  for  less  than  2,000  florins,  as  appears  from  the  cost 
of  my  short  one." 

SIGNAL    KEYS  'FOR    OPENING    AND    CLOSING    THE    CIRCUITS. 

Before  concluding  this  chapter,  I  will  add  a  few  explana- 
tions in  regard  to  the  figures  1  and  2  relatively.  Fig.  1  is  a 
perspective  view,  embracing  the  two  offices.  A  A  is  one  sta- 
tion and  B  B  the  other,  c  c  is  the  voltaic  pile  at  B  B.  The  wires 
from  A  to  B  are  united  into  a  cord  and  lashed  together,  but  each 
wire  insulated  one  from  the  other. 

Fig  2  is  a  different  view  of  the  sending  station  B  and  of  the 
receiving  station,  A.  o  is  the  voltaic  pile  as  seen  in  fig,  1,  re- 
presented by  c  c.  The  signal  keys,  B  c,  fig.  2,  close  the  circuit 
by  being  placed  in  the  holes,  i,  of  the  frame,  K  K.  To  each  of 
these  metallic  holes  is  connected  one  of  the  line  wires.  The  me- 
tallic points  at  the  other  station,  A,  each  of  which  represents  a 
given  letter  or  figure,  the  same  as  at  the  station,  K  K.  The 
signal  keys  may  be  applied  in  the  form  mentioned,  but  they 
may  be  connected  with  a  key-board  like  a  piano,  as  Soemmer- 
ing  indicated,  so  that  the  pressure  upon  any  key  will  form  the 
metallic  contact,  and  transmit  the  electric  current  on  the  wire 
representing  the  letter  touched,  as  practically  operated  in  the 
telegraphs  of  the  present  day.  The  forms  given  in  the  figures 
are  thus  presented,  to  enable  the  reader  to  understand  the  or- 
ganization of  the  ingenious  arrangement  devised  by  Soemmer- 
ing  for  telegraphic  purposes.  Amidst  the  many  inventors  of 
the  different  contrivances  of  telegraph  apparatuses,  the  name 
of  Soemmering  is  entitled  to  stand  in  bold  and  golden  letters,  for 
certainly,  his  combination  was  a  rapid  stride  toward  the  con- 
summation of  a  practical  electric  telegraph,  the  most  transcend- 
ant  star  in  the  inventive  galaxy  of  the  present  century. 


RONALD'S  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH. 


CHAPTEE    XI. 

Invention  of  Ronald's  Electric  Telegraph — Experiments  and  Description  of  the" 
Apparatus — Description  of  an  Electrograph. 

INVENTION    OF    RONALD'S    ELECTRIC    TELEGRAPH. 

THE  Ronald  Electric  Telegraph  was  invented  in  1816,  at 
Hammersmith,  London,  England,  by  Mr:  Francis  Ronald,  and 
a  description  of  it  was  published  by  him  in  1823.  He  erected 
eight  miles  of  insulated  wire  on  his  lawri,  and  besides,  he  bur- 
ied in  the  earth  five  hundred  and  twenty-five  feet,  in  a  trench 
dug  for  that  purpose,  four  feet  deep.  The  wire  through  the 
air  was  insulated  with  silk  strings  suspended  from  trees  and 
poles.  The  subterranean  wire  was  placed  through  thick  glass 
tubes,  and  these  were  placed  in  troughs  made  of  dry  wood,  two 
inches  square.  The  troughs  were  filled  with  pitch.  He  em- 
ployed the  ordinary  electric  machine,  generating  high-tension 
electricity,  and  the  pith-ball  electrometer,  in  the  following 
manner.  He  placed  two  clocks  at  two  stations ;  these  clocks 
had  upon  the  second-hand  arbor  a  dial  with  twenty  letters  on 
it ;  a  screen  was  placed  in  front  of  each  of  these  dials,  and  an 
orifice  was  cut  in  each  screen,  so  that  one  letter  only  at  a  time 
could  be  seen  on  the  revolving  dial.  These  clocks  were  made 
to  go  isochronously,  and,  as  the  dial  moved  round,  the  same  let- 
ter always  appeared  through  the  orifices  of  each  of  these 
screens.  The  pith-ball  electrometers  were  hung  in  front  of  the 
dials. 

It  is  evident,  therefore,  that,  if  these  pith-balls  could  be  made 
to  move  at  the  same  instant  of  time,  a  person  at  the  trans- 
mitting station,  by  causing  such  motion  in  both  those  elec- 
trometers, would  be  able  to  inform  the  attendant  at  the  distant 


148 


RONALD'S  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH. 


or  receiving  station  what  letters  to  note  down  as  they  appeared 
before  him  in  succession  on  the  dial  of  the  clock. 

Fig.  i 


0 


This  was  accomplished  in  the  following  manner:  The  trans- 
mitter caused  a  current  of  electricity  to  be  constantly  operating 
upon  the  electrometers,  so  as  to  separate  the  balls  of  those  elec- 
trometers, except  only  when  it  was  required  to  denote  a  letter, 
and  then  he  discharged  the  electricity  from  the  wire,  and  in- 
stantly both  balls  collapsed.  The  distant  observer  was  thereby 
informed  to  note  down  the  letter  then  visible.  In  this  way 
letter  after  letter  could  be  denoted,  words  spelled,  and  intelligence 
of  any  kind  transmitted.  All  that  was  absolutely  required  for 
this  form  of  telegraph  was,  that  the  clocks  should  go  isochro- 
nously  during1  the  time  that  the  intelligence  was  being  trans- 
mitted ;  for  it  was  easy  enough,  by  a  preconcerted  arrangement 
between  the  parties,  and  upon  a  given  signal,  for  each  party 
to  start  their  clocks  at  the  same  letter,  and  thus,  if  the  clocks 
went  together  during  the  transmission  of  the  intelligence,  the 
proper  letters  would  appear  simultaneously,  Until  the  commu- 


RONALD'S  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH. 


149 


nication  was  finished.  The  attention  of  the  distant  observer 
was  called  by  the  explosion  of  gas  by  means  of  electricity  from 
a  Ley  den  jar. 

Fig.  2.  Fig.  3. 


EXPERIMENTS    AND    DESCRIPTION  OF    THE    APPARATUS. 

Mr.  Ronald  has  given  the  following  additional  explanations 
of  his  invention  in  his  work,  entitled  a  "  Description  of  an 
Electric  Telegraph,  and  some  other  Electrical  Apparatus :" 

In  fig.  1,  D  is  an  electrical  machine ;  B,  the  pith-ball  elec- 
trometer ;  A,  the  screen  hiding  the  letters  on  the  dial  behind  it ; 
p,  the  gas  alarum  ;  E,  the  tube  conveying  the  wires.  . 

Fig.  2  shows  the  moveable  dial  hidden  by  the  screen  in 
fig.  1. 

Fig.  3  is  an  enlarged  drawing  of  the  screen,  with  orifice  and 
pith-ball  electrometer. 

Mr.  Ronald  entered  on  the  subject  of  the  comparative  merits 
of  wires  suspended  in  the  air  and  wires  buried  in  the  earth, 
and  arrived  at  the  conclusion  that  subterranean  wires  were  much 
to  be  preferred,  although  many  persons  were  found  to  object  to 
that  plan. 

He  says :  "  The  liability  of  the  subterranean  part  of  the  ap- 
paratus to  be  injured  by  an  enemy  or  by  mischievously  dispo- 
sed persons  has  been  vehemently  objected  to — more  vehemently 
than  rationally,  I  presume  to  hope  (as  is  not  unfrequently  the 
case  on  these  as  on  many  other  sorts  of  occasions).  If  an 
enemy  had  occupation  of  all  the  roads  which  (fevered  the  wires, 
he  could  undoubtedly  disconcert  my  electric  signs  without 
difficulty  ;  but  would  those  now  in  use  escape  ?  And  this  case 
relates  only  to  invasions  and  civil  war ;  therefore  let  us  have 
smokers  enough  to  prevent  invasions,  and  kings  that  love  their 
subjects  enough  to  prevent  civil  wars. 

"  To  protect  the  apparatus  from  mischievously  disposed  per- 


150 

sons,  let  the  tubes  be  buried  six  feet  below  the  surface  of  the 
middle  of  the  high  roads,  and  let  each  tube  take  a  different 
route  to  arrive  at  the  same  place.  Could  any  number  of  rogues 
then  open  trenches  six  feet  deep,  in  two  or  more  different  public 
high  roads  or  streets,  and  get  through  two  or  more  strong  cast- 
iron  troughs,  in  less  space  of  time  than  forty  minutes  ?  for  we 
shall  presently  see  that  they  would  be  detected  before  the  ex- 
piration of  that  time.  If  they  could,  render  their  difficulties 
greater  by  cutting  the  trench  deeper,  and  snould  they  still  suc- 
ceed in  breaking  the  communication  by  these  means,  hang 
them  if  you  catch  them,  ctamn  them  if  you  cannot,  and  mend 
it  immediately  in  both  cases." 

In  further  explanation  Mr.  Roland  states,  that  the  circular 
brass  plate,  fig.  2,  was  divided  into  20  equal  parts,  and  it  was 
fixed  upon  the  seconds'  arbor  of  a  clock  which  beat  dead  sec- 
onds. Each  division  was  marked  by  a  figure,  a  letter  and  a 
preparatory  sign.  The  figures  were  divided  into  two  series, 
from  1  to  10,  the  letters  were  arranged  alphabetically,  leav- 
ing out  J,  Q,  u,  w,  x,  z.  The  preparatory  signs  are  indicated 
by  the  position  of  the  rays  indicated  by  A,  B,  c,  D,  E,  F,  G,  H,  i,  K, 
and  represent  as  follows,  viz.,  A,  prepare ;  B,  ready ;  c,  repeat 
sentence ;  D,  repeat  word  ;  E,  finish ;  F,  annul  sentence ;  G,  an- 
nul word  ;  H,  note  figures  ;  i,  note  letters ;  K,  dictionary. 

Before  and  over  the  disk,  fig.  2,  was  fixed  a  brass  plate,  fig. 
3,  capable  of  being  occasionally  moved  by  the  hand  round  its 
centre,  and  which  had  an  aperture  of  such  dimensions,  that 
while  the  disk  was  carried  round  by  the  motion  of  the  clock, 
only  one  of  the  letters,  figures,  and  preparatory  signs  upon  it 
could  be  seen  through  the  aperture  at  the  same  time ;  for  in- 
stance, the  figure  9,  the  letter  y,  and  the  sign  "  Ready,"  are 
now  visible  through  the  aperture  in  fig.  3.  In  front  of  this 
pair  of  plates.  A,  fig.  1  and  4,  was  suspended  an  electrometer 
of  Canton's  pith  balls,  from  a  wire  E,  which  was  insulated,  and 
communicated  with  a  cylindric  electrical  machine  of  only  6 
inches  in  diameter,  and  with  the  wire  c  525  feet  long,  which 
was  insulated  in  glass  tubes,  surrounded  by  the  wooden  trough 
filled  with  .pitch,  and  buried  in  a  trench  cut  4  feet  deep  in  the 
ground. 

Another  similar  electrometer  was  suspended  in  the  same 
manner  before  another  clock,  similarly  furnished  with  the  same 
kind  of  plates  and  electrical  machine.  This  second  clock  and 
machine  were  situated  at  the  other  end  of  the  buried  wire,  and 
it  was  adjusted  to  go  as  nearly  as  possible  synchronously  with 
the  first.  Hence,  it  is  evident,  that  when  the  wire  was  charged 
by  the  machine  at  either  end,  the  electrometers  at  both  ends 


RONALD'S  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH. 


151 


diverged ;  when  it  was  discharged  suddenly  at  either  station, 
they  both  collapsed  at  the  same  instant ;  and  when  it  was  dis- 
charged at  the  moment  that  a  given  letter,  figure,  and  sign, 
on  the  lower  plate  of  one  clock  appeared  in  view  through  the 
aperture,  the  same  figure,  letter,  and  sign  appeared  also  in  view 
at  the  other  clock ;  and  that,  by  such  discharges  of  the  wire  at 
one  station,  and  by  noting  down  the  letters,  figures,  or  signs  in 
view,  at  the  other,  any  required  words  could  be  spelled,  and 


Fig.  4. 


figures  transmitted.  But  by  the  use  of  a  telegraphic  diction- 
ary, a  word,  or  even  a  whole  sentence,  could  be  conveyed  by 
only  3  discharges,  which  could  be  effected  in  the  shortest  time 
in  9  seconds,  and  in  the  longest,  in  90  seconds,  making  a  mean 
of  54  seconds.  This  dictionary  consisted  of  10  leaves  cut  in 
the  manner  of  a  common-place  book,  or  ledger ;  each  leaf  was 
also  divided  into  10  columns,  and  each  column  numbered  on 
the  top  of  the  page.  The  columns  were  intersected  by  10 
horizontal  lines,  each  numbered  on  the  left  side.  Tthe  space 
produced  by  the  intersections  was  occupied  by  words  or  sen- 
tences. 

It  was  necessary  to  distinguish  the  preparatory  signs  from 
those  intended  to  spell  or  refer  to  the  dictionary,  by  giving  the 
wire  a  rather  higher  charge  than  usual,  and  thus  causing  the 


152  RONALD'S  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH. 

pith  balls  to  diverge  more  ;  and  it  was  always  understood  that 
the  first  sign,  viz.,  "  Prepare"  was  made  when  that  word, 
the  letter  A,  and  figure  1,  were  in  view  at  the  communicator's 
clock ;  so  that  should  the  communicant's  clock  not  exhibit  the 
same  sign  (in  consequence  of  its  having  gained  or  lost  more 
than  the  communicator's),  he  noted  how  many  seconds  it  had 
lost  or  gained,  and  moved  his  upper  plate  on  its  centre  through 
just  so  many  seconds  to  the  right  or  left  as  occasion  required, 
and  the  communicator  continually  repeated  his  sign  "  Prepare," 
until  the  communicant  had  adjusted  his  clock,  and  had  dis- 
charged the  wire  at  the  moment  when  the  word  "  Ready,"  ap- 
peared in  view. 

A  second  preparatory  sign  was  now  made  by  the  communica- 
tor, provided  that  the  word  or  sentence  was  not  contained  in 
the  dictionary,  or  that  the  figures  were  to  be  noted,  not  as 
referring  to  the  dictionary,  but  in  composition ;  and  this  was 
done  by  discharging  the  wire  at  the  moment  when  the  term 
"  Note  Letters,"  or  "  Note  Figures,"  came  into  view.  The 
gas  pistol,  F,  in  figs.  1  and  4,  which  passed  through  the  side 
of  the  clock-casfi,  G,  was  furnished  with  an  apparatus,  H,  by 
means  of  which  a  spark  might  pass  through  it  when  the  com- 
municator made  the  sign  "  Prepare,"  in  order  that  the  explo- 
sion might  excite  the  attention  of  the  communicant,  and  the 
handle  i,  enabled  him  to  break  the  connection  of  it  with  the 
wire  when  necessary.  The  explosion  of  the  gas  pistol  served 
as  an  alarm,  but  to  what  extent  it  was  used  to  communicate 
by  sound,  I  have  not  been  able  to  ascertain. 

At  half  the  distance  between  the  two  ends  of  the  wire  was 
placed  the  apparatus,  K,  by  which  its  continuity  could  be  bro- 
ken at  pleasure,  for  the  purpose  of  ascertaining  (in  case  any 
accident  had  happened  to  injure  the  insulation  of  the  buried 
wire)  which  half  had  sustained  the  injury,  or  if  both  had.  It 
is  seen  that  the  two  portions  of  the  wire  and  tube  rose  out  of 
the  earth,  and  terminated  in  two  clasps,  or  forks,  L  and  M,  and 
the  wire,  N,  carrying  a  pair  of  pith  balls  resting  on  these 
forks,  connected  them.  Now,  by  detaching  this  connecting 
wire  from  the  fork  L,  while  it  still  remained  in  contact  with 
the  fork  M,  or  vice,  versa,  it  could  be  seen  which  portion  of  the 
wire  did  not  allow  the  balls  of  the  electrometer  to  diverge,  and 
consequently  which  had  lost  its  insulation,  or  if  both  had.  Mr. 
Ronald  submitted  his  telegraph  to  the  Admiralty,  for  adoption 
by  the  government,  .but  he  was  informed  that  "  telegraphs  of 
any  kind  were  then  wholly  unnecessary,"  and  that  "no  other 
than  the  one  then  in  use  would  be  adopted."  There  the  mat- 
ter  ended. 


153 


DESCRIPTION    OF 


Besides  the  efforts  of  Mr.  Ronald  to  establish  his  electric 
telegraph  in  1816,  and  in  subsequent  years,  he  invented  an 
apparatus  called  an  "  electrograph."  This  instrument  has 
been  construed  to  be  a  step  in  the  march  of  telegraphic  inven- 
tion, and  in  substantiation  of  which,  it  was  placed  in  the 
pleadings  of  a  contesting  party  in  one  of  his  telegraph  suits  in 
America. 

Fig.  5  represents  the  new  electrograph,  a  description  of 
which  was  published  by  Mr.  Ronald  in  London,  in  1823.  He 
said : 

Whoever  has  been  possessed  of  a  sufficient;  share  of  curiosity 
and  patience  to  examine  the  extraordinary  and  amusing  series 
of  phenomena  which  atmospheric  electricity  exhibits,  as  ob- 
served by  Signior  Beccaria's  exploring  wire,  or  Mr.  Bennett's, 
Mr.  Cavallo's,  and  Mr.  Read's  apparatus,  &c.,  must  have  re- 
gretted the  impossibility  of  noting  down  sometimes  the  very 
rapid  changes  in  tension,  as  well  as  in  kind  of  electricity,  which 
occur  in  a  thunder-storm,  or  hard  shower  of  rain,  hail,  snow, 
&o.,  in  such  manner  as  to  convey  a  correct  idea  of  the  different 
very  short  intervals  of  time  in  which  they  occur,  as  well  as  of 
the  extraordinary  phenomena  themselves.  Hence,  perhaps, 
arose  the  idea  of  employing  an  electrograph,  a  far  more  neces- 
sary instrument  than  the  barometrograph,  &c.,  &c.  The  phe- 
nomena displayed  by  the  electricity  of  serene  weather,  and  of 
dew,  are  not,  however,  less  interesting,  or  less  deserving  atten- 
tion, and  they  equally  require  an  instrument  to  note  them,  but 
for  the  opposite  reason,  viz.,  their  tediousness.  Fig.  5  is  an 
electrograph,  which  may  be  applied  to  either  purpose. 

A  A  is  a  box,  containing  a  strong  timepiece,  placed  in  a  hori- 
zontal position,  and  receiving  motion  from  the  weight  B.  ;  c  is 
a  circular  plate  of  baked  mahogany  wood,  eight  inches  in  diam- 
eter, having  a  perforation,  D,  of  two  inches  and  a  half  diameter. 
The  circumference  of  tins  plate,  and  that  also  of  the  perfora- 
tion, are  provided  with  edges,  or  rims,  and  the  outer  broad  rim 
is  divided  off,  and  marked  with  hours  and  minutes,  in  the  man- 
ner of  a  common  clock.  The  space  between  the  two  edges  is 
nearly  filled  with  cement,  composed  of  resin,  bees'  wax,  and 
lamp-black,  and  this  part  of  the  apparatus  can  be  detached  at 
will  from  the  box.  E  F  is  a  glass  tube,  furnished  with  brass 
caps  (and  covered  both  inside  and  out  with  hard  cement),  the 
lower  end  of  which  screws  upon  the  dial-plate  of  the  timepiece, 
and  the  upper  end  carries  a  small  cylinder  or  sheave,  g\  Within 
this  tube,  E  F,  a  stem  of  glass  is  fixed  bv  its  lower  end  on  the 


154 


RONALD'S  ELECTROGRAPH. 
Fig.  5. 


155 

minute  arbor  of  the  timepiece,  and  a  pivot,  attached  to  its  up- 
per end,  passes  through  the  cap  F  and  the  cylinder  g*.  This 
pivot  carries  the  iron  ball  and  cup,  A,  into  which  is  screwed  a 
steel  wire,  /,  and  this  carries  the  piece,  k,  which  may  slide  with 
a  little  friction  upon  it.  The  wire  /,  fixed  into  the  piece  k,  ter- 
minates at  its  lower  end  in  a  hook,  and  another  short  wire,  m, 
is  furnished  with  a  ring  at  one  end,  by  which  it  is  attached  to 
the  hook,  and  with  a  small  gold  bead  at  the  other,  which  rests 
upon  the  resinous  plate.  Lastly,  a  fine  thread,  n,  is  also 
attached  by  one  -end  to  the  piece  k,  and  by  the  other  to  the 
cylinder  g. 

When  the  clock  is  in  motion,  and  the  apparatus  disposed  as 
is  represented  in  the  figure,  it  carries  round  the  arm  k,  and  of 
course  carries  the  thread  n,  to  coil  itself  round  the  stationary 
cylinder,  g,  the  piece  k  to  advance  toward  the  ball  A,  and  the  gold 
bead,  which  trails  upon  the  resinous  plate,  to  describe  a  spiral 
thereon. 

And  when  a  communication  is  established  between  the  little 
iron  cup  above  h  (which  contains  a  globule  of  mercury,  in 
order  to  secure  perfect  contact)  and  a  wire  connected  with  any 
species  of  atmospheric  apparatus,  the  gold  bead  acts  upon  the 
resinous  plate  like  Mr.  Bennett's  electric  pen,  i.  e.,  it  electrifies 
it  in  such  a  manner,  that  when  the  plate  is  removed  from  the 
clock,  and  powdered  with  pounded  resin,  or  even  common  dry 
hair  powder,  the  line  of  the  spiral  exhibits  configurations,  which 
vary  in  form  and  in  breadth  according  to  the  kind  and  intensity 
of  electricity  which  the  bead  has  communicated  to  it ;  and, 
by  reference  to  the  divisions  on  the  circumference  of  the  resin- 
ous plate,  it  is  easy  to  discover  the  exact  periods  at  which  these 
occurrences  took  place.  In  short,  a  comparative  picture  of  all 
the  phenomena  of  atmospheric  electricity,  during  the  absence 
of  the  observer,  is  thus  procured. 

If  the  instrument  be  used  for  noting  the  phenomena  of 
serene  weather,  dew,  &c.,  the  hour  arbor  is  generally  prefer- 
able ;  if  for  those  of  a  thunder-storm,  hard  shower  of  rain,  or 
hail,  or  snow,  the  minute  arbor;  but  I  have  sometimes  found, 
that  a  more  rapid  motion  is  required  than  either,  which  may, 
of  course,  be  obtained  by  the  addition  of  a  third  arbor,  &o. ;  and 
the  glass  tube,  E  F,  with  all  its  appurtenances,  can  accordingly 
be  easily  transferred  from  any  one  arbor  to  another,  and  the 
plate  adjusted  to  a  new  centre.  It  is  also  necessary  sometimes 
to  employ  a  cylinder,  either  larger  or  smaller  than  g.  In  the 
first  case,  when  the  more  violent  and  more  transient  phenomena 
are  to  be  noted  ;  and,  in  the  second,  when  a  delineation  of  a 
longer  period  is  required  to  be  executed  by  the  instrument ; 


156 

for  it  is  evident  that,  in  proportion  to  the  diameter  of  the  cyl- 
inder g*,  will  "be  the  proportions  of  the  volute  upon  the  resinous 
plate  ;  and  that  the  comparatively  short  duration  of  a  storm,  or 
shower,  &o.,  which  draws  a  larger  figure,  must  require  a  space 
of  greater  hreadth,  as  well  as  length,  than  the  other,  in  order 
to  avoid  confusion ;  the  cylinder  g  can  therefore  he  removed, 
and  others  substituted  in  its  place. 

One  advantage,  which  I  have  derived  from  this  contrivance 
over  a  cylindric  electrograph,  is,  the  power  of  conveniently  bring- 
ing the  resin  into  a  fit  state  to  receive  the  electrical  drawing,  the 
only  certain  method  of  doing  which  is  to  pass  a  heated  plate 
of  iron  over  it,  at  two  or  three  inches  distance,  in  order  to  melt 
it  partially  (so  perfectly  does  it  retain  the  figure,  and  so  diffi- 
cult is  it  to  destroy  that  figure  without  communicating  a  new 
one  by  the  ordinary  methods)  ;  which  process  of  heating  it  is 
almost  impossible  to  perform  upon  any  other  surface  than  a  plane, 
so  as  to  preserve  a  fine  even  surface. 

But  the  principal  advantage  over  both  the  cylindric  and  plane 
electrograph,  proposed  by  Magellan,  is  that  derived  from  a  com- 
parative and  comprehensive  view  of  the  daily  periodical  returns 
of  the  phenomena :  those,  for  instance,  of  the  morning  and 
evening  electricity,  which  Beccaria  found  to  bear  a  striking  re- 
lation with  the  periods  of  sunrise  and  sunset,  and  which  he 
accounted  for  by  the  sun's  action  upon  the  vapors  which  were 
exhaled  from  the  earth.  .  Magellan's  plate  electrograph  would 
be  very  cumbersome  and  inconvenient  for  such  observations. 

"Would  not  the  above  be  also  a  proper  instrument  for  obser- 
vations on  that  most  extraordinary  tendency  which  thunder- 
storms have  to  reappear,  many  days  successively,  about  the 
same  hour  ;  and,  what  is  more,  at  the  precise  spot  where  they 
had  appeared  at  first.  "It  is  necessary  to  inhabit,"  says  Sig. 
Volta,  the  learned  and  sagacious  discoverer  of  this  new  phe- 
nomenon, "  a  mountainous  country,  and  particularly  the  neigh- 
borhood of  lakes,  such  as  Como,  the  precincts  of  Lario,  Verbano, 
Verese,  Lugano,  Lecco,  and  the  whole  mountain  of  Bianza, 
Bergamo,  &c.,  in  order  to  be  convinced  of  such  periods  and  fix- 
ations (so  to  speak)  of  thunder-storms  at  this  or  that  valley,  or 
opening  of  a  mountain,  which  last  until  some  wind,  or  remark- 
able change  in  the  atmosphere,  shall  occur  to  destroy  them/' 
Sig.  Yolta  refers  the  cause  of  the  phenomenon  to  a  modification 
in  the  ambient  air,  produced  by  the  thunder-storm  of  the  pre- 
ceding day. 


STEINHEIL'S  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH 


CHAPTEK    XII. 

Experiments  and  Discovery  of  the  Earth  Circuit — The  Electric  Telegraph  as 
Invented — The  Electric  Conducting  Wires — Conductibility  of  the  Earth 
Circuit — Apparatus  for  Generating  the  Voltaic  Current — The  Indicating 
Apparatus — Construction  of  the  Apparatus — Application  of  the  Apparatus 
to  Telegraphing — The  Alphabet  and  Numerals — The  Discovery  and  Inven- 
tion of  Steinheil. 

EXPERIMENTS    AND    DISCOVERY    OF    THE    EARTH    CIRCUIT. 

IN  the  years  1836-'37,  Prof.  C.  A.  Steinheil,  of  Munich, 
Germany,  devised  an  electric  telegraph ;  and  in  the  latter  year, 
he  constructed  a  line  of  wire  from  the  Academy  at  Munich  to 
the  observatory  at  Bogenhausen.  He  had  constructed  two 
other  lines,  making  three  circuits  of  wires,  but  the  whole  were 
arranged  to  be  united  into  one  common  chain,  to  form  an  elec- 
tric circuit.  The  first  published  notice  made  of  this  important 
invention  will  be  found  in  the  third  volume  of  'the  Magazine 
of  Popular  Sciences,  in  a  letter  from  Munich,  under  date  of  De- 
cember 23,  1836.  This  telegraph  was  announced  in  the 
Comptes  Rendu,  in  September,  1838. 

In  1838,  Prof.  Steinheil  made  the  important  discovery  of  the 
practicability  of  using  the  earth  as  one  half  or  the  returning 
section  of  an  electric  circuit.  The  three  lines,  constructed  as 
hereinafter  described,  had  double  wires,  so  as  to  form  a  com- 
plete metallic  circuit  from  and  to  Munich.  Subsequent  to  the 
erection  of  these  experimental  lines,  the  earth  was  discovered 
to  be* a  conducting  medium  in  the  formation  of  an  electric 
circuit,  in  conjunction  with  the  wire  stretched  upon  poles. 
This  was  the  grandest  discovery  ever  made  in  practical  tele- 
graphy. The  discoveries  of  Yolta,  (Ersted,  and  Steinheil,  are 
to  be  considered  as  pre-eminent,  in  the  consummation  of  the 
electric  telegraph.  The  first  discovered  the  generating  power, 


158  STEINHEIL'S  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH. 

the  second  gave  life  and  strength  to  that  power,  when  it  had 
become  so  feeble,  that  it  seemed  as  though  it  was  struggling 
in  the  arms  of  death;  and  the  latter  economized  the  com- 
mercial application  of  those  elements  for  the  uses  of  man.  All 
telegraphs  are  formed  upon  these  three  discoveries.  Let,  then, 
the  names  of  Volta,  (Ersted,  and  Steinheil,  be  inscribed  in  golden 
capitals  upon  the  bright  escutcheon  of  telegraphic  achieve- 
ments, as  the  equals  in  renown,  and  subservers  of  man's  weal, 
and  the  glory  of  the  age. 

Dr.  Steinheil  made  an  experiment  in  1838,  on  the  railroad. 
He  insulated  the  chairs  sustaining  the  rails  with  tarred  felt ; 
but  this  was  a  very  imperfect  insulation,  and  the  circuit  could 
not  be  extended  beyond  some  five  hundred  feet.  To  test  the 
matter  more  thoroughly,  he  had  some  new  rails  made,  but  the 
points  of  contact  with  other  but  inferior  conductors  were  so 
numerous,  that  the  experiment  was  for  the  time  abandoned. 
This  experiment  produced  an  effect  which  convinced  Steinheil 
that  it  was  not  necessary  to  bring  a  metallic  conductor  back  to 
the  voltaic  source.  The  non-insulation  of  the  rails  gave  off 
the  electric  current,  and  this  fact  was  observed  in  the  move- 
ment of  the  electrometer.  Thus,  when  the  current  was  trans- 
mitted over  the  rails,  a  speedy  return  was  seen,  even  when  the 
two  lines  of  rails  were  not  connected.  Suppose  the  wires 
of  the  apparatus  were  connected  to  the  rails  on  each  side  of 
the  road,  the  rails  insulated  by  resting  upon  the  tarred  felt, 
at  a  distance  of  500  feet  from  the  apparatus,  the  rails  to  be 
connected  by  a  oopper  wire.  The  route  of  the  current  would 
be  over  the  rails  on  one  side  of  the  road  to  the  copper  wire,  and 
through  it  to  the  rails  on  the  other  side  of  the  road,  and  thence 
back  by  the  rails  to  the  indicator.  When  the  copper  wire  was 
disconnected,  the  circuit  was  supposed  to  have  been  broken ;  but 
it  was  not  the  case,  as  the  current  escaped  from  the  rails,  and 
returned  with  unmistakable  indications  at  the  apparatus. 

Prof.  Steinheil  extended  his  discoveries  still  farther,  and  re- 
duced them  to  mathematical  precision  as  to  cause  and  effect. 
He  pursued  this  important  question  to  its  fullest  extent,  and 
gave  to  the  world  the  results  attained  by  his  patient  and  labo- 
rious researches. 

T  will  now  proceed  to  explain  to  the  reader  the  telegraphic 
apparatus  invented  by  Prof.  Steinheil,  and  in  doing  which,  to  a 
considerable  extent,  will  use  the  language  of  the  inventor.  I 
have  taken  great  pains  to  obtain  the  most  reliable  information 
concerning  his  labors  in  the  invention  of  his  telegraph,  and  his 
discoveries  in  the  sciences  pertaining  thereto,  and  I  hope  the 
facts  herewith  presented  will  be  found  strictly  correct. 


THE  ELECTRIC  CONDUCTING  WIRES.  159 

THE  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH  AS  INVENTED. 

This  telegraph  is  composed  of  three  principal  parts : 
1st.  A  metallic  conductor  between  the  stations ; 
2d.  The  apparatus  for  generating  the  voltaic  current ;  and 
3d.  The  indicator  or  receiving  apparatus. 
"  In  explanation  of  the  organization  of  this  telegraph,"  says 
Prof.  Steinheil,  "  I  will  explain  the  above  divisions ;  and  first — 

THE    ELECTRIC    CONDUCTING   WIRES. 

"  The  wire  which  connects  two  or  more  stations,  forming  a 
part  of  a  voltaic  circuit,  is  called  the  connecting  wire,  and  may 
be  extended  to  a  very  great  length.  This  wire,  however,  must 
be  considered  relatively  to  the  voltaic  battery.  With  equal 
thickness  of  the  same  metal,  the  resistance  offered  to  the  pas- 
sage of  the  electric  current,  will  be  proportional  to  the  thick- 
ness of  the  wire.  With  equal  lengths  of  the  same  metal,  how- 
ever, the  resistance  diminishes  in  an  inverse  proportion  to  the 
sectional  surface.  The  conductibility  of  metals  differs.  Ac- 
cording to  Fechner's  measurements,  copper,  for  example,  con- 
ducts six  times  better  than  iron,  four  times  better  than  brass. 
The  conductibility  of  lead  is  still  more  inferior,  so  that  the  only 
metal  most  suitable,  and  that  can  best  subserve  the  purposes 
in  this  technical  application,  are  copper  and  iron  wires.  Iron 
wire  is  six  times  less  in  cost  than  copper  wire,  nevertheless,  it 
is  necessary  that  the  iron  conductor  should  be  six  times  greater 
than  the  gauge  of  the  copper  wire,  in  order  to  equalize  the  con- 
ducting powers  of  the  respective  metals.  The  expense  of  the 
two  wires  is  the  same.  The  iron,  however,  is  the  strongest  and 
heaviest.  The  preference  will  be  given  to  copper  wire,  as  this 
metal  is  less  liable  to  oxydation  from  exposure  to  the  atmo- 
sphere. This  latter  difficulty  may  be  surmounted  by  simple 
means,  namely,  by  galvanizing  it.  It  is  believed  that  the  mere 
transmission  of  the  voltaic  current  through  the  wire,  when  the 
telegraph  is  in  operation,  will  be  sufficient  to  preserve  the  iron 
wire  from  rust,  as  has  been  observed  to  be  the  case  with  the  iron 
wire  used  for  the  telegraph  line  in  the  city  of  Munich,  for  more 
than  a  year  past,  and  which,  too,  has  been  exposed  to  all  weathers. 

"  If  the  voltaic  current  is  to  traverse  the  entire  metallic  circuit 
of  the  wire,  from  station  to  station,  without  any  diminution  as 
to  its  intensity  or  force,  the  wire  must  in  its  whole  course 
not  be  allowed  to  come  into  contact  with  any  foreign  conduct* 
ors,  but,  on  the  contrary,  should  be  perfectly  insulated  at  every 
place  of  contact.  If  the  wire  be  permitted  to  touch  semi-con- 
ductors the  electric  power  or  current  will  return  to  the  gener- 
ating source  by  the  most  direct  and  shortest  route.  According 


160  STEINHEIL'S  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH. 

to  this  philosophy  the  extreme  station  from  the  voltaic  source 
will  be  deprived  of  the  influence  of  the  greater  part  of  the 
electric  current  generated  by  the  battery. 

"  Numerous  trials  to  insulate  wires,  and  to  conduct  them 
below  the  surface  of  the  ground,  have  led  me  to  the  conviction 
that  such  attempts  can  never  answer  successfully  at  great  dis- 
tances, inasmuch  as  the  most  perfect  insulators  are  at  best 
but  bad  or  inferior  conductors.  And  since,  in  a  wire  of  very 
great  length,  the  surface  in  contact  with  the  so-called  insulator 
is  uncommonly  large,  when  compared  with  a  section  of  the 
metallic  conductor,  there  will  necessarily  arise  a  gradual  dimi- 
nution of  the  voltaic  force,  inasmuch  as  the  wires  to  and  from 
the  station  do  communicate  at  intermediate  points.  This  cross 
current  may  be  very  small ;  nevertheless  it  will  occur.  It  would 
be  wrong  to  suppose  that  this  difficulty  can  be  remedied  by 
placing  the  to  and  from  wires  very  far  apart ;  the  distance  be- 
tween them  is,  as  we  shall  see  in  the  sequel,  almost  a  matter 
of  indifference.  As  it  is  not  probable  that  lines  laid  under  the 
ground  can  ever  be  insulated  sufficiently  for  telegraphic  pur- 
poses, because  the  earth  is  always  damp,  and  therefore  a  con- 
ductor, there  is  but  one  other  course  open  to  us,  and  that  is  to 
lead  the  wire  through  the  air.  Upon  this  plan,  it  is  true  the 
conducting  wire  must  be  supported  at  given  places  ;  it  will  be 
liable  to  be  injured  by  evil-disposed  persons ;  it  will  be  liable  to 
be  interrupted  by  storms,  and  from  ice  which  will  form  upon 
it  from  time  to  time.  These  are  the  difficulties  to  be  expected, 
in  stretching  the  wire  through  the  air,  and  as  there  is  no  other 
method  that  can  be  made  available,  we  must  endeavor  to 
make  suitable  arrangements  to  get  the  better  of  them,  although 
they  are  of  no  ordinary  consideration." 

The  conducting  chain  or  medium  of  the  telegraph  constructed 
in  Munich  consisted  of  three  parts  : 

1st.  The  line  from  the  Royal  Academy  in  Munich  to  the 
Royal  Observatory  at  Bogenhausen ; 

2d.  From"  the  Royal  Academy  to  the  residence  of  Prof. 
Steinheil ;  and 

3d.  From  the  Royal  Academy  to  the  mechanical  depart- 
ment attached  to  the  cabinet  of  natural  philosophy. 

"As  to  the  first,"  says  Prof.  Steinheil,  "  the  wire  was  run 
from  Munich  to  Bogenhausen  and  back,  making  a  total  length 
of  wire  32,500  feet.  The  weight  of  the  copper  wire  employed 
amounted  to  260  pounds.  Both  of  the  wires,  that  is,  to  and 
from,  are  stretched  across  the  steeples  of  the  city  at  distances 
from  three  to  ten  feet  apart.  The  greatest  distance  from 
one  support  to  another  was  1,200  feet;  this  distance  is  un- 


THE    ELECTRIC    CONDUCTING    WIRES.  161 

doubted! y  far  too  great  for  a  single  wire,  inasmuch  as  during 
winter  the  ice  will  form  upon  the  wire,  and  materially  increase 
its  weight,  and  augment  its  diameter,  so  that  it  becomes  liable 
to  be  torn  asunder  and  broken  by  the  weight  or  by  the  storms. 
Over  those  places  where  there  are  now  high  buildings,  the  con- 
ducting wire  is  supported  by  tall  poles,  sunk  into  the  ground 
five  feet,  and  are  from  forty  to  fifty  feet  high.  At  the  top  of 
these  poles,  the  wires  are  fastened  to  a  cross  bar.  At  the  point 
where  the  metallic  conductor  rests,  there  is  a  piece  of  felt  laid, 
and  over  which  the  wire  is  twisted  around  the  wooden  bar. 
The  distances  from  pole  to  pole  range  between  600  and  800 
feet ;  but  these  distances  are  far  too  great,  for  experience  has 
shown  that  the  wires  become  stretched,  caused  by  high  winds, 
and  they  have  had  to  be  re-stretched  on  the  poles  several  times. 
These  evils  may  be  overcome  by  making  the  conductor  of 
three  strands  of  wire,  twisting  them  so  as  to  make  a  cord, 
which  will  be  better  than  a  single  wire.  It  should  be  sup- 
ported by  poles  about  300  feet  apart,  giving  the  wire  a  tension 
not  exceeding  one  third  of  what  it  will  bear,  without  giving  way. 
This,  however,  can  not  be  made  on  the  experimental  telegraph 
of  this  city  for  reasons  that  can  not  be  explained  here. 

"  The  conducting  wire  thus  mounted  is  by  no  means  perfectly 
insulated.  When,  for  example,  the  circuit  is  broken  at  Bo- 
genhausen,  the  electric  generator  at  Munich  ought  not  to  pro- 
duce any  current  upon  the  remainder  of  the  wire,  not  connect- 
ed as  a  circuit.  But  even  when  the  circuit  was  thus  broken 
at  Bogenhausen,  an  electrometer,  as  devised  by  Grauss,  being 
connected  with  the  wire,  a  current  manifested  itself  by  the  ac- 
tion upon  the  electrometer.  Measurement  goes  to  show  further, 
that  the  current  goes  on  increasing  as  the  point,  at  which  the 
interruption  of  the  stream  is  made,  recedes  from  the  inductor. 
The  amount  of  this  current  is  not  always  the  same.  Gen- 
erally it  is  greater  in  damp  weather.  When  there  are  heavy 
showers  of  rain,  it  may  be  fairly  said  to  be  five  times  as  strong 
as  when  the  weather  is  dry.  At  small  distances  of  a  few  miles, 
the  loss  of  electric  power  is  of  but  little  importance,  as  by  the 
peculiar  construction  of  the  inductor,  we  can  generate  an  electric 
force  of  any  strength  desired.  When  the  distance  amounts  to, 
perhaps,  some  280  miles,  the  continual  loss  of  the  electric  cur- 
rent will,  beyond  doubt,  be  so  great,  that  there  can  be  no  effect 
produced  at  the  distance  mentioned.  In  such  cases,  much 
greater  precaution  must  be  taken  in  regard  to  the  insulation 
at  the  points  of  support. 

"  When  thunderstorms  occur,  atmospheric  electricity  collects 
on  the  semi-insulated  conductors,  in  the  same  way  that  it  does 

11 


162  STEINHEIL'S  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH. 

upon  lightning-rods.     But  this  does  not  prevent  the  flow  of  the 
voltaic  current. 

"  Reference  may  be  made  here  to  an  incident,  that  may  be  well 
to  remember,  as  a  warning  for  the  future.  During  a  severe 
thunder-storm,  on  the  7th  of  July,  1838,  a  very  strong  electric 
spark  darted  at  the  same  instant  through  the  entire  conducting 
wire,  and  on  entering  the  apparatus  in  my  room,  a  sound  like 
the  cracking  of  a  whip  was  produced.  At  the  same  time  the 
deep-sounding  bell  of  the  manipulator  was  made  to  sound.  So 
violent  was  the  presence  of  the  lightning  in  the  deviation  of 
the  needle,  the  revolving  points  of  the  magnetic  bar  were  dam- 
aged. The  same  phenomenon  was  also  observed  at  one  of  the 
other  stations.  As  the  deflecting  power  of  frictional  electricity 
is  very  inconsiderable,  with  respect  to  magnets,  the  above  oc- 
currence indicates  the  presence  of  a  vast  quantity  of  electricity. 
This  phenomenon  could  only  have  arisen  from  the  electricity  of 
the  earth  having  at  that  moment  made  its  way  to  that  collect- 
ed in  the  wire.  Whether  this  was  brought  about  through  the 
lightning  conductors  in  the  neighborhood,  or  the  imperfect  in- 
sulation of  the  points  of  support,  cannot  be  well  determined." 

CONDUCTIBILITY    OF    THE    EARTH    CIRCUIT. 

"  Q,uite  recently  I  have  made  the  discovery,  that  the  ground 
may  be  employed  as  one  half  of  the  conducting  chain,  forming 
the  circuit  with  the  line  wire.  As  in  the  case  of  frictional  elec- 
tricity, water  or  the  ground  may,  with  the  voltaic  current,  form 
a  portion  of  the  connecting  wire.  Owing  to  the  low  conduct- 
ing power  of  these  bodies,  compared  with  metals,  it  is  neces- 
sary that  at  the  two  places  where  the  metal  conductor  is  in 
connection  with  the  semi-conductor,  the  former  should  present 
very  large  surfaces  of  contact.  Taking  water,  for  example, 
which  conducts  two  million  times  worse  than  copper,  a  surface 
of  water  proportional  to  this  must  be  brought  in  contact  with 
the  copper,  to  enable  the  voltaic  current  to  meet  with  equal  re- 
sistance, in  equal  distances  of  water  and  of  metal ;  thus,  if  the 
section  of  a  copper  wire  is  0.5  of  a  square  line,  it  will  require  a 
copper  plate  of  sixty-one  square  feet  surface,  in  order  to  conduct 
the  voltaic  current  through  the  grounds,  as  the  wire  in  question 
would  conduct  it.  But  as  the  thickness  of  the  metal  is  quite 
immaterial  in  this  case,  it  will  always  be  within  our  reach  to 
get  the  requisite  surfaces  of  contact  at  no  great  expense.  Not 
only  do  we  by  this  means  save  half  the  conducting  wire,  but 
we  can  even  reduce  the  resistance  of  the  ground  below  what 


VOLTAIC    CIRCUIT    GENERATING    APPARATUS.  163 

that  of  the  wire  would  be,  as  has  been  fully  established  by 
experiments  made  here  with  the  experimental  telegraph. 

"  The  second  portion  of  the  conducting  chain  leads  from  the 
Royal  Academy  to  my  house  and  observatory  in  Lark-street. 
This  conductor  is  of  iron  wire,  and  both  the  to  and  from  wires 
are  6,000  feet  long,  and  are  stretched  over  steeples  and  other  high 
buildings,  as  has  already  been  described. 

"  The  third  portion  of  the  chain  or  conducting  wires  runs 
through  the  interior  of  the  buildings,  connected  with  the  Royal 
Academy,  and  thence  to  the  mechanical  workshop  attached  to 
the  cabinet  of  natural  philosophy.  This  is  a  fine  copper  wire, 
and  1,000  feet  long.  It  is  let  in  the  joinings  of  the  floor,  and 
in  part  imbedded  in  the  walls. 

"  The  foregoing  three  different  ranges  or  lines  of  wire,  the  first 
of  copper,  the  second  of  iron,  and  the  third  of  fine  copper,  in  the 
aggregate  near  seven  and  a  half  miles  of  wire,  run  from  and 
return  to  the  same  place,  and  to  which,  in  whole  or  singly,  may 
be  attached  the  apparatus  for  generating  the  electric  current, 
and  for  indicating  the  communication  transmitted." 

APPARATUS    FOR    GENERATING    THE    VOLTAIC    CURRENT. 

Hydro-electricity,  or  that  current  which  is  generated  by  the 
voltaic  pile,  is  by  no  means  fitted  for  traversing  very  long  con- 
ducting wires,  because  the  resistance  in  the  voltaic  pile,  even 
when  many  hundred  pairs  of  plates  are  employed,  would  be 
always  inconsiderable,  compared  with  the  resistance  offered  by 
the  wire  itself. 

The  principal  disadvantage,  however,  attendant  on  the  use  of 
the  pile  or  trough  apparatus,  is  the  fluctuation  of  the  current, 
joined  to  the  circumstance  of  its  becoming  very  soon  quite 
powerless,  and  requiring  to  be  taken  to  pieces  and  put  together 
again.  The  extremely  ingenious  arrangement  of  Morse  is 
likewise  subject  to  this  inconvenience.  All  this,  however,  is 
got  over,  when  one,  to  generate  the  current,  has  recourse  to 
Faraday's  important  discovery  of  induction,  that  is  to  say,  by 
moving  magnets  placed  in  the  neighborhood  or  close  to  the 
conducting  wires.  The  better  way,  however,  is  not  to  move 
the  magnets,  as  Pixii  does,  in  his  electro-magnetic  apparatus, 
but  rather  to  give  motion  to  the  multipliers  placed  close  to  a 
fixed  magnet.  The  arrangement  that  Clarke  has  given  to  the 
multiplier,  is  the  one  which,  with  some  modifications,  has  been 
adopted.  Assuming,  on  the  part  of  the  reader,  a  general 
knowledge  of  the  principles  of  the  apparatus,  these  explanations 


164 


STEINHEIL'S  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH. 


will  be  confined  to  its  adaptation  to  the  purposes  of  telegraphic 
communication. 

Fig.  1. 


The  magnet  is  composed  of  seventeen  horseshoe  bars  of  hard- 
ened steel.  With  its  iron  armature,  its  weight  is  about  sixty 
pounds,  and  it  is  capable  of  supporting  about  300  pounds.  Be- 
tween the  arms  of  the  magnet  there  is  fastened  a  piece  of 

Fig.  2. 


metal,  supporting  in  its  centre  a  cup,  provided  with  adjusting 
screws,  and  which  serves  as  a  support  for  the  aiis  of  the  coils 


VOLTAIC    CIRCUIT    GENERATING    APPARATUS. 


165 


of  the  multiplier.  The  coils  of  the  multiplier  have,  in  all, 
15,000  turns  of  wire  ;  forty  inches  of  this  wire  weighs  fifteen 
and  a  half  grains,  and  it  is  twice  bespun  with  silk.  Its  two 
ends,  which  are  insulated,  are  passed  up  through  the  interior 
of  the  vertical  axis  of  the  multiplier,  and  then  terminate  in 
two  hook-shaped  pieces,  as  may  be  seen  by  figs.  2  and  3.  In 
order  to  insure  perfect  insulation,  the  vertical  axis,  fig.  2,  was 
bored  out  hollow.  In  this  hole,  there  are  let  in  from  above 
two  semi-circular  rods  of  copper,  which  are  prevented  from 
touching  by  a  strip  of  taffeta  fastened  between  them  with  glue ; 
and  these  again  are  kept  from  touching  the  metallic  axis  by 
winding  taffeta  round  them.  In  each  of  these  little  strips  of 
metal  there  is,  above  and  below,  a  female  screw  cut.  In  the 
lower  holes,  small  metal  pins  are  screwed  in,  to  which  the  ends 
of  the  multiplier  are  securely  soldered.  While  in  the  upper 
holes,  as  may  be  seen  distinctly  in  figs.  3  and  4,  there  are  iron 
hooks  screwed  in.  These  hooks,  therefore,  form  the  pigs.  3  &4. 
terminations  of  the  multiplier  wires  of  the  coils  of 
the  inductor.  They  here  turn  down,  fig.  5,  into  two 
semi-circular  cups  of  quicksilver,  that  are  separated 
by  a  wooden  petition.  From  these  cups  of  quick- 
silver there  proceed  connections,  i  i,  figs.  2  and  6, 
toward  the  wires,  and  they,  therefore,  may  be  con- 
sidered as  forming  part  of  the  conducting  wires  or 
chain.  The  quicksilver,  owing  to  its  capillarity, 
stands  at  a  higher  level  in  these  semi-circular  cups 
than  are,  the  partitions,  so  that  the  terminal  hooks  of 
the  wires  of  the  multiplier  pass  over  these  partitions 
without  touching  them,  when  the  multiplier  is  made 
to  turn  on  its  axis.  One  sees  that  the  hooks  are  thus  brought 
in  to  other  cups  of  quicksilver,  at  every  half  turn  of  the  multi- 


/ 


Fig  5, 


Fig.  6. 


Fig-  7. 


plier,  in  consequence  of  which,  the  voltaic  current  preserves  its 
sign  as  long  as  the  multiplier  is  turned  in  one  direction,  but  it 


166  STEINHEIL'S  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH. 

changes  its  sign  on  the  motion  being  reversed.  This  commu- 
tation, which,  it  may  be  remarked,  may  be  established  without 
the  use  of  mercury,  by  the  contact  of  the  strips  of  copper  that 
act  like  springs,  is  found  to  answer  completely.  There  are,  be- 
sides, two  other  arrangements,  which  we  must  not  allow  to  pass 
unnoticed. 

The  voltaic  current,  as  we  shall  see  in  the  sequel,  when  treat- 
ing of  the  indicator,  should  only  be  permitted  to  be  in  action 
during  as  short  a  period  as  possible,  but  during  the  interval 
should  have  the  greatest  intensity  that  can  be  commanded. 
The  terminal  hooks  of  the  wires  dip  into  the  quicksilver,  only  at 
the  place  where  it  forms  pools  that  advance  toward  each  other 
at  the  centre,  and  where  the  current  is  at  its  greatest  intensity, 
as  seen  by  figs.  5,  6,  and  7.  Fig.  5  shows  the  position  that  the 
inductor  has,  when  the  terminal  hooks  first  dip  into  the  cups. 
In  all  other  positions  of  the  inductor,  it  should,  however,  form  no 
part  of  the  chain  or  wires,  otherwise  the  signals  made  at  the 
other  stations  will  be  repeated  by  its  own  multiplying  wire ; 
and  this  becomes  of  the  more  moment  the  greater  the  resist- 
ance in  the  conductor.  In  order,  therefore,  to  cut  off  the  induc- 
tor, when  in  any  other  position  than  shown  in  fig.  5,  there  is  a 
wooden  ring  adapted  to  the  axis  of  rotation  of  the  inductor,  as 
seen  in  figs.  8  and  9.  This  ring  is  encircled  with  a  copper  hoop, 
and  into  this  latter  two  iron  hooks  are  screwed.  These  hooks 
Figs.  8  &  9.  dip  down  into  the  semi-circular  cups  of  quick- 
silver, as  shown  in  fig.  7.  At  the  moment,  how- 
ever, that  they  are  passing  across  the  wooden  par- 
tition, the  hooks  of  the  inductor,  which  are  at 
right  angles  to  them,  dip  into  the  cups.  When 
the  hooks  of  the  multiplier  are  in  contact  with  the 
quicksilver,  the  connection  with  the  hooks  for  di- 
verting the  current  is  broken.  In  every  other 
position,  the  connection  through  the  hooks  of  the 
multiplier  is  interrupted,  while  it  is  established 
through  the  others ;  whence  it  naturally  follows 
that  the  current,  on  being  transmitted  from  any 
other  station,  passes  directly  through  the  latter  hooks,  or,  in 
other  words,  crosses  directly  from  one  quicksilver  cup  to  the 
other,  and  is  not  forced  to  traverse  the  wire  of  the  inductor  for 
that  purpose.  In  order  to  put  the  inductor  in  motion  without 
trouble,  there  is  a  fly-bar  terminating  in  two  metal  balls,  fast- 
ened horizontally  on  to  its  vertical  axis,  as  seen  in  figs.  1  and  10. 
To  prevent  the  quicksilver  from  being  scattered  about,  owing 
to  the  motion  of  the  hooks  as  they  dip  into  it,  when  the  multi- 
plier is  turning  rapidly,  a  glass  cylinder  is  fitted  on  to  this  part 


VOLTAIC     CURCUIT    GENERATING     APPARATUS. 


167 


of  the  apparatus,  fig.  11.  At  every  half  turn  is  seen  the  pas- 
sage of  the  spark,  as  the  hooks  of  the  multiplier  leave  their  cups 
of  quicksilver. 

Fig.  10. 


If  we  choose  to  give  up  the  phenomena  of  these  sparks — a 
thing  nowise  necessary  to  the  employment  of  the  instrument 
as  a  telegraph — the  inductor  will  admit  of  a  far  more  simple 
construction.  It  will  then  merely  be  necessary  to  place  the 

Fig  11. 


commutator  directly  above  the  anchor,  and  to  let  the  axis  of 
rotation  pass  farther  up  in  the  neck,  in  the  direction  of  the  fly- 
bar.  It  then  becomes  necessary  to  bore  the  axis  out,  but  the 
ends  of  the  multiplier  are  at  once  fastened  by  twisting  on  to 
two  plates  of  copper,  and  these  copper  plates  are  let  into  a 
wooden  ring,  directly  opposite  to  each  other.  The  wooden 
ring  is  placed  upon  the  vertical  axis,  and  made  fast  to  it  by 
clamps.  Externally  this  ring  is,  in  addition  to  the  above-men- 
tioned plates,  provided  with  an  arc  of  copper  let  into  it,  which 


168  STEINHEIL'S  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH. 

acts  as  a  contact-breaker,  and  two  ends  of  the  chain  that  the 
current  has  to  traverse,  have  the  form  of  permanent  springs, 
that  keep  pressing  against  the  wooden  rings  directly  opposite 
each  other.  By  this  means,  with  this  arrangement  also,  the 
ends  of  the  inductor  are  in  metallic  communication  with  the 
chain  only  during  a  small  portion  of  each  revolution,  while 
during  the  rest  of  the  time  the  connecting  arc  brings  the  ends 
of  the  chain  into  direct  contact.  This  construction,  in  which 
quicksilver  is  entirely  dispensed  with,  is,  on  account  of  its 
greater  simplicity  and  durability,  preferable  to  the  arrange- 
ment first  described.  The  apparatus  of  the  stations  at  Bogen- 
hausen  and  in  Lark-street  are  thus  constructed. 

THE    INDICATING    APPARATUS. 

Hereinbefore  has  been  shown,  that  our  aim  is  so  to  employ 
the  current  developed  by  the  inductor,  and  led  through  the 
conducting  chain,  that  when  passed  across  magnetic  bars  that 
are  delicately  suspended,  it  nlay  cause  them  to  be  deflected,  as 
was  discovered  by  (Ersted.  These  deflections,  if  we  wish  to 
give  the  signals  in  quick  succession,  must  follow  each  other 
with  the  greatest  rapidity,  and  should  therefore  be  powerful. 
This  points  out  to  us  the  size  we  should  give  the  magnetic  bars 
we  wish  to  deflect.  They  must  not,  however,  be  made  too 
small,  as  in  that  case  the  mechanical  force  arising  from  their 
deflection,  is  not  strong  enough  to  be  directly  applied  to  strik- 
ing upon  bells,  or  any  other  similar  purpose.  The  deflections 
are,  as  is  well  known,  taking  the  force  of  the  current  to  be  the 
same,  the  stronger,  the  greater  the  number  of  turns  in  the  mul- 
tiplier, or,  in  other  words,  the  oftener  the  wire  is  led  along  the 
magnetic  bar.  The  size  of  the  diameter  of  the  separate  "turns, 
as  we  know,  only  exerts  an  influence,  inasmuch  as  it  adds  to 
the  entire  length  of  the  connecting  wire.  The  indicator,  there- 
fore, is  a  multiplier,  whose  two  ends  connect  with  the  conduct- 
ing chain,  and  within  which  the  bar  to  be  deflected  is  placed. 
It  must  be  borne  in  mind,  that  the  thinner  the  wire  of  the  mul- 
tiplier is,  the  larger  its  coils  are,  and  the  more  turns  they 
make,  the  greater  is  the  resistance  to  the  current  throughout 
the  entire  chain. 

Figs.  12  and  13  represent  the  vertical  and  horizontal  sec- 
tions of  an  indicator  containing  two  magnets,  moveable  on  their 
vertical  axis,  and  which,  from  their  construction,  are  applica- 
ble both  to  striking  bells,  and  also  for  writing  characters  in  the 
form  of  dots  or  points.  These  figures  will  be  more  particularly 
explained  hereinafter,  reference  to  their  application  being  suf- 


THE    INDICATING    APPARATUS. 


169 


ficient  for  the  present.  Into  the  frames  of  the  multiplier, 
which  are  made  of  soldered  sheet  brass,  fig.  11,  there  are  sol- 
dered two  smaller  cases  for  the  reception  of  the  magnets,  and 
which  allow  of  the  reel  motion  of  their  axes.  Above  and  below 


they  have  threads  cut  in  them,  for  the  reception  of  four  screws 
in  holes,  on  the  ends  of  which  the  pivots  of  the  axes  turn.  By 
means  of  these  screws,  the  position  of  the  bars  may  be  so  reg- 


170  STEINHEIL'S  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH. 

ulated.  that  their  motion  is  perfectly  free  and  easy.  In  the 
frames  of  the  multiplier  there  are  600  turns  of  the  same  insu- 
lated copper  wire  as  was  employed  for  the  inductor.  The  com- 
mencement and  the  end  of  this  wire  are  shown  at  M  M,  fig.  12. 
The  magnetic  bars  are,  as  the  figures  show,  so  situated  in  the 
frame  of  the  multiplier,  that  the  north  pole  of  the  one  is  pre- 
sented to  the  south  pole  of  the  other.  To  the  ends  which  are 
thus  presented  to  each  other,  but  which,  owing  to  the  influ- 
ence they  mutually  exert,  cannot  well  be  brought  nearer, 
there  are  screwed  on  two  slight  brass  arms,  supporting  little 
cups,  figs.  13  and  14.  These  little  cups,  which  are  meant  to 

Fig.  14. 


be  filled  with  printing  ink,  or  black  oil  color,  are  provided  with 
extremely  fine  perforated  becks,  that  are  rounded  off  in  front. 
When  printing-ink  is  put  into  these  cups,  it  insinuates  itself 
through  the  bore  of  these  becks,  in  consequence  of  the  capillary 
attraction,  and  without  running  out,  forms  on  the  openings  of 
the  becks  a  projection  of  a  semi-globular  shape.  The  slightest 
contact  suffices,  therefore,  for  writing  down  a  black  point  or  dot. 
"When  the  voltaic  influence  is  transmitted  through  the  multi- 
plying wire  of  this  indicator,  both  magnetic  bars  make  an  effort 
to  turn  in  a  similar  direction  upon  their  vertical  axis.  One 
of  the  cups  of  ink  would,  therefore,  advance  from  within  the 
frame  of  the  multiplier,  while  the  other  would  retire  within  it. 
To  prevent  this,  two  plates  are  fastened  at  the  opposite  ends  of 
the  free  space  that  is  allowed  for  the  play  of  the  bars,  and 
against  which  the  other  ends  of  these  bars  press.  Only  the 
end  of  one  bar  can,  therefore,  start  out  from  within  the  multi- 
plier at  a  time,  the  other  being  retained  in  its  place.  In  order 
to  bring  the  magnetic  bars  back  to  their  original  position  as 
soon  as  the  deflection  is  completed,  recourse  is  had  to  small 
moveable  magnets,  whose  distance  and  position  are  to  be  varied, 
until  they  produce  the  desired  effect.  This  position  must  be 
determined  by  experiment,  inasmuch  as  it  depends  upon  the 
intensity  of  the  current  called  into  execution. 

If  this  apparatus  be  employed  for  producing  two  sounds 
easily  distinguishable  to  the  ear  by  striking  on  bells,  it  will  be 
right  to  select  clock-bells  or  bells  of  glass,  both  of  which  easily 
emit  a  sound,  and  whose  notes  differ  about  a  sixth.  This  in- 
terval is  by  no  means  a  matter  of  indifference.  The  sixth  is 
more  easily  distinguished  than  any  other  interval ;  fifths  and 


CONSTRUCTION  OF  THE  APPARATUS.  171 

octaves  would  be  frequently  confounded  by  those  not  versed  in 
such  matters.  The  bells  are  to  be  supported  on  little  pillars 
with  feet,  and  their  position  with  respect  to  the  bars,  and  like- 
wise their  distance  from  them,  is  to  be  determined  by  experi- 
ment. The  knobs  let  into  the  bar  that  strike  on  the  bells  must 
give  the  blow  at  the  place  which  most  easily  emits  a  sound. 
These  hammers,  however,  are  not  to  be  too  close  to  the  bells, 
as  in  that  case  a  repetition  of  the  signal  can  easily  ensue.  A 
few  trials  will  soon  get  over  this  difficulty.  If  the  indicator  is 
to  write  down  the  signal,  a  flat  surface  of  paper  must  be  kept 
moving  with  a  uniform  velocity  in  front  of  the  little  beaks  be- 
fore mentioned.  The  best  way  of  doing  this  is  to  employ  very 
long  strips  of  the  so-called  endless  paper  which  is  to  be  wound 
round  a  cylinder  of  wood,  and  then  cut  upon  the  lathe  into 
bands  of  suitable  widths.  One  of  these  strips  of  paper  must 
be  made  to  unwind  itself  from  a  cylinder,  pass  close  in  front  of 
the  cups,  run  along  a  certain  distance  in  a  horizontal  position, 
so  that  the  dots  noted  down  may  be  read  off,  and  lastly,  wind 
itself  up  again  on  to  a  second  cylinder.  The  second  cylinder 
is*  put  in  motion  by  clock-work,  the  regularity  of  whose  action 
is  insured  by  a  centrifugal  fly-wheel.  A  longitudinal  section 
of  the  entire  arrangement  is  shown  by  fig.  1.  Fig.  10  represents 
it  as  seen  from  above.  At  the  corners  of  the  frame  over  which 
the  ribbon  of  paper  is  led,  there  are  placed  two  moveable  roll- 
ers, to  diminish  the  friction.  The  frame  moreover  admits  of 
being  advanced  toward  the  cups  or  withdrawn  from  them,  so 
that  the  most  proper  position  to  give  it  can  be  ascertained  by 
experiment.  It  is  evident  that  the  same  magnetic  bars  cannot 
be  at  once  employed  for  striking  bells  and  for  writing,  the  little 
power  they  exert  being  already  exhausted  by  either  of  these 
operations.  But  to  combine  them  both,  all  we  have  to  do  is  to 
introduce  a  second  indicator  into  the  chain.  By  thus  increas- 
ing the  number  of  the  indicators,  the  loudness  of  the  sounds 
of  the  bells  can  be  augmented  at  pleasure :  this  can,  how- 
ever, only  be  done  at  the  expense  of  an  increased  resistance 
in  the  chain.  In  order  that  this  may  be  increased  by  the 
indicator  as  little  as  possible,  it  would  in  future  be  better 
that  its  coils  should  be  made  of  very  thick  copper  wire,  or 
of  strips  of  copper  plate. 

CONSTRUCTION  OF  THE  APPARATUS. 

The  longitudinal  section  of  a  pyramidal  table,  standing  on 
the  floor  of  the  room,  and  containing  the  whole  apparatus  is 
represented  by  fig.  1.  Fig.  10  shows  the  same  as  seen  from 
above.  The  wires  from  Bogenhausen,  those  from  the  Lark- 


172 


STEINHEII/S    ELECTRIC    TELEGRAPH. 


street,  the  ends  of  the  indicator,  and  the  wires  from  the  quick- 
silver cups  of  the  inductor,  or,  in  other  words,  the  two 
ends  of  the  multiplier,  all  meet  together  at  the  centre  of 
the  table,  as  seen  in  fig.  10.  They  are  here  brought  into 
connection  with  eight  holes  filled  with  quicksilver,  made  in 
a  disk  of  wood  as  shown  by  fig.  15.  The  course  that  the 

Fig.  15. 


Fig.  16. 


current  we  call  forth  will  take  depends  upon  the  respective 
connections  of  these  eight  holes  with  each  other.  For  example, 
suppose  them  to  be  connected  together  by  four  pieces  of  bent 
copper  wire,  as  shown  at  fig.  15,  the  current  would  puss  through 
the  whole  apparatus,  and  also,  the  entire  chain.  Establishing, 
however,  the  connection  as  shown  by  fig.  16 
would  cut  oflP  the  Bogenhausen  station,  and 
would  at  once  transmit  the  current  direct 
from  the  inductor,  through  the  multiplier  of 
the  indicator  and  through  the  Lark  street  sta- 
tion. Supposing  this  figure  turned  around 
180  degrees,  we  should  have  the  Lark  street 
station  cut  off,  and  the  current  would  pass 
through  Bogenhausen.  A  third  system  of  connections  is  shown 
by  the  copper  wires  represented  in  figs.  17  and  18.  In  this 
position  of  the  sketch,  the  inductor  and  the  multiplier  would 
be  in  direct  communication,  while  the  two  stations  at  Bogen- 
hausen and  in  the  Lark  street  would  be  cut  off.  But  by  turn. 


CONSTRUCTION    OF   THE    APPARATUS. 
Fig.  17.  Fig.  18. 


173 


ing  this  figure  90°,  we  should  connect  these  two  sta- 
tions, while  we  broke  off  the  station  in  the  Academy.  Copper 
wires  serving  to  establish  these  three  systems  of  the  connec- 
tions and  the  combinations,  are  laid  down  upon  the  under  sur- 
face of  the  wooden  cover  of  the  commutator,  as  seen  at  fig.  19, 

Fig.  19. 


There  are  twenty-four  wires  projecting  downward  from  this 
lid.  Only  eight  of  them,  however,  ever  come  into  use  at  once, 
so  that  there  must  be  sixteen  other  holes  made  in  the  lower 
disk  of  wood,  for  the  reception  of  the  wires  not  in  use,  and 
having  no  quicksilver  poured  into  them.  It  is  thus  in  our  power 
to  direct  the  course  of  the  current  as  we  choose,  and  the  systems 
concerned  are  indicated  upon  the  upper  surface  of  the  cover  of 
the  commutator  by  engraved  letters,  as  seen  by  fig.  20 ;  this 
cover  containing  the  different  modifications  of  the  systems  of 
connection,  as  shown  at  fig.  19.  Changing  the  position  of  this 
cover  round  the  central  pin  springing  from  the  table,  enables 
us  to  vary  the  direction  of  the  current  in  any  manner  we  like. 
The  use  of  the  quicksilver  cups  in  the  commutator  may  of  course 
be  replaced  by  conically  turned  copper  pins.  This  has  indeed 
been  done  at  the  Lark-street  and  the  Bogenhausen  stations. 


174 


STEINHEIL'S  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH. 
Fig.  20. 


APPLICATION    OF    THE    APPARATUS    TO    TELEGRAPHING. 

From  what  has  already  been  stated,  it  will  be  seen  that  at 
every  half  turn  of  the  fly  bar  from  right  to  left,  one  of  the  bars 
is  deflected.  The  terminations  of  the  wires  are  so  connected 
that  every  time  this  movement  is  repeated  the  high-toned  bell 
should  be  struck  at  all  the  stations.  Standing  at  the  side 
B  B,  and  turned  toward  the  indicator,  one  immediately  per- 
ceives the  beck  imprint  a  dot  upon  the  ribbon  paper  as  it  moves 
along.  The  intervals  of  time  between  the  successive  repetitions 
of  this  sign,  are  represented  by  the  respective  distances  between 
the  dots  that  follow  in  a  line  upon  the  paper.  On  turning  the 
fly-bar  from  left  to  right  toward  the  operator,  the  deep-toned 
bells  ring,  and  the  second  ink  cup  marks  down  a  dot  upon  the 
paper  as  before,  not,  however,  upon  the  same  line  with  the 
former  dots,  but  upon  a  lower  one.  High  tones  are  therefore 
represented  by  the  upper  dots,  and  the  low  tones  by  the  dots  on 
the  lower  line,  as  in  writing  music.  As  long  as  the  intervals  be- 
tween the  separate  signs  remain  equal,  they  are  to  be  taken  to- 
gether as  a  connected  group,  whether  they  be  pauses  between 
the  tones,  or  intervals  between  the  dots  marked  down.  A  longer 
pause  separates  these  groups  distinctly  from  each  other.  We 
are  thus  enabled  by  appropriately  selected  groups  thus  combined, 
to  form  systems  representing  the  letters  of  the  alphabet  or  steno- 
graphic characters,  and  thereby  to  repeat  and  render  permanent 
at  all  parts  of  the  chain,  where  an  apparatus  like  that  above 
described  is  inserted,  any  information  that  we  transmit.  The 


APPLICATION    OF    THE    APPARATUS. 


175 


alphabet  which  is  chosen  represents  the  letters  that  occur 
the  oftenest  in  German  by  the  simplest  signs.  By  the  similar- 
ity of  shape  between  these  signs  and  that  of  the  Roman  letters, 
they  become  impressed'upon  the  memory  without  difficulty.  The 
distribution  of  the  letters  and  numbers  into  groups  consisting 
of  not  more  than  four  dots,  is  shown  in  the  alphabet,  figs.  23 
and  24. 

In  order  to  explain  more  definitely  figs.  12  and  13,  the  follow- 
ing figs.  21  and  22,  with  their  sectionals  more  particularly 
described,  are  inserted. 

Fig.  21. 


In  fig.  21,  A  A  represents  a  vertical  section,  through  the  centre 
of  the  coil  of  copper  wire ;  c  is  the  interior  brass  frame,  round 
which  tho  wire  is  wound ;  B  B  are  the  sides  of  the  frame  ;  i  i  i  i 
are  four  brass  tubes,  soldered  to  the  interior  brass  frame,  and 
passing  through  the  centre  of  the  coil  i  o  its  exterior,  with  a 
screw  cut  in  the  end  of  each;  D  and  D  are  two  permanent 
magnets  movable  on  their  axis  a  and  b.  These  spindles,  a  and 
£,  on  each  side  of  the  magnets,  pass  up  the  hollow  of  the  tubes, 
and  having  their  ends  pointed,  enter  the  centre  cavity  of  the 
four  thumb  screws,  j  j  j  j,  by  which  they  are  supported,  and 
delicately  adjusted,  so  as  to  move  easily  and  freely ;  L  and  L  are 
the  ends  of  the  wire  leaving  the  coil ;  H  and  K  are  two  ink- 
holders,  attached  to  the  magnets,  which  will  be  explained 
hereafter. 

Fig.  22  represents  a  horizontal  section  of  the  coil,  and  magnets 
D'  and  DX,  as  above  described,  together  with  the  other  arrange- 
ments of  the  instrument  for  receiving  intelligence.  The  mag- 
netic bars  are  so  situated  in  the  frame  of  the  multiplier,  that  the 


176 


STEINHEIL'S  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH. 
Fig.  22. 


north  pole,  N',  of  the  one,  is  presented  to  the  south  pole,  sx,  of 
the  other.  To  the  ends  which  are  thus  presented  to  each  other, 
but  which,  owing  to  the  influence  they  mutually  exert,  cannot 
well  he  hrought  nearer,  there  are  screwed  on  two  slight  brass 
arms,  supporting  little  cups,  H  and  K.  These  little  cups,  which 
are  meant  to  be  filled  with  printing  ink,  are  provided  with  ex- 
tremely fine  perforated  becks,  that  are  rounded  off  in  front. 
When  printing  ink  is  put  into  them,  it  insinuates  itself  into  the 
tube  of  their  becks,  owing  to  capillary  attraction  ;  and,  without 
running  out,  forms  at  their  apertures  a  projection  of  a  semi-glob- 
ular shape.  These  little  cups  are  seen  at  HX  and  KX,  and  in  fig.  21  at 
H  and  K.  The  horizontal  section  shows,  also,  the  position  of  the 
magnets  in  the  instrument,  with  the  becks  of  the  pens  near  the 
continuous  band,  or  ribbon  of  paper,  E,  which  is  brought  in  front 
of  the  pens  vertically  from  below,  over  a  small  roller,  F.  The 
paper  is  supplied  from  a  large  roll  on  a  wooden  cylinder,  upon 
which  is  a  cog-wheel,  and  connected  with  a  train  of  wheels  and 
a  vane,  to  regulate  the  rate  of  supply.  The  paper  is  drawn 
along  before  the  pen  by  being  wound  upon  a  cylinder,  T,  con- 
cealed by  the  paper,  and  on  the  same  shaft  with  the  barrel,  M, 
upon  which  is  wound  a  cord  supporting  a  weight,  N,  below. 
The  shaft  is  supported  in  the  standards,  o  and  o,  which  are 
fastened  to  a  plate  of  brass,  p  and  p,  also  secured  to  the 


THE    ALPHABET    AND    NUMERALS.  177 

platform  of  the  instrument.  The  barrel  revolves  in  the  direc- 
tion of  the  arrow  upon  it. 

When  the  electricity  is  transmitted  through  the  coil  of  the 
indicator,  both  magnetic  bars,  DX  and  DX  make  an  effort  to  turn 
in  a  similar  direction  upon  their  vertical  axes,  a  and  b.  One 
of  the  cups  of  the  ink,  therefore,  advances  toward  the  paper, 
while  the  other  recedes.  To  limit  this  action,  two  plates,  v 
and  vx,  are  fastened  at  the  opposite  ends  of  the  free  space 
allowed  for  the  play  of  the  bars,  and  against  which  the  other 
ends  of  the  bars  press.  Only  the  end  of  one  bar  can,  therefore, 
start  out  from  within  the  multiplier  at  a  time,  the  other  being 
retained  in  its  place.  In  order  to  bring  the  magnetic  bars  back 
to  their  original  position,  as  soon  as  the  deflection  is  complete, 
recourse  is  had  to  two  small  moveable  magnets,  a  portion  of 
which  is  seen  at  N  and  s,  whose  distance  and  position  are  to  be 
varied  till  they  produce  the  desired  effect. 

The  fluid  is  made  to  pass  in  the  direction  of  the  arrows, 
shown  at  p  and  M.  Then  the  N  pole  of  the  left-hand  magnet 
advances  with  its  pen  KX,  to  the  paper  E,  and  a  dot  is  made,  and 
the  s  pole  of  the  right-hand  magnet  recedes  with  its  pen  H  from 
the  paper,  until  the  other  end  of  the  magnet  strikes  the  stop  v'. 
Now,  if  the  letter  to  be  formed  requires  two  dots  in  succession 
from  the  same  pen,  the  circuit  is  broken,  and  the  fixed  mag- 
nets, N  and  s,  bring  back  the  deflecting  magnets,  DX  and  D'  to 
their  former  position,  when  the  pole-changer  is  again  thrown  to 
the  left,  and  the  magnets  are  deflected  in  the  same  manner, 
as  at  first.  Thus,  two  dots  are  marked  upon  the  paper,  on  the 
right  hand  line.  When  the  current  is  reversed,  the  N  pole  of 
the  left-hand  magnet,  with  its  pen  K,  recedes  from  the  paper, 
until  it  strikes  the  stop  v,  and  the  s  pole  of  the  right-hand  mag- 
net, with  its  pen  HX,  advances  to  the  paper,  and  makes  its  dot 
upon  it  on  the  left-hand,  line. 

THE    ALPHABET    AND    NUMERALS. 

The  alphabet  was  formed,  as  has  been  already  described,  by 
the  making  of  dots  upon  a  ribbon  paper,  from  small  becks 
holding  ink  in  globular  forms  at  their  ends.  The  alphabet  thus 
written  is  arranged  by  some  authors  as  follows  : 

I  Fig.  23. 

ABDJBPGHCHSCHIKL  MNOPB  S  TVW  Z 

A  X  \  .  r  "i  ""v^  N  •  *r  v.  -  *•  «*  v  «  j;  / 


Prof.  Steinheil  has  furnished  me  with  the  alphabet  and  nu- 

12 


178  STEINHEIL'S  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH. 

merals  arranged  as  the  following,  which  must  he  regarded  as 
their  true  and  proper  organization. 

Fig.  24. 


at  »  o 


o      1.     *      fl      4      6"      6 


THE    DISCOVERY    AND    INVENTIONS    OF    STEINHEIL. 

From  the  foregoing,  in  regard  to  the  discovery  and  inventions 
of  Prof.  Steinheil,  it  will  he  observed  that  he  produced  the  fol- 
lowing facts,  viz.  : 

1st.  That  he  invented  a  tangible  and  practical  writing 
electric  telegraph,  demonstrated  by  the  most  complete  experi- 
ments ; 

2d.  That  he  invented  an  electric  telegraph,  which  actually 
communicated  intelligence  by  sound,  methodically  arranged, 
suitable  for  commercial  purposes  ; 

3d.  That  he  discovered  the  earth  circuit,  as  practically  ap- 
plied in  the  electric  telegraphic  art,  with  all  systems  through- 
out the  world 

4th.  That  he  first  organized  the  system  of  poles  and  insula- 
tors, for  the  suspension  of  metallic  conductors  in  the  air  for 
electric  telegraphing  ; 

5th.  And  that  he  established  the  fact,  by  actual  experiment, 
that  a  current  of  electricity,  generated  by  a  magnetic  organiza- 
tion, can  be  practically  applied  for  telegraphing. 


HISTORY  OF  THE  ENGLISH  ELECTRIC 
TELEGRAPH 


CHAPTER    XIII. 

William  Fothergill  Cooke  and  the  Telegraph — Moncke's  Electrometer  Experi- 
ments— The  English  Electric  Telegraph  invented — Invention  of  the 
Alarum — The  Mechanical  Telegraph — The  Escapement  Apparatus — Mr. 
Cooke's  Efforts  to  put  his  Telegraph  in  Operation — The  Second  Mechanical 
Telegraph — Wheatstone's  Permutating  Key-Board — Messrs.  Cooke  and 
Wheatstone  become  associated — The  Secondary  Circuit  invented — Mr.  Cooke 
improves  his  Original  Telegraph — All  the  Improvements  combined — De- 
scription of  the  Apparatuses — Improvements  patented  in  1838 — Wheatstone's 
Mechanical  Telegraph — Further  Improvements  by  Mr.  Cooke. 

WILLIAM  FOTHERGILL  COOKE  AND  THE  TELEGRAPH. 

THE  English  Electric  Telegraph,  invented  by  William  Foth- 
ergill Cooke,  will  be  the  subject  of  consideration  in  the  present 
chapter. 

It  is  not  my  purpose  to  discuss  the  questionable  claims  of 
others,  in  regard  to  then*  participation  as  auxiliaries  in  the 
perfection  of  the  above-mentioned  telegraph.  It  is  my  pur- 
pose to  give  the  facts  with  but  little  comment.  The  reader 
can  exercise  his  own  judgment  in  the  premises, 

In  the  month  of  March,  1836,  Mr.  Cooke  was  engaged  at 
Heidelterg  in  the  study  of  anatomy,  in  connection  with  the 
interesting,  and  by  no  means  unprofitable  profession  of  ana- 
tomical modelling ;  a  self-taught  pursuit,  to  which  he  had 
been  devoting  himself  with  incessant  and  unabated  ardor.  On 
the  6th  of  March,  1836,  he  witnessed  an  electro-telegraphic 
experiment,  exhibited  by  Professor  Moncke  of  Heidelberg,  who 
had,  perhaps,  taken  his  idea  from  G-aiiss.  Mr.  Cooke  was  so 
much  struck  with  the  wonderful  power  of  electricity,  and  so 
strongly  was  he  impressed  with  its  applicability  to  the  practical 
transmission  of  telegraphic  intelligence,  that,  on  that  very  day, 
he  entirely  abandoned  his  former  pursuits,  and  devoted  himself 


180 


HISTORY    OF    THE    ENGLISH    TELEGRAPH. 


henceforth  with  great  ardor,  t5  the  practical  realization  of  the 
electric  telegraph. 

Professor  Moncke's  experiment  was  the  only  one,  at  that 
time,  upon  the  subject  of  telegraphing,  that  Mr.  Cooke  had  seen. 
To  him  the  subject  was  new  and  surprisingly  novel.  The  ex- 
periment which  he  saw  showed  that  the  electric  currents,  being 
conveyed  by  wires  to  a  distance,  could  be  there  caused  to 
deflect  magnetic  needles,  and  thereby  to  give  signals.  It  did 
not  provide  any  means,  however,  to  practically  effect  telegraph- 
ic purposes.  It  was  but  a  demonstration  of  science  without  a 
devised  appliance  in  the  arts. 

MONCKE'S  ELECTROMETER  EXPERIMENTS. 
Fig.  1. 


The  apparatus  exhibited  by  Professor  Moncke,  consisted  of 
two  instruments  for  giving  signals  by  a  single  needle,  placed 
in  different  rooms,  with  a  battery  belonging  to  each,  copper 
wires  being  used  as  the  conductor.  Fig.  1  represents  the  ap- 
paratus used  by  Professor  Moncke.  Numeral  1  is  the  near  and 
2  the  distant  electrometer  ;  3  is  the  battery  ;  4,  the  conducting 
or  circuit  wire  ;  5,  the  signal ;  6,  6,  the  electrometers,  with  mag- 
netic needles,  and  at  7,  7,  are  steadying  pieces,  dipping  in  a 
steadying  cup  of  mercury,  to  support  the  needle  and  check 
oscillation.  The  signals  given,  5,  5,  were  a  cross  and  a  straight 
line,  marked  on  the  opposite  sides  of  a  disk  of  card,  fixed  on  a 
straw  ;  at  the  end  of  which,  a  magnetic  needle  was  suspended 
horizontally  in  an  electrometer  coil,  by  a  silk  thread.  The 
effect  of  this  arrangement  was,  that  if  a  current  was  trans- 
mitted from  either  battery  when  the  opposite  ends  of  the  wires 
were  in  connection  with  the  distant  telegraphic  apparatus, 
either  the  cross  would  be  there  exhibited  by  the  motion  of  the 
needle  one  way,  or  the  line  by  its  motion  the  other  way,  accord- 
ing to  the  direction  of  the  current.  The  apparatus  was  worked 
by  moving  the  ends  of  the  wires  backward  and  forward  be- 
tween the  battery  and  the  coils. 


THE  ENGLISH  TELEGRAPH  INVENTED. 


181 


THE    ENGLISH    ELECTRIC    TELEGRAPH    INVENTED. 

After  Mr.  Cooke  had  witnessed  the  experiment  upon  the 
above  described  arrangement,  he  devoted  himself  to  the  per- 
fection  of  a  contrivance  to  effect  practically  the  ends  of  tele- 
graphing, and  within  three  weeks  thereafter,  he  had,  partly  at 
Heidelberg  and  partly  at  Frankfort,  completed  a  device  for 
telegraphing,  based  upon  the  electrometer  form,  which,  in 
principle,  was  the  same  as  the  English  needle  telegraph  that 
has  been  for  many  years  practically  operated  in  Great  Britain. 
Six  wires  were  used,  forming  three  metallic  circuits,  and  influ- 
encing three  needles,  by  which  an  alphabet  of  26  signals  was 
devised.  The  mechanical  and  scientific  combinations  produced 
a  perfect  reciprocal  telegraphic  system,  by  which  a  mutual  com- 
munication could  be  practically  and  conveniently  carried  on 
between  two  distant  places  ;  the  requisite  connections  and  dis- 
connections being  formed  by  pressing  the  fingers  upon  the  keys, 
and  the  signals  were  exhibited  to  the  person  sending  them,  as 
well  as  the  person  receiving  the  communication.  This  import- 
ant end  was  effected,  by  placing  a  system  of  keys  permanently 
at  each  extreme  end  of  the  metallic  circuit,  and  by  providing 
each  circuit  with  a  cross-piece  of  metal  for  completing  the 
continuity  of  the  wires  when  signals  were  being  received  from 
the  opposite  terminus.  The  two  signal  apparatuses  being  thus 
thrown  into  the  course  of  the  electric  circuit,  every  signal  was 
given  at  both  ends  concurrently  ;  and  the  cross-piece  was  made 
to  restore  the  circuit  for  a  reply,  on  the  first  communication 
being  completed.  The  system  of  keys  and  signal-levers  were 
joined  together  in  the  one  instrument,  so  that  the  pressure 
upon  the  key  at  either  station,  produced  the  signal  intended  at 
the  receiving  and  sending  stations. 

Fig.  2. 


182 


HISTORY    OF    THE    ENGLISH    TELEGRAPH. 


The  apparatus  devised  by  Mr.  Cooke  to  consummate  the  sys- 
tem of  reciprocal  telegraphing  was  simple,  and  will  be  under- 
stood by  studying  figures  2,  3,  4,  5,  6,  7,  and  8.  The  whole 
are  parts  of  the  same  combination,  and  the  same  letters  and 
numerals  represents  the  like  parts  in  the  different  and  respective 
figures,  thus  5  B,  represents  the  same  device  in  fig.  2  that  they 
do  in  fig.  6. 

The  apparatuses  represented  by  these  figures  constituted  Mr. 
Cooke's  "  reciprocal  electrometer  communicator." 

Figure  2  is  the  near 

Fig-  3.  station  of  the  recipro- 

cal telegraph,  and  fig. 
6  the  distant  station. 
The  battery  is  repre- 
sented at  the  base  of 
fig.  2,  and  upon  a 
larger  scale  by  fig.  7  ; 
3#,  3bb,  are  commu- 
tating  battery  pole 
bars,  for  connecting 
the  battery  with  the 
conducting  or  line 
wires  on  the  pressure 
of  the  keys — 3b  is  the 

copper,  and  3bb  the  zinc  poles  of  the  battery  4,  4s,  are  the 
telegraph  wires,  called  by  Mr.  Cooke,  the  electrometer  or  recipro- 
cal telegraph  wires, 

because   they  were  Flg-  4- 

attached  to  electro- 
meters at  each  end. 
5B  is  a  complete 
set  of  26  simple  and 
compound  signals. 
7b  are  iron  screws 
for  steadying  the 
needles  ;  SB  are 
communicator  keys 
for  uniting  the  ends 
of  the  conducting 
wires  with  the  poles 
of  the  battery,  so  as 
to  make  the  current 
pass'in  either  direc- 
tion through  the  conducting  wires.  The  battery  seen  in  fig. 
2  is  represented  in  larger  scale  by  fig.  7  ;  and,  in  fig.  8,  a  top 


THE  ENGLISH  TELEGRAPH  INVENTED. 


183 


view  of  it  is  given.  The  key  SB,  fig.  8,  is  given  on  a  larger  scale 
with  all  its  parts  ;  the  zinc  and  the  copper  bars.  OB,  96,  rep- 
resents the  current  commutator  for  reversing  the  direction 
of  the  electric  current ;  9s,  is  the  zinc,  and  96,  the  copper. 
The  line  wires  and  the  electrometer  as  connected  with  the  bat- 
tery are  fully  represented  in  fig.  8.  The  key  represented  in 
fig.  8,  is  an  axle  with  lever  arms,  SB.  If  the  finger  presses 

upon  SB  the    axle 

Fig.  5.  turns,  and  the  con- 

nections  with  the 
upper  cups,  fig.  8, 
are  made  by  the 
wires  attached  to 
the  zinc  and  the 
copper  bars.  If  the 
lever  on  the  other 
side  of  the  axle  be 
pressed,  the  lower 
battery,  fig.  8,  is 
put  into  .the  cir- 
cuit. If  the  read- 
er will  refer  to  the 
keys  of  the  present 
instruments  of  the 
English  telegraphs,  the  same  principles  will  be  seen  in  their 
organization  as  represented  by  fig.  8. 

In  figures  4  and  5,  10s  represent  fixed  stops,  or  pins,  de- 
signed to  prevent  the  needles  from  oscillating  too  far.  HB  is 
a  moveable  cross  piece,  and  116  its  handle. 

Fig.  6. 


The    manipulation  of  the  apparatus  was  very  simple  and 
easy.     In  order  that  the  operation  may  the  better  be  under- 


184 


HISTORY  OP    THE    ENGLISH    TELEGRAPH. 


stood  by  the  reader,  I  will  trece  the  route  of  the  current  and 
show  its  action,  resulting  in  the  perfect  transmission  of  tele- 
graphic communication.  Figures  4  and  5  are  two  end  stations, 
100  miles  apart,  at  each  of  which  are  the  instruments  repre- 
sented in  the  figures.  The  line  wires  are  seen  to  the  right  of 

Fig.  7. 


fig.  4,  and  to  the  left  of  fig.  5,  marked  4,  4.  If  the  key  SB, 
fig.  4,  is  pressed,  making  the  battery  current  flow  over  the 
line,  the  needle  suspended  in  the  coils  10B,  will  be  deflected 
to  the  position  as  seen  in  the  figure,  being  at  right  angles  to 
the  normal  position  of  the  needle,  as  seen  by  the  middle  needle 
in  the  same  figure.  The  needle  in  the  terminal  station  coils, 
fig.  5,  will  assume  the  same  position  indicated  in  fig.  4.  The 
electrometer  was  made  in  the  usual  form,  and  the  needle  being 
magnetic,  it  would  move  to  the  right  or  to  the  left  according  to 
the  nature  of  the  current  transmitted  through  the  coils,  de- 
termined by  the  pressure  upon  the  key,  whether  upon  the  right- 
hand  side  or  upon  the  left-hand  side.  The  needles  of  the  centre 
coils  are  in  their  normal  state.  The  upper  needles  are  deflected, 
reverse  to  those  in  the  lower  coils.  The  position  occupied 
by  one  may  be  A,  and  that  by  the  other  B.  Two  motions, 
either  direction  of  the  needles,  another  letter  and  so  on,  com- 
pleting the  whole  combination  forming  the  alphabet. 

Besides  the  arrangement  above  described,  Mr.  Cooke  invented 
an  apparatus,  styled  by  him  a  "  detector,"  for  discovering  any 
injury  done  to  the  conducting  wires  by  water,  fracture,  or  con- 
tact. The  arrangement  was  an  application  of  a  gauged  elec- 
trometer. 

The  foregoing  is  a  fair  description  of  the  first  electrometer 
telegraph,  invented  by  Mr.  Cooke,  between  the  9th  and  15th 


THE    MECHANICAL    TELEGRAPH    INVENTED. 

Fig.  8. 


185 


of  March,  1836.  So  energetic  and  successful  was  Mr.  Cooke 
in  the  perfection  of  his  telegraph,  that  within  three  weeks  after 
he  saw  the  experiment  of  Moncke,  he  had  the  model  of  his  re- 
ciprocating telegraphic  system  in  operation. 

INVENTION    OF    THE    ALARUM    APPARATUS. 

Before  the  end  of  March,  1836,  Mr.  Cooke  invented  the  appa- 
ratus known  as  the  alarum,  which  is  still  extant,  in  his  first 
mechanical  telegraph.  The  arrangement  was  of  ordinary  com- 
bination, worked  by  clock-work  mechanism,  on  the  removal  of 
a  detent.  The  invention  consisted  in  placing  an  electro-mag- 
net in  such  proximity  to  an  armature  of  soft  iron  forming  the 
tail  end  of  a  lever  detent,  that  when  an  electric  current  passed 
round  the  electro-magnet,  the  magnetism  which  was,  for  the 
moment,  excited  in  it,  attracted  the  tail  end  of  the  lever,  and 
by  so  doing,  drew  its  detent  end  out  of  the  clock-work  ;  but, 
on  the  temporary  magnetism  ceasing  with  the  cessation  of  the 
current,  the  attraction  of  the  tail-end  of  the  lever  ceased  also, 
and  the  detent-end  of  it  was  then  replaced  in  the  clock- worfe 
by  a  re-acting  spring  or  balance  weight.  The  principle  of 
removing  a  detent,  by  magnetic  attraction,  and  replacing  it 
by  mechanical  re-action,  was  not,  however,  confined  to  the 
alarum,  but,  on  the  contrary,  it  was  the  basis  of  Mr.  Cooke's 
mechanical  telegraphic  system,  hereinafter  described." 

THE    MECHANICAL    TELEGRAPH    INVENTED. 

In  the  invention  of  the  mechanical  telegraph,  Mr.  Cooke  ap- 
plied the  idea  to  a  musical  snuff-box,  and  in  less  than  six 
weeks  from  the  time  he  saw  the  experiment  of  Professor 


186  HISTORY    OF    THE    ENGLISH    TELEGRAPH. 

Fig.  9. 


Pig.  10. 


MECHANICAL  TELEGRAPH  INVENTED.  187 

Moncke,  he  had  invented  his  mechanical  system.  Mr.  Cooke 
considered  that  the  striking  advantage  held  out  by  the  me- 
chanical, in  comparison  with  the  electrometer  form  was,  that, 
whereas  the  mode  of  giving  signals  by  combination  of  mag- 
netic needles,  each  acted  upon  directly  and  separately  by  an 
electric  current,  involved  the  necessity  of  using  several  circuits, 
and  consequently  the  expense  of  several  wires  ;  on  the  other 
hand,  if  the  electric  agency  could  "be  confined  to  the  office  of 
causing  suitable  interruptions  or  divisions  in  any  kind  of  mo- 
tion derived  from  an  independent  source,  the  necessity  of  a 
plurality  of  circuits  would  be  avoided,  for  the  diversity  of  sig- 
nals would  then  depend  upon  the  mechanism. 

Figures  9  and  10  represent  the  mechanical  telegraph,  as  de- 
vised upon  the  principles  of  the  musical  snuff-box. 

The  electro-magnets,  14c,  of  the  respective  stations,  are 
seen  in  the  figures ;  3,  the  battery ;  14c,  are  the  armatures 
of.  the  magnets  to  which  are  attached  the  detent  levers  ;  4  and 
4s  are  the  line  wires,  and  the  arrows  indicate  the  course  of 
the  current.  The  circuit,  as  arranged  in  figs.  9  and  10,  is 
opened  and  closed  by  the  action  of  the  apparatus  of  fig.  9. 
Pressure  upon  the  keys  completed  the  electric  circuit ;  which 
magnetized  the  cores  of  the  electro-magnets,  the  armatures 
were  then  attracted,  which  drew  down  one  end  of  the  detent 
lever,  and  elevated  the  other  end,  drawing  it  out  of  the  train 
of  wheels,  and  allowing  the  mechanism  to  move  on  by  its  own 
maintaining  power,  till  the  intervention  of  an  appropriate  pin, 
18c,  fig.  10,  upon  the  cylinder  or  barrel,  struck  up  the  key,  See, 
the  circuit  was  then  broken.  When  broken  the  magnetism 
ceased  to  exist  in  the  cores  of  the  spools,  therefore,  an  end  was 
put  to  the  attraction  of  the  armature  end  of  the  detent  lever, 
and  the  re-acting  spring  drew  the  lever,  so  as  to  place  the 
detent  in  its  normal  position,  which  put  a  stop  to  the  mechan- 
ism, at  the  time  when  the  revolving  dial  was  presenting  before 
an  opening  in  the  frame  of  the  apparatus  at  each  terminus, 
the  requisite  letter,  figure,  or  symbol.  The  signal  to  be  made 
was  determined  by  the  proportion  of  a  revolution  which  the 
barrel  was  allowed  to  make  without  interruption ;  therefore, 
although  some  latitude  was  allowed  for  a  variation  in  the  speed 
of  the  different  apparatuses,  the  successful  transmission  of 
intelligence  depended,  to  a  certain  extent,  upon  a  similarity  of 
timing ;  any  great  variation  of  time  would  introduce  confu- 
sion into  the  signals,  and  in  proportion  to  every  increase  hi  the 
speed  at  which  the  signals  were  given,  the  latitude  allowed  for 
variations  would  become  actually  less,  though  remaining  rela- 
tively the  same ;  consequently,  in  proportion  to  the  increased 


188 


HISTORY    OF    THE    ENGLISH    TELEGRAPH. 


rapidity  of  a  succession  of  signals,  greater  accuracy  of  mechan- 
ism would  be  required.  If  the  signals  could  be  given  by  divis- 
ions of  the  mechanical  motion  similar  to  the  divisions  made  by 
the  escapement  of  a  clock,  the  necessity  of  accurate  timing 
would  be  altogether  avoided,  for  it  would  then  be  only  neces- 
sary that  every  intervention  of  the  attractive  force  of  the  mag- 
net, should  occasion  or  allow  a  motion  of  the  armature  or 
Fig.  11.  pallet  of  each  escapement, 

without  its  being  necessary 
that  a  motion  of  the  pallet 
should  occupy,  in  each  in- 
strument, precisely  the  same 
period  of  time. 

Fig.  His  an  extension  of 
the  telegraph,  based  upon 
the  plan  of  the  musical 
snuff-box.  The  engraving 
is  an  outline  view  of  the 
mechanism.  The  parts  in 
fig.  11  are  indicated  by  dif- 
ferent letters  from  those  used 
in  figs.  9  and  10.  In  the  for- 
mer A  A  are  the  cylinders 
or  barrels  containing  the 
keys  ;  M  is  the  alarum  bell ; 
L  L  the  magnets ;  B,  c,  D, 
and  E,  are  the  ends  of  vari- 
ous cylinders. 

I  do  not  deem  it  neces- 
sary to  give  a  detailed  de- 
scription of  the  mechani- 
cal arrangement  of  the 
apparatus,  believing  that 
sufficient  has  been  shown 
to  enable  the  reader  to  un- 
derstand the  general  plan. 
It  is  the  first  mechanical 
telegraph  invented  by  Mr. 
Oooke,  in  March,  1836. 

THE    ESCAPEMENT    APPARATUS. 

In  July,  1836,  Mr.  Cooke  produced  his  experimental  es- 
capement instrument,  represented  by  figures  12  and  13,  based 
upon  the  principle  of  the  vibrating  pendulum,  alternately  re- 
tained by  one  of  two  magnets,  on  the  same  conducting  wire, 


THE  ESCAPEMENT  APPARATUS. 


189 


actuated  by  an  escapement  wheel,  the  signal  being  given  by  an 
index  hand.  . 

A  A  are  two  electro-magnets,  alternately  detaining  the  detent, 
to  which  are  attached  the  armatures  of  the  magnets ;  to  the 
right  and  left  of  the  letter  c,  is  the  alternating  detent  in  the  form 

Fig,  12. 


of  an  anchor  escapement,  stopping  the  clock-work  by  catching 
the  teeth  of  the  scape  wheel,  B.  c  is  the  detent-lever  attached 
to  the  armatures ;  F  is  the  revolving  hand  pointing  to  the  sig- 

-.-     Fig.  13 


nals.  Figure  13  is  an  end  view  of  figure  12,  in  which  are  seen 
the  magnets  at  the  left,  the  scape  wheel,  B,  in  the  centre,  and 
the  index  hand  is  on  the  right. 


190  HISTORY    OP    THE    ENGLISH    TELEGRAPH. 


MR.  COOKE'S  EFFORTS,  TO    PUT    HIS    TELEGRAPH  IN  OPERATION. 

• 

Having  thus  perfected  his  various  plans  of  the  electric  tele- 
graph, Mr.  Cooke,  in  the  latter  part  of  1836,  directed  his  atten- 
tion toward  the  application  of  his  invention  on  the  Liverpool 
and  Manchester  railway.  To  this  end,  he  issued  a  pam- 
phlet, presenting  the  advantages  of  his  telegraph,  its  plan  of 
operation  and  construction,  and  its  utility  for  the  railway  ser- 
vice ;  and  particularly  having  in  view  the  practical  adoption  of 
his  telegraph  in  tunnels,  for  which  some  mode  of  conveying 
signals  was  required.  The  directors  of  the  railway  company, 
thought  his  instrument,  which  was  calculated  to  give  60  sig- 
nals, of  too  complex  a  nature  for  the  purpose  of  conveying  a 
few  signals  along  a  tunnel,  and  therefore  they  proposed  to  Mr. 
Cooke,  that  he  should  arrange  one  adapted  for  their  purposes. 

With  the  ohject  of  accommodating  the  wants  of  the  railway 
service,  Mr.  Cooke  proceeded  to  devise  a  system  of  telegraph- 
ing, calculated  to  give  fewer  signals  and  much  less  complica- 
ted. This,  however,  was  done,  but  upon  the  principles  of  the 
first  mechanical  telegraphic  apparatus. 

THE  SECOND    MECHANICAL    TELEGRAPH. 

Figures  14  and  15  represent  the  second  mechanical  tele- 
graphic apparatus,  on  which  was  employed  only  two  wires.  It 
was  invented  by  Mr.  Cooke,  10th  of  February,  1837  ;  two  of 
which  he  had  working  together  in  the  following  April.  The 
figures  represent  two  different  stations ;  A  c  are  the  electro- 
magnets ;  4,  the  line  wire ;  3c,  the  batteries ;  4c,  the 
armatures  of  the  electro-magnets,  to  which  are  attached  the 
detent  levers ;  10E,  are  fan  wheels  by  which  the  detent  ar- 
rests the  mechanism ;  16e,  is  the  detent  to  catch  the  fan 
wheels.  The  action  of  the  different  parts  of  this  apparatus  is 
the  same  as  the  like  parts  of  figures  9,  10,  and  11.  This  ap- 
paratus was  perfectly  qualified  to  perform  the  intended  service 
at  the  railway  tunnels,  but  in  the  meantime  a  pneumatic  ap- 
paratus was  laid  down,  which  superseded  the  electric  appli- 
ance ;  the  former  was  supposed,  by  the  directors,  to  be  better 
than  any  system  operated  by  electricity.  It  was  at  a  time 
when  there  were  none  of  the  arts  operated  through  the  agency 
of  voltaic  force,  and  the  railway  company  were  not  disposed  to 
experiment  upon  that  which  to  them  seemed,  as  the  vision  of 
a  dream.  Mr.  Cooke,  however,  was  not  to  be  crushed  by  this 
failure,  and  he  proceeded  to  perfect  his  knowledge  in  the  sci- 
ence of  electro-magnetism,  endeavoring  to  ascertain  at  what 
distance  an  electric  current  would  excite  the  temporary  mag- 


THE    SECOND    MECHANICAL    TELEGRAPH. 


191 


netism  required  for  moving  the  detent  of  the  mechanism.  His 
experiments  were  not,  to  him,  satisfactory,  and  he  sought  the 
advice  of  Prof.  Faraday,  and  then  Dr.  Roget.  This  latter  gen- 
tleman referred  him  to  Professor  Wheatstone,  of  King's  Col- 
lege. Mr.  Cooke  lost  no  time  in  making  the  acquaintance  of 
Prof.  Wheatstone,  which  took  place  on  the  27th  day  of  Feb- 
ruary, 1837.  The  two  gentlemen  discussed  the  subject  of  tele- 
graphing, freely,  and  Prof.  Wheatstone  exhibited  to  Mr.  Cooke 


Fig.  14. 


Fig  15. 


an  apparatus  which  he  had  been  using  in  his  experiments  on 
the  effects  of  electric  currents  in  deflecting  magnetic  needles. 
To  open  and  close  a  circuit,  Prof.  Wheatstone  had  arranged 
two  very  ingenious  contrivances,  which  he  called  "  permutating 
key  boards." 


192 


HISTORY    OF    THE    ENGLISH   TELEGRAPH. 


PERMUTATING    KEY-BOARD.  193 


WHEATSTONE  S    PERMUTATING    KEY-BOARD. 

This  contrivance  was  used  by  Prof.  Wheatstone,  in  his  elec- 
trical experiments,  transmitting  different  currents  .over  long 
wires.  It  was  arranged  to  send  a  current  over  any  one  of  the 
four  wires,  represented  in  figure  16.  4r,  is  the  near  key- 
hoard  ;  4s,  are  wires  attached  to  the  keys,  and  extending 
through  the  electrometer,  6/,  and  uniting  "beyond  at  ll/; 
6ff>  were  electrometers  designed  to  he  applied  ;  3r,  is  the 
battery  designed  to  be  applied  to  the  several  circuits  as  cir- 
cumstances required ;  3/,  3^,  are  fixed  pole  bars.  The  sec- 
tion below,  gives  an  end  view  of  the  key-board.  At  that  time, 
this  contrivance  was  one  step  toward  a  telegraph,  though  in 
its  invention,  Prof.  Wheatstone,  it  seems,  did  not  contemplate 
the  invention  of  a  telegraphic  apparatus.  His  mind  and  ex- 
periments were  directed  toward  the  advancement  of  the  scien- 
ces, leaving  to  others  the  application  of  his  discoveries  to  the 
useful  arts.  The  principle  contemplated,  was  to  give  a  com- 
plete set  of  signals  at  a  distance,  by  the  motion  of  two  or  more 
horizontal  magnetic  needles,  with  permutating  keys  and  corn- 
mutating  pole  bars ;  giving  the  maximum  number  of  signals 
by  the  minimum  number  of  wires  required  for  the  electrometer 
telegraph ;  thus,  the  closing  of  the  circuit  at  the  key-board, 
transmitted  a  current  of  electricity,  from  the  voltaic  battery, 
over  the  wire,  and  caused  the  needle  of  the  electrometer  to 
move.  It  seems,  however,  that  he  had  not  had  in  view  any 
arrangement  for  detecting  injuries  to  the  wires,  of  attract- 
ing attention  at  the  commencement  of  the  communication,  of 
sending  signals  alternately  backward  and  forward  by  the  same 
apparatus,  and  of  exhibiting  signals  to  the  operator,  as  well 
as  to  the  recipient.  But  this  deficiency  in  the  plans  of  Prof. 
Wheatstone,  was  not  surprising.  He  was  in  the  pursuits  of 
science, 'expecting  no  other  reward  on  account  of  his  discover- 
ies, than  the  consciousness  of  having  advanced  science,  and 
the  pleasure  realized  in  the  discovery  of  new  truths,  and  the 
scientific  reputation.  Such  were  the  sentiments  entertained 
by  the  philosopher  of  whom  I  am  now  writing. 

Mr.  Cooke  was  not  so  imbued.  He  was  not  a  discoverer, 
but  an  inventor. 

MESSRS.  COOKE  AND  WHEATSTONE  BECOME  ASSOCIATED. 

In  the  short  acquaintance  which  Mr,  Cooke  had  with  Pro- 
fessor Wheatstone,  he  found  cause  to  admire  his  great  learn- 
ing, and  particularly  his  knowledge  of  electricity  and  electro- 
magnetism,  and  he  urged  Prof.  Wheatstone  to  co-operate  with 

13 


194  HISTORY    OF    THE    ENGLISH    TELEGRAPH. 

him  in  the  advancement  of  his  invented  telegraph,  confidently 
believing,  that  if  he  had  the  influence  of  the  scientific  recog- 
nition of  Prof.  Wheatstone,  his  telegraph  would  command  favor. 
The  world  at  that  time  was  ignorant  of  the  wonderful  powers 
of  the  electric  and  magnetic  forces  for  telegraphing.  The  new 
art  needed  the  aid  of  scientific  encouragement,  and  Mr.  Cooke 
believed,  that  in  getting  associated  with  him  Prof.  Wheatstone, 
and  the  influence  of  his  scientific  friends,  the  telegraph  would 
not  only  be  a  success  in  the  opinions  of  scientific  gentlemen, 
but  also  as  a  commercial  enterprise.  Like  all  high-toned  scien- 
tific gentlemen,  Prof.  "Wheatstone  refused  the  association,  be- 
cause, as  he  said,  in  substance,  he  preferred  to  publish  the 
results  of  his  experiments,  and  then  to  allow  any  person  to 
carry  them  into  practical  effect,  and  that,  in  the  position  he 
stood,  to  associate  his  name  with  that  of  any  other  person,  would 
diminish  the  credit  which  he  would  obtain  by  publishing  sepa- 
rately the  results  of  his  own  researches.  But,  as  Mr.  Cooke 
was  not  seeking  scientific  reputation,  he  assured  Prof.  Wheat- 
stone,  that  there  would  be  no  interference  in  that  respect.  In 
substantiation  of  the  correctness  of  these  statements,  reference 
may  be  made  to  the  award  given  by  Messrs.  Brunei  and  Daniell, 
and  which  award  was  approved  by  Messrs.  Cooke  and  Wheat- 
stone  ;  it  emphatically  says,  "  Mr.  Cooke  is  entitled  to  stand 
alone,  as  the  gentleman  to  whom  this  country  is  indebted,  for 
having  practically  introduced,  and  carried  out,  the  electric 
telegraph  as  a  useful  undertaking,  promising  to  be  a  work  of 
national  importance  ;  and  Prof.  Wheatstone  is  acknowledged  as 
the  scientific  man,  whose  profound  and  successful  jesearches 
have  already  prepared  the  public  to  receive  it  as  a  project 
capable  of  practical  application." 

In  regard  to  the  rapid  progress  of  the  telegraph,  it  was  the 
award  of  the  above-named  gentlemen,  that  to  the  united  labors 
of  the  two  gentlemen  the  credit  was  due. 

Mr.  Cooke  had  brought  his  inventions  to  England,  and  to 
effect  success,  he  needed  the  scientific  assistance  of  some  gentle- 
man, who  could  inspire  the  public  with  confidence  in  the  tele- 
graph, and  he  never  ceased,  until  he  had  secured  the  invaluable 
co-operation  of  Prof.  Wheatstone,  and  the  two  gentlemen  em- 
barked in  the  enterprise,  upon  agreed  terms  as  to  interest  and 
duties,  early  in  May,  1837. 

THE  SECONDARY    CIRCUIT    INVENTED. 

During  the  month  of  April,  1837,  Messrs.  Cooke  and  Wheat- 
stone  united  their  labors,  to  perfect  new  improvements  for  the 
telegraph,  and  the  first  achievement  was  the  discharger  and 


THE    SECONDARY    CIRCUIT    INVENTED. 


195 


Fig.  17. 


secondary  circuit,  represented  by  figs.  17  and  18  ;  to  be  ap-. 
plied  to  Mr.  Cooke's  original  alarum,  which  was  subsequently 
superseded  in  practice  by  Mr.  Cooke's  alarum,  described  in  the 
second  English  specification.  The  principle  of  this  new  im- 
provement was  the  motion  imparted  to  an  electrometer  needle 
by  a  distant  battery,  being  made  to  complete  the  circuit  of  a 
second  battery,  which  second  battery,  excited*  temporary  mag- 
netism in  an  electro-magnet,  and  by  its  attraction  removed  the 
detent  of  clock-work  mechanism. 

The  part  SG  is  of  the  distant  electrometer  instrument  form- 
ing the  discharger ;  3c,  is  the  secondary  battery  operating 
with  the  second  circuit ;  3b  is  the  battery  or  circuit  wire,  ter- 
minating in  the  stop  10°™,  and  the  wire  4c,  in  the  cross-piece 
HG  ;  so  that,  when  the  magnetic  needle  was  moved  by  an 


196 


HISTORY    OF    THE    ENGLISH    TELEGRAPH. 


electric  current,  the  cross-piece  HG  was  brought  into  con- 
nection with  stop  lOg*;  and  completed  the  circuit  of  the 
secondary  battery,  SG  ;  GG  is  the  electrometer  needle,  carry- 
ing the  cross-piece,  HG  ;  7g  is  a  connecting  and  steadying 
platinum-piece  immersed  in  7g*g*,  which  is  a  mercury  cup  ; 
lOg*  is  a  fixed  stop,  being  the  termination  of  battery  wire  2b  ; 
HG  is  the  moveable  cross-piece,  here  fixed  on  an  axis  of  a 
magnetic  needle.  Fig.  17  is  the  side  view  of  the  apparatus, 
and  fig.  18  is  the  top  view,  showing  the  movement  of  the 
needle. 

MR.    COOKE    IMPROVES    HIS    ORIGINAL    TELEGRAPH. 

Fig.  19.  In    the    month  of 

April,  1837,  Mr.  Cooke, 
while  preparing  his  ap- 
plication for  a  patent, 
made  some  improve- 
ments on  his  electro- 
meter telegraph  of 
1836.  This  new  com- 
bination included  the 
entire  alarum  attach- 
ment, as  practically 
operated  at  the  present 
time.  It  contained  the  old  signal  apparatus,  slightly  varied, 
and  the  original  cross-piece.  It  resembled,  very  much,  his 
original  invention,  except  in  the  addition  of  the  alarum,  which 

Fig.  20. 


MR.    COOKE'S    TELEGRAPH    IMPROVED; 


197 


had  been  adopted  in  the  mechanical  instrument,  in  conjunction 
with  the  secondary  circuit;  this  was  an  important  improve- 
ment, and  it  was  suggested  by  the  permutating  keys  and  the 
second  mechanical  telegraph.  The  principles  of  the  two  were 
adopted  in  the  use  of  one  common  blank  wire,  which  was  in 


198  HISTORY    OF    THE    ENGLISH    TELEGRAPH. 

I 

permanent  connection  with  both  terminal  batteries.  By  this 
combination  the  movements  of  single  needles  were  effected,  and 
a  distinct  class  of  signals  was  made,  which,  subsequently,  was 
found  to  be  highly  valuable  in  practice.  Figures  19,  20,  and 
21,  give  different  views  of  this  later  improvement.  It  is  founded 
upon  the  principle  of  the  commutation  of  several  electrometer 
wires  with  one  blank  or  return  wire.  Signals  given  by  the 
motion  of  one  or  more  needles,  were  the  same  as  those  given 
in  the  original  invention  of  1836.  Figure  19  represents  a  side 
view,  showing  the  application  of  the  key  to  the  battery.  When 
the  key  at  SB  is  pressed,  the  arc  rod  3/  is  carried  into  the 
mercury  cup  or  other  contact  arrangement  closing  the  voltaic 
circuit.  Fig.  20  is  a  front  view  of  the  same  apparatus,  the 
keys  being  shown  by  the  dotted  lines.  Fig.  21  is  the  top  view  of 
figs.  19  and  20  having  also  the  alarum  attachment,  herein  before 
described.  The  whole  of  the  mechanical  appliances,  embraced 
in  this  telegraphic  organization,  have  now  been  described 
sufficiently  to  enable  the  reader  to  understand  the  success 
attained  by  Mr.  Cooke  in  the  invention. 

ALL    THE    IMPROVEMENTS    COMBINED. 

I  have  now  arrived  at  the  most  important  invention,  that  is, 
the  whole  combination  of  improvements,  made  by  Messrs. 
Cooke  and  "Wheatstone,  and  for  which  a  patent  was  obtained, 
dated  June  12th,  1837.  The  fundamental  principle  of  this 
telegraph  was  the  same  upon  which  was  founded  Mr.  Cooke's 
original  invention,  with  the  addition  of  the  vertical  electrometers 
and  astatic  needles,  and  the  invention  of  the  converging  vertical 
diagram,  upon  which  the  needles  exhibited  their  relative  posi- 
tions in  the  formation  of  signals. 

This  arrangement  contemplated  the  use  of  five  wires  of 
principal  and  secondary  circuits.  The  second  circuit  was 
designed  for  alarum  purposes. 

Before  proceeding  in  the  further  explanation  of  the  principal 
circuit — which  has  already  been  done  sufficient  to  give  the 
reader  an  idea  of  its  connection  with  the  second  circuit — I  will 
describe  the  secondary  circuit  (fig.  22) :  G  is  the  electrometer, 
the  coils  of  which  are  in  the  main  or  principal  circuit ;  the  to 
and  from  wires  of  which  are  seen  upon  the  left  of  the  figure ; 
3b  and  4n,  are  conductors,  having  at  tops  mercury  cups,  into 
which  the  fork  on  the  end  of  the  needle  descends,  whenever  a 
current  passes  through  the  electrometer.  The  connection  made 
between  the  mercury  cups  by  the  fork  at  the  end  of  the  needles, 
closes  the  second  circuit,  in  which  is  placed  the  voltaic  battery 
3&;  14c  is  the  electro-magnet,  around  which  the  local  or 


DESCRIPTION    OF    THE    APPARATUS. 

Fig.  22. 


199 


secondary  circuit  traverses,  and  magnetizes  the  soft  iron  cores 
or  horse-shoe ;  14c  is  the  armature  and  detent  rod  attached, 
which  catches  upon  the  teeth  of  the  wheel  at  16c.  "When  the 
armature  is  attracted,  the  wheel  is  let  revolve,  which  causes  a 
hammer  to  strike  upon  the  bell  15c,  producing  an  alarum  of 
any  required  sound.  In  this  manner,  was  practically  operated 
a  second  circuit  for  the  making  of  intelligible  sounds,  effected  by 
the  aid  of  a  main  and  a  local  circuit,  the  latter  being  subser- 
vient to  the  will  of  the  operator  in  the  manipulation  of  the 
principal  or  main  circuit. 

The  signal  dials  were  vertical  and  diamond  shaped.  The 
dial  was  an  improvement  devised  a  short  time  before  the  appli- 
cation for  the  first  patent.  I  have,  in  the  foregoing,  described 
all  the  parts  of  the  telegraph  invented  and  patented  by  Messrs. 
Cooke  and  Wheatstone,  respectively,  and  jointly.  With  a  view 
to  give  the  reader  a  better  understanding  of  the  system,  I  here- 
with present  a  description,  taken  from  a  publication  issued  in 
London  in  1839,  as  follows,  viz. :' 

V  DESCRIPTION    OF    THE    APPARATUSES. 

This  arrangement  requires  the  service  of  five  electrometers, 
in  every  respect  constructed  similarly  to  those  hereinbefore 
described.  Figure  23  is  a  representation  of  the  dial,  which  is 
also  a  covering  to  the  case  containining,  in  the  interior,  the 


200 


HISTORY    OF    THE    ENGLISH    TELEGRAPH. 


five  electrometers  and  their  wires  (shown  at  the  opening  in 
the  dial  board),  and  numbered,  1,  1 ;  2,  2;  3,  3 ;  4,  4,  and  5, 
5.  The  coils  of  the  multipliers  are  secured  with  their  needles 
to  the  case,  having  each  exterior  needle  projecting  beyond  the 
dial,  so  as  to  be  exposed  to  view.  Of  the  wires  from  the  coils, 
five  are  represented  as  passing  out  of  the  side  of  the  case,  on 
the  left  hand,  and  are  numbered  1,  2,  3,  4,  and  5.  The  other 
five  wires  pass  out  on  the  right  hand,  and  are  numbered  in  the 
same  manner.  The  wires  of  the  same  number  as  the  elec- 
trometer, are  those  which  belong  to  it,  and  are  continuous.  Thus 
the  wire  1,  on  the  left  hand,  proceeds  to  the  first  coil  of  elec- 
trometer 1,  then  to  the  second  coil,  an  d  then  coming  off, 

Fig.  23. 


DESCRIPTION    OF    THE    APPARATUS. 


201 


passes  out  of  the  case,  and  is  numbered  1,  on  the  right  hand. 
So  of  the  other  wires,  thus  numbered.  The  dial  has  perma- 
nently marked  upon  it  at  proper  distances  and  angles,  twenty 
of  the  letters  of  the  alphabet,  viz.  A,  B,  D,  E,  F,  G,  H,  i,  K,  L,  M, 
N,  o,  P,  R,  s,  T,  v,  w.  Y.  On  the  margin  of  the  lower  half  of 
the  dial  are  marked  the  numerals,  1,  2,  3,  4,  5,  6,  7,  8,  9  and 
0.  The  letters,  c,  j,  Q,  u,  x,  z,  are  not  represented  on  the  dial, 
unless  some  six  of  those  already  there  are  made  to  sustain  two 
characters  each,  of  which  the  specification  is  silent.  Each 
needle  has  two  motions  ;  one  to  the  right,  and  the  other  to  the 
left.  For  the  designation  of  any  of  the  letters,  the  deflection 
of  two  needles  are  required,  but  for  the  numerals,  one  needle 
only.  The  letter  intended  to  be  noted  by  the  observer,  is  des- 
ignated, in  the  operation  of  the  telegraph,  by  the  joint  deflec- 
tion of  two  needles,  pointing  by  their  convergence  to  the  letter. 
For  example,  the  needles,  1  and  4,  cut  each  other,  by  the 
lines  of  their  joint  deflection,  at  the  letter  v,  on  the  dial,  which 
is  the  letter  intended  to  be  observed  at  the  receiving  station. 
In  the  same  manner  any  other  letter  upon  the  dial  may  be  se- 
lected for  observation.  Suppose  the  first  needle  to  be  vertical, 
as  the  needles  2,  3,  and  5,  then  needle  4  being  only  deflected, 
points  to  the  numeral  4,  as  the  number  designed. 

I  will  now  proceed  to  describe  the  arrangement  of  the  springs 
and  buttons  upon  the  platform,  c  c,  figure  24  (representing  a 

Fig.  24. 


202 


HISTORY    OF    THE    ENGLISH    TELEGRAPH. 


top  view),  by  the  operation  of  which,  any  two  needles  may  be 
deflected  to  designate  a  letter,  or  one  needle  to  designate  a 
numeral. 

The  numbers,  6,  1,  2,  3,  4,  and  5,  represent  keys  of  thin 
brass,  and  elastic,  and  are  each  fastened  to  a  wooden  support, 
D,  D,  by  means  of  two  screws.  These  keys  are  continued  under 
and  project  beyond,  the  brass  bar,  L  and  L,  which  is  supported 
by  two  standards,  R  and  R.  Whenever  these  keys  are  not 
pressed  upon,  they  are  each  in  metallic  contact  with  the  bar, 
R  and  R.  The  numbers  7,  8,  9,  10,  &c.,  represent  ivory  but- 
tons with  a  metallic  stem  beneath  them,  passing  through  a 
hole  in  the  spring,  or  key,  and  on  the  lower  side  of  the  spring 
the  stem  is  enlarged,  so  as  to  form  a  kind  of  hammer,  designed 
to  make  a  metallic  contact  with  the  two  brass  bars,  beneath 
the  springs,  and  represented  as  supported  by  the  standards  N 
and  N,  and  P  and  p.  Each  of  the  buttons  has  a  small  wire 
spiral  spring,  to  which  it  is  fastened,  and  the  small  spring 
is  itself  fastened  to  the  larger  spring,  o  represents  the  vol- 
taic battery,  with  its  poles  in  connection  with  the  two  me- 
tallic bars,  N  and  p. 

Figure  25  represents  a  side  view  of  the  key  arrangement ; 
F  is  the  platform ;  E  the  wooden  support  of  the  six  keys ;  H 
is  the  larger  spring,  or  key,  secured  to  the  support  by  screws, 
h  ;  the  spring  is  observed  to  project  beyond  the  metallic  cross 
bar,  L,  after  passing  beneath  it ;  R  is  the  support  of  the  cross 
bar  L  ;  N  and  o  are  two  of  the  ivory  buttons,  upon  their  spiral 
springs,  a  and  c.  Below  the  button,  o,  is  a  shoulder,  formed 
at  i,  upon  the  stem  which  passes  through  .the  spring,  H,  and 
another  shoulder  is  formed  by  the  hammer,  u,  below  the 
spring.  It  will  be  observed,  that  two  buttons  of  the  same  key 
are  never  used  at  the  same  time.  If  the  button,  o,  is  to  be 

Kg.  25 


pressed  down,  the  weaker  spring,  c,  will  permit  it  to  descend 
until  the  upper  shoulder  comes  in  contact  with  the  larger 
spring,  H,  when  more  pressure  is  applied,  and  that  spring  is 


DESCRIPTION    OF    THE    APPARATUS. 


203 


"brought  down,  breaking  its  contact  with  the  metallic  cross-bar^ 
L,  until  the  hammer,  u,  comes  in  contact  with  the  metallic 
plate,  n,  upon  the  support,  K,  and  as  the  plate,  n,  is  connected 
with  the  N  pole  of  the  battery,  the  connection  is  formed  with  it. 
It  will,  however,  be  noticed  that  the  button,  N,  not  being  pressed 
upon,  will  not  (though  it  descends  with  the  larger  spring)  be 
brought  in  contact  with  the  other  plate  upon  the  support,  J, 
and  connected  with  the  positive  pole  of  the  battery.  To  the 
end  of  each  spring,  a  wire,  s,  is  soldered,  the  purpose  of  which 
will  be  shown  hereafter. 


Fig.  26. 


6        c 


Figure  26  represents  an  end  view  of  the  key  arrangement : 
a,  b,  c,  d,  e,  /,  are  the  buttons ;  M  and  M  the  metallic  cross-bar, 
beneath  which  are  seen  the  ends  of  the  six  larger  springs,  6, 
1,  2,  3,  4,  and  5  ;  R  and  R  are  the  supports  of  the  bar,  M  and 
M  ;  G  is  the  platform ;  w  is  the  support  of  the  metallic  plates, 
with  which  the  hammers  of  the  little  keys,  or  buttons,  come  in 
contact ;  s  the  wire  leading  to  the  battery. 

Having  shown  the  several  parts,  I  will  proceed  to  describe 
the  arrangements  of  two  termini,  as  prepared  for  transmitting 
intelligence.  Figure  27  represents  the  arrangement  of  one 
station,  which  we  may  suppose  to  be  PADDINGTON.  Figure  28 
represents  the  plan  of  the  other  station,  which  we  will  suppose 
to  be  SLOUGH.  The  distance  between  these  two  places  is  eigh- 
teen miles. 

In  figure  27,  it  will  be  seen,  that  a  wire  is  soldered  to  the 
end  of  each  of  the  springs  6,  1,  2,  3,  4,  and  5,  and  respectively 
connected  with  the  five  wires  of  the  dial,  and  the  common  com- 
municating wire  number  6,  which  does  not  pass  through  the 
dial,  nor  is  connected  with  any  of  the  electrometers.  On  the 
right  hand  side  of  the  dial,  the  wires  are  extended  until  they 
are  shown  as  broken.  From  this  point  to  the  opposite  one, 
figure  28,  where  the  wires  appear  also  as  interrupted,  we  may 
suppose  18  miles  to  intervene.  The  wires  here  proceed  to  the 
dial  of  the  Slough  station,  making  their  proper  connections 


204 


HISTORY   OF    THE    ENGLISH    TELEGRAPH. 


PADDINGTON. 


Fig.  27. 


DESCRIPTION    OF    THE    APPARATUS. 


205 


Fig.  28 


SLOUGH. 


206 


HISTORY    OP    THE    ENGLISH    TELEGRAPH. 


with  their  respective,  electrometers,  and  thence  they  are  con- 
tinued and  soldered  to  their  springs  of  the  key  arrangement, 
with  the  exception  of  wire  number  6,  which  passes  direct  to 
the  key  6,  without  going  through  the  dial  case.  In  both 
figures,  is  represented  the  battery,  o,  consisting  of  six  cups, 
The  wire  from  one  pole  of  the  battery  is  connected  with  the 
N  metallic  plate,  the  other  wire  with  the  p  metallic  plate. 
While  none  of  the  buttons  are  pressed  down,  the  battery  is  not 
in  action,  and  it  will  also  be  observed,  that  the  circuits  are  all 
complete.  The  action  of  the  keys,  then,  is  this,  by  a  single 
operation  to  break  the  circuit  formed  with  the  cross-bar,  L  L, 
and,  at  the  same  time,  bring  into  the  circuit,  the  battery,  o. 
The  following  numbers,  representing  the  buttons,  are  those 
necssary  to  be  pressed  down,  in  order  to  signal  the  letters  and 
numerals  on  the  dial : 

Letters. 


For  A,  buttons  10  and  17. 
"  B,   •"   10  "  15. 
"  D,    "   12  "  17. 
"  E,    "   10  "  13. 
"  F,    "   12  "  15. 

«  a,   «  14  "  17. 

"  H,    "   10  "  11. 
"  I,    "   12  "  13. 
"  K,    "   14  "  15. 
"  L,    «   16  "  17. 

For  M,  buttons  9  and  12. 
"  N,    "   11  "  14. 
«  0,   "   13  "  16. 
"  P,    "   15  "  18. 
"  R,    "    9  "  14. 
«  S,    "   11  "  16. 
"  T,    "   13  "  18. 
"  V,   "    9  "  16. 
"  W,   "   11  "  18. 
«  Y,    «    9  «  18. 

Numerals. 


For  1,  buttons  7  and  10. 

"    2,  •"  7    "  12. 

"   3,  "  7    "  14. 

"   4,  "  7    "  16. 

"   5,  "  7    "  18. 


For  6,  buttons  8  and     9. 

"   7,        "  8    "     11. 

"   8,        "  8    "     13. 

"   9,        «  8   "     15. 

"   0,        "  8   "     17. 


The  direction  of  the  current,  when  the  letter  v  is  to  be  sig- 
nalled, is  this :  pressing  down  the  buttons,  9  and  16,  at  the 
Paddington  station,  the  fluid  leaves  the  battery,  o,  along  the 
wire  to  the  cross  bar,  p  ;  then  to  the  hammer  of  the  button, 
16  ;  then  to  the  spring,  4  ;  then  along  wire  4,  to  the  electrom- 
eter, 4,  and  through  it,  deflecting  the  lower  half  of  the  needle 
to  the  left ;  then  along  the  extended  wire,  4,  to  the  dial,  and 
electrometer,  4,  of  the  Slough  station,  deflecting  the  lower  half 
of  that  needle  to  the  left ;  then  to  wire,  4,  leaving  the  dial,  to 
key,  4 ;  then  to  the  cross-bar,  L  and  L  ;  and  along  the  cross 


IMPROVEMENTS     PATENTED    IN    1838.  207 

bar  to  key,  1 ;  then  to  wire,  1 ;  then  to  electrometer,  1 ;  and 
through  it,  deflecting  the  lower  half  of  the  needle  to  the  right ; 
thence  it  proceeds  along  the  extended  wire,  1,  to  the  Padding- 
ton  station  ;  entering  the  dial  to  the  electrometer,  1,  deflect- 
ing the  lower  half  of  the  needle  to  the  right ;  then  along  wire, 
1,  to  the  key,  1 ;  then  to  button  9  ;  then  to  the  cross-bar,  N, 
beneath  ;  and  then  to  the  negative  pole  of  the  battery,  o.  It 
will  be  observed, 'that  the  needles  of  both  stations,  thus  deflect- 
ed, point  to  the  same  letter  v. 

If  a  numeral  is  be  signaled,  it  is  obvious,  that  but  one  elec- 
trometer is  needed.  We  will,  therefore,  suppose  that  the  needle, 
1,  is  vertical. 

Let  the  buttons,  7  and  16,  he  pressed  down,  at  the  Padding- 
ton  station.  The  current  then  leaves  the  positive  pole  of  the 
battery,  o,  to  the  cross-bar,  p ;  then  to  the  key,  4 ;  then  along 
wire,  4,  to  electrometer,  4,  deflecting  the  lower  half  of  the 
needle  to  the  left ;  thence  to  the  Slough  station  to  electrom- 
eter, 4,  deflecting  the  lower  half  of  the  needle  to  the  left ; 
then  to  wire,  4 ;  then  to  key,  4 ;  then  to  the  cross-bar,  L  and 
L,  and  along  it  to  key,  6 ;  then  to  wire,  6,  and  along  the  ex- 
tended wire  to  the  Paddington  station,  to  key,  6 ;  then  to  the 
cross-bar  beneath  the  button,  7  ;  then  to  the  negative  pole  of 
the  battery,  o.  The  needles,  4  and  4,  of  both  stations,  are 
simultaneously  deflected,  so  as  to  point  to  the  figure,  4,  on  the 
margin  of  the  dial. 

In  this  manner  the  circuits  required  for  each  letter  and 
numeral  may  be  traced  out.  Now,  suppose  the  message  to  be 
sent  from  the  Paddington  station  to  the  Slough  station,  is  this, 

"  WE  HAVE  MET  THE  ENEMY  AND  THEY  ARE  OURS."        The  Operator 

at  Paddington  presses  down  the  buttons,  11  and  18,  for  signal- 
izing upon  the  dial  of  the  Slough  station,  the  letter  w.  The 
operator  there,  and  who  is  supposed  to  be  constantly  on  the 
watch,  observes  the  two  needles  pointing  at  w.  He  writes  it 
down,  or  calls  it  out  aloud,  to  another,  who  records  it,  taking, 
according  to  a  calculation  given  in  a  recent  account,  two  seconds 
at  least,  for  each  signal.  Then  the  buttons,  10  and  13,  are 
pressed  down,  and  the  needles  are  observed  to  point  at  E  ;  and 
so  for  the  remaining  letters  of  the  sentence,  u  excepted,  which 
has  no  letter  on  the  dial. 

IMPROVEMENTS    PATENTED    IN    1838. 

The  second  English  patent  was  sealed  18th  of  April,  1838, 
tor  an  improvement,  with  the  power  of  communicating  from 
intermediate  points  in  either  direction  ;  but  when  not  working, 
the  alarum  belonging  to  it  could  be  sounded  from  either  termi- 


208 


HISTORY   OF    THE    ENGLISH    TELEGRAPH. 


nus  to  demand  attention.  The  patent  embraced  mile-post 
arrangements  for  the  connection  of  portable  telegraph,  and  for 
proving  the  wires.  Spare  wires  were  arranged,  by  means  of 
which,  faulty  wires  could  be  restored  at  several  places  without 


disturbing  the  general  line.  Iron  tubing  and  fittings  were 
specified,  for  the  protection  of  the  conducting  wires,  and  ad- 
mitting of  their  being  carried  under  ground.  Besides  these, 
there  were  other  valuable  improvements  invented  by  M. 
Cooke-t  having  in  view  the  perfection  of  his  telegraphic  sys- 
tem, not  only  in  regard  to  the  manipulating  instruments  of  the 
station,  but  also  relative  to  the  mode  of  constructing  the  lines, 
and  for  maintaining  a  continuous  means  of  electric  communi- 
cation. 

At  the  date  of  this  patent,  but  little  was  known  in  regard 


WHEATS-TONE'S  MECHANICAL  TELEGRAPH. 


209 


to  the  difficulties  to  be  encountered,  and  to  avoid  all  kinds  of 
hindrances,  the  telegrapher  had  to  devise  many  ingenious  con- 
trivances. 

WHEATSTONE'S   MECHANICAL  TELEGRAPH. 


The  next  important  improvement  was  the  mechanical  tele- 
graph, invented  by  Prof.  Wheatstone,  in  the  autumn  of  1839. 
It  was  an  escapement  apparatus,  with  one  magnet  and  two 
wires,  founded  upon  the  principle  of  giving  signals  by  a  revolv- 
ing dial  fixed  on  the  arbor  of  an  escapement  wheel,  which  was 
moved  by  a  maintaining  power  on  the  removing  of  an  alterna- 
ting escapement  detent,  by  the  alternate  attractive  force  of  a 
magnet,  and  the  reaction  of  a  spring.  Also,  moved  by  the 
alternate  attractive  force  of  a  magnet  and  reaction  of  a  spring, 
without  maintaining  power,  adapted  for  domestic  use.  Also, 

14 


210 


HISTORY    OF    THE    ENGLISH    TELEGRAPH. 


a  capstan  communicator,  effecting  by  a  revolving  motion,  the 
breaking  and  renewal  of  the  current,  corresponding  with  the 
alternating  movement  of  the  escapement.  Also,  an  alarum 
detent,  removed  by  the  blow  of  a  hammer  transmitted  to  de- 
tent, when  required,  by  a  magnetic  needle  interposed  by  an 
electric  current  between  the  hammer  and  detent ;  and,  also, 
the  substitution  of  the  magneto-electric  machine  for  the  vol- 
taic battery.  Such  were  the  principles  embraced  in  this 
patent.  Fig.  30  is  a  skeleton  view  of  the  apparatus.  Figures 
31,  32,  and  33,  are  more  detailed  representations  of  the  in- 
genious device,  and  with  a  little  study,  the  reader  will  fully 
comprehend  the  mechanism,  and  the  application  of  the  science 
to  the  art  in  the  premises. 

Fig.  31. 


Figure  31,  represents  a  side  elevation  of  the  dial  and  clock 
work  of  the  receiving  station.  A  represents  an  edge  view  of 
the  electro  magnet,  from  which  proceed  the  two  wires,  v  and  i. 
j  and  j  is  the  brass  frame  containing  the  wheel  work,  c  and  E  ; 
the  pin  wheel,  D  ;  the  dial  plate,  i ;  and  the  barrel  B,  which  is 
driven  by  a  weight  and  coYd.  In  the  side  of  the  wheel  D,  are 
pins  projecting  from  the  rim,  parallel  with  the  axis,  and  are 
equal  in  number  to  the  divisions,  or  letters,  upon  the  dial,  i. 
They  are,  however,  placed  alternately  on  each  side  of  the  rim. 
F  is  the  armature  of  the  magnet,  fastened  upon  a  horizontal 
rod,  sliding  freely  through  the  stan  lards  1  and  2.  G  represents 
a  spring,  fastened  to  the  frame,  j,  and  which  carries  back  the 
armature,  F,  when  the  magnet  has  ceased  to  attract  it.  From 
the  armature  there  extends  downward  an  arm,  K,  which,  as  it 


WHEATSTONE'S  MECHANICAL  TELEGRAPH. 


211 


approaches  the  pin  wheel,  D,  presents  two  Arms,  or  pallets,  one 
on  each  side  of  the  wheel.  These  pallets  are  so  arranged  with 
regard  to  the  pins,  that  if  one  pallet  releases  a  pin  on  one  side 
of  the  wheel,  the  same  movement  will  cause  the  other  pallet 
on  the  other  side,  to  arrest  the  motion  of  the  wheel  by  its  strik- 
ing against  the  next  alternate  pin.  H  and  i  is  an  edge  view 
of  the  circular  dial,  enclosed  in  a  case,  with  a  single  opening 
at  o,  so  that  only  one  letter  at  a  time  can  be  seen. 

Figure  32,  represents  the  two  instruments :  o  the  transmit- 
ting iustrument,  and  the  right  hand  figure  the  receiving  instru- 
ment. The  wires,  v  and  /,  are  respectively  connected  with  p 
and  n.  It  will  be  observed,  that  the  armature,  F,  is  not 
attracted,  and  that  the  right  hand  pallet  is  checking  the  pin 
wheel,  so  that  the  dial  is  stationary.  If,  however,  the  disk,  £, 
is  turned  so  that  the  circuit  is  completed,  by  the  contact  of  the 
spring,  e,  with  one  of  the  ribs,  instantly  the  armature  isat- 

Fig.  32. 


212 


HISTORY   OF    THE    ENGLISH    TELEGRAPH. 


tr  acted  by  the  electro-magnet,  which  will  carry  the  right-hand 
pallet  away  from  the  pin  wheel,  and  which  will  then  move  by 
the  action  of  the  weight  upon  the  barrel  B,  until  it  is  checked 
by  the  left-hand  pallet,  which  had  advanced  to  the  wheel  at  the 
same  time  the  other  receded.  This  single  operation  has  moved 
the  disk  one  division,  and  the  armature  is  still  attracted.  Now 
let  the  disk,  o,  be  turned  until  the  spring,  e,  has  been  passed 
by  the  rib,  and  is  in  contact  with  the  ivory  only,  instantly  the 
current  ceases  ;  the  armature,  F,  recedes  from  the  magnet  by 
the  action  of  the  spring,  G  ;  this  has  taken  the  left-hand  pal- 
let from  the  pin  wheel,  which  is  permitted  to*  move  until  the 
next  pin  strikes  against  the  right-hand  pallet.  This  has  now 

Fig.  33, 


FURTHER    IMPROVEMENTS    BY    MR.   COOKE.  213 

brought  another  letter  in  front  of  the  aperture  at  H.  Thus  it 
will  be  seen,  that  the  design  of  this  instrument  is  to  bring  into 
view,  at  the  aperture  such  letters  as  are  required  in  transmit- 
ting a  message. 

Suppose  letter  A  is  at  the  point, •&,  of  the  disk;  and  letter  A 
of  the  dial  is  opposite  the  opening ;  the  instrument  is  now 
ready  to  transmit,  and  let  the  letter  i,  be  the  first  of  the  mes- 
sage. The  operator  gently  turns  the  disk  round  in  the  direction 
of  the  arrow,  so  that  each  time  the  circuit  is  broken,  a  new 
letter  appears  at  the  dial,  and  each  time  it  is  closed  by  the  oper- 
ation of  the  pallets,  in  checking  and  releasing  the  pin  wheel. 
This  is  the  operation  until  the  letter  i,  has  reached  the  point,  £, 
when  a  short  pause  is  made. 

Figure  33  represents  the  instrument  in  its  case,  and  also  as 
exposed.  The  permanent  and  electro-magnets  are  seen  in  the 
left-hand  figure.  When  the  disk  was  revolved,  a  current  of 
electricity  was  generated,  and  the  effect  was  produced  at  the 
distant  station  as  herein  before  described. 


FURTHER    IMPROVEMENTS    BY    MR.  COOKE. 

The  next  and  last  improvement,  was  that  invented  by  Mr. 
Cooke,  in  the  month  of  November,  1839. 

Figures  34,  35,  and  36,  4 

represent  the  escapement 
telegraph,  with  three  wires, 
as  invented  by  Mr.  Cooke. 
The  three  figures  are  of  the 
same  arrangement,  and  the 
wires  4s  in  each  figure  are] 
intended  to  unite. 

The  principles  on  which 
this  invention  was  founded 
were,  viz. : 

1st.  Giving  signals  on  a 
fixed  dial  by  a  revolving 
index-hand,  fixed  on  the 
arbor  of  an  escapement- wheel,  moved  by  a  maintaining  power, 
on  being  stopped  by  the  retentive  attraction  of  one  of  the  two 
electro-magnets,  acting  upon  the  alternating  escapement  de- 
tent. 

2d.  Portable  telegraph,  requiring  no  battery  to  be  carried 
with  it,  and  adapted  for  working  in  both  directions  at  the  same 
time. 


214 


HISTORY    OF    THE    ENGLISH   TELEGRAPH. 
Fig.  35. 


3d.  The  application  of  a  constant  current  of  electricity  for 
telegraphing. 

4th.  Self-acting  telegraph,  the  hand  being  fixed  to  the  arbor 
of  the  escapement ;  adapted  for  tunnels,  crossings,  and  ap- 
proaches to  stations  :  enabling  a  train  to  give  notice  of  its  own 
approach  in  any  direction ;  also,  adapted  to  give  more  signals 
when  required,  by  a  hand  fixed  on  a  second  wheel. 

Fig.  36. 


5th.  Air  pressure  apparatus,  for  keeping  the  inner  surface 
of  the  tube  under  constant  pressure,  and,  by  adapting  the  de- 
gree of  pressure  to  circumstances,  enabling  the  tube  to  be  car- 
ried safely  under  water.  A  barometrical  detector  will  indicate, 
even  during  dry  weather,  any  unsoundness  of  the  tubing,  which 
hitherto  has  been  indicated  only  by  the  interruption  of  the  sig- 
nals caused  by  the  admission  of  wet.  A  portable  detector  can 
be  applied,  at  each  providing  box.  The  air  pressure  apparatus 
may,  also,  be  used  for  forcing  dry  air  through  the  tube,  to  re- 
move any  dampness  that  might  exist. 


FURTHER    IMPROVEMENTS  BY    MR.    COOKE.  215 

In  figures  34,  B  M,  and  36,  SM,  are  the  connecting  wheels  of  the 
communicator,  by  which  the  telegraph  wires  are  brought  into 
connection  with  the  pole  bar  3  ;  the  batteries  are  3c  ;  lie  are 
self-acting  cross-pieces,  and  the  same  pieces  of  metal,  as  B  M, 
and  SM  ;  18M,  in  fig.  34,  is  a  revolving  communicator,  con- 
centric with  the  signals,  and  fulfilling  all  the  conditions,  whether 
applied  to  terminal,  intermediate,  or  portable  telegraphs,  and 
capable  of  working  the  portable  without  a  distinct  battery  ; 
14D,  are  the  electro-magnets  ;  10c,  13D,  3c,  are  the  index  hands, 
and  4s,  the  conducting  wires  between  the  respective  stations. 

The  different  telegraphs,  and  parts  thereof,  were,  from  time 
to  time  improved,  and  to  this  day,  the  ingenious  mechanic  is 
devoting  his  mind  toward  the  perfection  of  the  general  com- 
bination. Notwithstanding  the  instruments  have  undergone 
some  change  in  their  peculiar  construction,  yet,  in  principle, 
they  remain  the  same,  and  perhaps  ever  will.  Mr.  Cooke  can 
enter  the  operating  room,  and  there  find  his  Heidelberg  appa- 
ratus, though  dressed  in  fine  rosewood  or  mahogany.  The  plain 
and  simple  mantle  he  placed  upon  it  has  been  laid  aside,  and 
the  mechanic  has  ornamented  it  with  beautiful  tesselated  work. 
The  original  electrometer  telegraph  will  be  found  within  its 
decorated  casing,  and  perhaps  will  for  all  time,  conferring 
honor  and  well-earned  fame  upon  the  inventor.  The  annals 
of  England  are  studded  with  the  names  of  men  who  have  per- 
formed deeds  great  upon  the  battle-field,  of  those  who  have, 
by  their  pen,  given  to  the  world  light  and  knowledge,  to  illumine 
the  pathway  of  men  through  life ;  but  the  crowning  glory  is 
due  to  William  Fothergill  Cooke,  who  has,  by  the  invention  of 
the  English  telegraph,  added  to  his  nation's  renown  increased 
lustre,  and  to  the  galaxy  of  her  illustrious  men,  the  most  bril- 
liant star. 


THE  ENGLISH  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH 


CHAPTEE    XIV. 

English  Telegraph,  and  Description  of  its  Electrometer  —  The  Single-Needle 
Apparatus — Formation  of  the  Alphabet — Single-Needle  Instrument  and 
Voltaic  Circuit — The  Double-Needle  Instrument,  Alphabet,  and  Manipula- 
tion— The  Alarum  Apparatus — Combining  and  Arranging  of  Circuits. 

ENGLISH  TELEGRAPH  AND  DESCRIPTION  OF  ITS  ELECTROMETER. 

IN  preceding  parts  of  this  work,  I  have,  with  much  detail, 
described  the  early  history  of  the  English  Needle  Telegraphs, 
and  the  principles  of  philosophy  upon  which  they  were  respect- 
ively founded.  I  now  propose  to  explain  to  the  reader  the 
organization  of  the  instruments,  and  the  mode  of  manipulating 
them  as  practically  operated  at  the  present  time. 

In  America,  there  has  not  been  a  just  appreciation  of  the 
needle  telegraph,  nor  even  a  moderate  idea  of  the  facility  and 
certainty  of  its  operation.  In  a  minority  opinion  rendered  in 
the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States  of  America,  in  1854, 
it  was  said  that  the  needle  telegraph  was  an  "  inefficient  con- 
trivance." At  that  time,  I  cordially  concurred  in  the  opinion 
of  the  able  jurist ;  but  since  then,  I  have  witnessed  the  opera- 
tion of  the  different  systems  of  Europe,  and  my  impressions 
have  undergone  some  change.  In  the  needle  telegraph,  the 
needle  vibrates  to  the  right  or  to  the  left,  and  the  beats  thus 
made  have  to  be  seen,  in  order  to  understand  the  message 
transmitted. 

The  American  telegraph  produces  a  sound.  In  many  of  the 
offices,  the  recording  apparatus  has  been  abandoned.  It  is  a 
question  yet  to  be  determined  in  practical  telegraphing,  which 
is  the  most  reliable,  the  sense  of  seeing  or  that  of  hearing. 

In  order  that  the  reader  may  the  better  understand  the  sub- 
ject matter  herein  considered,  I  will  re-explain  the  structure 
of  the  electrometer,  which  is  the  vital  part  of  the  telegraph. 

The  coils  i  k  of  the  electrometer,  fig.  1,  are  composed  of 
fine  copper  wire,  insulated  with  silk.  The  wire  is  the  same  as 


ENGLISH  TELEGRAPH  AND  ELECTROMETER. 


217 


Fig.  1. 


ordinarily  used  on  the  relay  magnets  of  the  American  tele- 
graphs, h  is  the  exterior  needle,  made  as  the  ordinary  com- 
pass needle.  The  interior  needle  in  the  figure  is  the  same, 
and  their  positions  of  rest  are  perpendicular,  fastened  to  a  com- 
mon axis.  The  needles  are  brought  to  a  vertical  position,  by 
placing  on  the  lower  end  of  the  interior  needle  a  weight,  or  the 
lower  end  is  made  the  heaviest.  When  the  voltaic  current 
traverses  the  coils  i  k,  the  needles  move  from  a  perpendicular 
to  the  angle  seen  in 
fig.  1.  Two  coils  are 
adopted  for  conveni- 
ence in  the  suspen- 
sion of  the  axis  bear- 
ing the  needles.  By 
the  transmission  of 
the  voltaic  current 
through  the  coils,  the 
communication  is 
made  known  by  the 
deflection  of  the  nee- 
dles. Suppose  the  cur- 
rent is  sent  through 
the  coil  /,  from  the 
top  to  the  bottom,  or, 
in  other  words,  from  i 
downward,  and 
the  other  coil  upward 
to  &,  the  needle  h  will 
be  deflected  to  the 
right,  as  seen  in  fig. 
1.  If  the  current  be 
of  great  intensity,  the 
needle  will  advance 
to  a  horizontal.  When  the  current  is  sent  upward  to  «,  and 
downward  from  &,  the  needle  will  be  deflected  the  reverse  of 
the  position  given  in  fig.  1.  The  process  Fig.  2. 

of  reversing  the  current  is  in  the  act  of 
sending,  as  will  be  presently  described. 

The  electrometer  needles,  represented 
by  fig.  1,  are  not  of  the  ordinary  form 
adopted  for  the  telegraph  instruments. 
Fig.  2  shows  the  construction  of  the  inte- 
rior needle  arrangement  as  sometimes  em- 
ployed. The  exterior  arrow  needle  has 
been  thus  placed  in  the  figure  to  show  the 


218 


THE  ENGLISH  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH. 


north  and  south  ends,  the  arrow  head  being  the  former.  The 
interior  needle  is  made  larger,  SQ  as  to  retain  a  greater  amount 
of  magnetic  force,  and  to  be  more  sensitive  when  the  electric 
influence  pervades  the  coils.  The  exterior  needle  is  some- 
times made  of  wood,  or  of  some  light  substance ;  its  move- 
ment being  caused  by  the  deflection  of  the  interior  magnetized 
needle,  it  has  been  found  most  effective,  when  made  of  some 
light  material. 

Fig.  3. 


THE    SINGLE-NEEDLE    APPARATUS. 


219 


DESCRIPTION    OF    THE    SINGLE-NEEDLE    APPARATUS. 

Having  described  the  electrometer,  I  now  propose  to  ex- 
plain its  application  and  its  operation  in  its  subserviency  to- 
mechanism  for  telegraphing.  The  electrometer  a  &,  in  fig.  3, 
is  a  rear  view,  as  will  be  seen  on  comparing  it  with  the  angular 
view  of  fig.  1,  and  the  front  view  in  fig.  2.  The  cross-bar  be- 
tween a  and  b  is  attached  to  the  frame  work.  To  this  cross- 
bar, made  of  wood  or  metal,  is  attached  the  moveable  axis,  to 

Fig.  4. 


THE  ENGLISH  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH. 

which  is  fastened  the  magnetic-needle  in  the  middle  of  the 
coils,  and  the  index  needle  in  front  of  the  coils.  Between  the 
coils  and  the  index  needle  is  the  index  face  of  the  instrument. 
This  face  hides  the  mechanism,  as  seen  by  fig.  4.  Fig.  3  is  an 
open  back  view  of  a  single  needle  instrument,  and  fig.  4  is  the 
front  view  of  the  same,  with  the  index  needle  a  b  in  front  of 
the  face,  through  which  traverses  the  axis  upon  which  the 
needles  are  fastened. 

The  instruments  vary  in  size  from  10  inches  to  20  inches 
high,  and  from  6  to  12  inches  wide,  shaped  as  the  old  mantel 
clock.  I  will  now  describe  the  manipulation  of  the  single 
needle  instrument,  figs.  3  and  4. 

The  cylinder  is  divided  into  three  parts,  of  which  two,  c  and 
D,  are  copper,  the  third,  o,  is  ivory,  and  this  ivory  section  insu- 
lates c  from  D.  Two  copper  points,  M  N,  are  fixed  upon  the 
cylinder,  M,  to  the  copper  division,  D,  and  N,  to  the  copper,  c  ; 
the  former  above  and  the  latter  below  on  the  cylinder.  These 
points  communicate  with  the  two  poles  of  the  battery  by 
means  of  the  springs  Q  p  and  G  z,  which  press,  one  upon  the 
cylinder,  and  the  other  upon  the  gudgeon  and  the  two  metallic 
strips,  Q,  Q.  and  G  s. 

On  each  side  of  the  cylinder  are  four  springs,  connected  two 
and  two  by  the  strips  K  E  R,  and  F  j  F.  Two  of  these  springs 
placed  in  front  of  N,  in  the  ordinary  condition,  are  generally 
pressing  upon  the  two  metallic  points,  x  #,  fixed  at  the  ex- 
tremity of  a  little  horizontal  copper  cylinder,  x.  The  two 
other  springs  are  in  front  of  N.  They  are  shorter  than  the  pre- 
ceding strips,  and  one  of  them  only,  K  L,  is  visible  in  the 
figure. 

The  earth  wire  is  attached  at  R,  and  connects  with  the 
two  springs,  K  L  and  E  i.  The  line  wire  is  attached  at  T,  and 
communicates,  by  means  of  the  electrometer,  A  B,  and  the 
strip,  F  J  F,  with  the  two  other  springs. 

In  the  receiving  position  the  exterior  handle,  m  n,  is  vertical, 
as  seen  in  fig.  4.  The  two  points,  M  N,  are  also  vertical,  and 
do  not  touch  the  springs.  The  current  coming  from  the  line 
at  T,  after  having  traversed  the  electrometer,  A  B,  passes  over 
the  spring,  F  H,  and  arrives  at  R  by  the  two  points,  x  y,  and 
the  two  springs,  E  i:<  The  needle,  a  &,  fig.  4,  deviates,  and  by 
the  number  and  direction  of  its  oscillations  indicates  the  sig- 
nals transmitted  by  the  corresponding  station. 

In  order  to  send  the  current  by  the  zinc  pole  of  the  battery, 
the  upper  part  of  the  handle,  m  n,  is  turned  toward  the  left. 
The  point,  M,  presses  against  the  spring,  F  H,  and  separates  it 
from  re,  and  the  point,  N,  presses  against  the  spring,  K  L.  The 


FORMATION    OF    THE    ALPHABET.  221 

copper  pole  is  then  in  connection  with  the  earth  by  means  of 
the  springs,  K  L  and  Q  p,  the  metallic  piece  c,  the  cylinder  and 
the  strip,  R  K,  and  Q  Q.  The  zinc  pole,  which  connects  with 
the  point,  N,  connects  with  the  line  by  the  spring,  H  F,  the 
strip  F  F  v,  the  wire  of  the  electrometer  and  the  strip,  w  T. 

Turning  the  handle  in  the  opposite  direction,  the  point,  M, 
separates  the  spring,  E  i,  from  y,  the  point,  w,  presses  the 
spring,  the  foot  of  which  is  at  j  ;  the  zinc  pole  is  then  in  con- 
nection with  the  earth  and  the  copper  pole  with  the  line. 
"When  the  current  traverses  the  electrometer,  the  inclination 
of  the  needle  is  always  the  same  as  that  of  the  handle. 

Sometimes  an  electro-magnet  is  substituted  for  the  elec- 
trometer, as  represented  in  the  description  of  the  magnetic  tele- 
graph apparatus. 

In  order  to  prevent  the  needle  from  swinging  too  far  to  the 
right  or  to  the  left,  small  pegs  are  placed  on  the  face  of  the 
instrument,  as  seen  in  fig.  4,  e  and/,  on  the  sides  of  the  needle. 

FORMATION    OF    THE    ALPHABET. 

The  alphabet  is  formed  of  a  combination  of  beats  to  the 
right  and  to  the  left.  I  have  already  mentioned  that  the  de- 
flection of  the  needle  is  changed  from  the  right  to  the  left,  and 
vice  versa,  by  transmitting  the  current  from  the  respective 
poles  of  the  battery.  When  it  is  desired  to  make  the  letter  A, 

Fig.  5. 

+      ABC  MNOP 

\     >\    \ 
D       E 


CHI  U       V      W 

V    ^    \ 

K       L          U          X       Y 

// 

the  needle  is  deflected  to  the  left  twice,  the  letter  c  four  times, 
and  for  the  letter  p,  four  times  to.  the  right.  For  the  letter  D, 
first  to  the  right  and  then  to  the  left  ;  for  the  letter  R,  first  to 
the  left  and  then  to  the  right.  The  second  beat  is  represented 
by  the  long  arm  of  the  angle,  because  if  they  were  equal,  the 
first  beat  could  not  be  distinguished  from  the  second.  When  the 
beat  is  seen  they  are  of  the  same  force,  and  the  long  and  short 
arms  are  adopted  for  the  book  or  for  writing.  In  making  the 
letters  Q  and  z,  the  short  arms  are  also  indicated  first.  Each 


222 


THE    ENGLISH    ELECTRIC    TELEGRAPH. 


of  these  letters  are  composed  of  two  deflections  each  way,  thus, 
v  A,  for  Q,  and  A  v,  for  z.  These  are  the  only  letters  requir- 
ing such  a  combination,  and  when  they  are  formed,  the  rule 
determines  which  arms  are  to  be  short  and  which  long.  When 
figures  are  to  be  made,  they  are  preceded  by  an  arbitrary  sign. 
Besides  these  signals  there  are  compound  signals,  indicating 
wait,  go  on,  I  understand,  I  do  not  understand,  repeat, 
&c.,  &c. 

Fig.  6. 


THE    SINGLE-NEEDLE    INSTRUMENT    AND    VOLTAIC    CIRCUIT. 

Fig.  6  is  a  representation  of  the  single-needle  instrument, 
as  now  employed  in  the  offices  in  England.  The  alphabet 
upon  its  face,  however,  is  not  on  the  common  instruments, 
except  a  few  for  students.  It  is  the  same  as  fig,  3,  except 
a  little  more  ornamental. 

Fig.  7  is  a  representation  of  the  interior  of  fig.  6,  and  the 
same  as  represented  by  fig.  3,  and  hereinbefore  described,  with 
the  addition,  however,  of  a  voltaic  battery  and  the  course  of  the 
electric  current.  I  have  preferred  to  describe  fig.  3,  first,  sep- 
arate from  the  battery,  to  prevent  confusion;  and  now  that 


SINGLE-NEEDLE    INSTRUMENT    AND    VOLTAIC    CURCUIT. 


223 


the  mechanism  of  the  instrument  has  been  considered,  I  will 
repeat,  in  part,  and  extend  that  description  to  the  operation 
in  connection  with  the  voltaic  battery. 

The  bobbins  or  coils  A,  are  made  Fig.  7. 

of  very  fine  insulated  copper  wire, 
in  size  about  -^-Q  of  an  inch  in  di- 
ameter, or  about  No.  36,  Amer- 
ican gauge.  These  coils  are 
from  two  to  three  inches  long, 
in  the  form  as  seen  by  the  differ- 
ent figures.  The  interior  needle 
is  in  the  rhomboid  form,  one  and 
an  eighth  inch  long  and  seven 
eighths  of  an  inch  broad.  Some- 
times several  magnetized  short 
needles  are  substituted  for  the 
one,  all  firmly  secured  on  either 
or  both  sides  of  a  thin  ivory  disk. 
The  index  or  exterior  needle, 
seen  in  fig.  6,  is  about  three  ( 
inches  long.  The  frame  of  the 
coils  A  is  made  of  copper,  wood, 
ivory,  or  of  any  other  mater- 
ial. This  frame  is  screwed  to  a  plate  of  copper,  on  the  sides 
of  the  telegraph  instrument.  The  wires  surrounding  the 
right  hand  bobbin  or  coil  is  fastened  to  the  screw  G,  as  seen 
in  fig.  7,  which,  by  means  of  a  metallic  strap,  is  connected 
with  the  c  on  the  right  of  the  figure,  secured  on  the  base  of  the 
apparatus.  The  other  end  of  the  wire,  on  the  left  hand  bobbin 
or  coil,  is  in  contact  with  another  screw,  D,  supported  by  a 
strip  of  brass,  which  is  fixed  to  the  base  ;  from  this  brass  plate 
there  rises  an  upright  stiff  steel  spring  d,  which  presses  strongly 
against  a  point  attached  to  an  insulated  brass  rod  r,  screwed 
against  the  side  of  the  case  ;  on  the  opposite  side  of  this  rod  is 
another  point,  against  which  a  second  steel  spring  d  presses,  and 
this  spring  is  attached  to  a  brass  plate  E,  terminated  by  the 
binding-screw  EX  ;  this  binding-screw  EX  is  the  terminal  of  the 
wire  from  the  left  hand  coil.  If  c  on  the  right,  and  E'  on  the 
left,  be  connected  by  a  wire,  w,  the  current  will  flow  from  c, 
on  the  right  of  the  figure,  through  G,  into  the  right-hand  coil, 
out  from  the  left-hand  coil  to  D,  thence  through  d  r  d  to  E,  and 
to  the  terminal  screw  EX,  and  around  the  wire  circuit  w  w, 
back  to  c  on  the  right  of  the  figure.  The  battery  contact  is 
broken,  and  the  direction  of  the  current  reversed,  by  the  action 
of  the  spring  d  d,  in  the  following  manner  : 


224  THE    ENGLISH    ELECTRIC    TELEGRAPH. 

In  fig.  7,  B  is  a  box-drum,  moveable  by  a  handle  H,  seen  at 
the  base  of  fig.  6 ;  around  either  end  of  this  drum  are  fixed  the 
brass  strips,  as  described  in  fig.  3.  The  lettering  in  figs.  6  and 
7  are  not  the  same  for  the  identical  parts  of  the  like  figures,  but 
the  parts  in  each  are  fully  lettered,  so  that  they  may  be  respect- 
ively traced  by  the  reader.  In  order  that  the  mechanism  may 
be  better  understood,  I  have  described  that  of  fig.  3,  which  will 
serve  for  the  same  parts  of  fig.  7. 

On  moving  the  drum,  by  turning  the  handle  H,  fig.  4,  or  in 
fig.  6,  the  steel  spring  d^  on  the  right,  in  fig.  7,  will  be  raised 
from  its  connecting  point,  r,  the  circuit  will  thus  be  broken  ;  but 
by  continuing  the  motion,  c,  on  the  left  of  the  figure,  will  come 
in  contact  with  the  spring  below  it,  and  thus  there  will  be  a 
battery-pole  at  either  end  of  the  drum,  and  signals  will  thus  be 
made  on  the  dial,  and  on  all  the  instruments  connected  with 
it.  The  connections  are  made  in  such  a  manner,  that  when 
the  handle  is  turned  to  the  right,  the  needle  moves  to  the 
right.  The  exterior  or  index  needle  is  always  placed  with  its 
north  pole  downward,  so  that,  in  accordance  with  the  law 
established  by  QSrsted,  of  Copenhagen,  looking  at  the  face  of 
the  instrument,  if  the  upper  part  of  the  needle  is  seen  to  be 
moving  toward  the  right,  the  spectator  may  be  sure  that  the 
current  is  ascending  in  that  half  of  the  wire  which  is  nearest 
to  him. 

DOUBLE-NEEDLE  INSTRUMENT ITS  ALPHABET  AND  MANIPULATION. 

I  have  now  with  sufficient  detail  explained  the  action  of  the 
single-needle  telegraph.  I  will  next  proceed  to  describe  the 
double-needle  instrument,  which  is,  in  fact,  a  union  of  two 
single-needle  instruments,  with  some  modification  of  the  mech- 
anism, as  will  be  seen  in  fig.  8,  which  is  a  rear  view  of  the 
apparatus.  Fig.  9  is  a  front  view  of  the  same  instrument. 
Fig.  10*  is  also  a  front  view  of  a  double-needle  apparatus,  but 
without  the  bell  attachment. 

Fig.  8  embraces  the  voltaic  battery,  the  interior  of  the  indi- 
cating apparatus,  and  the  alarum  attachment.  Fig.  9,  B,  is 
the  front  view  of  the  instrument,  and  A  the  alarum. 

This  instrument  is  in  use  on  nearly  all  the  railway  lines  in 
Great  Britain,  and  in  the  service  of  the  Electric  Telegraph 
Company.  Fig.  10  is  the  front  view  of  a  double-needle  case, 
and  the  dotted  lines  of  the  left  handle  and  the  left  index  needle 
show  the  extent  of  the  relative  motions,  in  reversed  order. 

The  alarum  at  A,  fig.  9,  is  worked  by  the  crank  at  B.  The 
handles,  H  H',  are  the  manipulating  keys  that  operate  the  nee- 
dies,  and  s  is  the  silent  apparatus.  In  forming  the  letters  of 


THE  DOUBLE-NEEDLE    INSTRUMENT. 


225 


the  double  needle  apparatus,  they  are  ranged  from  left  to  right, 
as  in  the  ordinary  mode  of  writing,  in  several  lines  above  and 
below  the  points  of  the  needles,  the  first  series,  from  A  to  p 

Fig.  8. 


15 


226 


THE    ENGLISH    ELECTRIC    TELEGRAPH. 


being  above,  and  the  second  series,  from  R  to  Y,  below.  Each 
letter  is  made  by  one,  two,  or  three  movements,  in  the  follow- 
ing order,  viz,; 

Fig.  9. 


A.  Two  movements  toward  the  left  by  the  left  needle. 

B.  Three  movements   toward   the   left   by  the  left  needle. 
c,  and  the  fig.  1.  Two  movements  of  the  left,  the  first  to  the 

left,  and  the  second  to  the  right. 

D,  and  the  fig.  2.  Two  movements  of  the  left  needle,  the 
first  to  the  right,  and  the  second  to  the  left. 

E,  and  the  fig.  3.  One  movement  of  the  left  noedle  to  the 
right. 

F.  Two  movements  of  the  left  needle  to  the  right. 

G.  Three  movements  of  the  left  needle  to  the  right. 

H,  and  the  fig.  4.  One  movement  to  the  left  by  the  right 
hand  needle. 


THE    ALPHABET    AND    MANIPULATION. 

I.  Two  movements  to  the  left  by  the  right  needle. 

j.  Is  omitted,  and  replaced  by  G. 

K.  Three  movements  of  the  right  needle  to  the  left. 

Fig.  10. 


227 


L,  and  the  fig.  5.  Two  movements  of  the  right-hand  needle, 
the  first  to  the  right,  the  second  to  the  left. 

M,  and  the  fig.  6.  Two  movements  of  the  right  needle,  the 
first  to  the  left,  the  second  to  the  right. 

N,  and  the  fig.  7.  One  movement  of  the  right  needle  toward 
the  right. 

o.  Two  movements  of  the  right  needle  to  the  right. 

p.  Three  movements  of  the  right  needle  to  the  right. 

Q.  Is  omitted,  and  K  substituted  for  it 


228  THE  ENGLISH  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH. 

R,  and  the  fig.  8.  A  single  movement  of  both  needles  toward 
the  left. 

s.  Two  movements  of  both  needles  toward  the  right. 

T.  Three  movements  of  both  needles  toward  the  left. 

u,  and  the  fig.  9.  Two  movements  of  both  needles,  the  first 
to  the  right,  the  second  to  the  left. 

v,  and  o.  Two  movements  of  both  needles,  the  first  to  the 
left,  the  second  to  the  right. 

w.  One  movement  of  both  needles  toward  the  right. 

x.  Two  movements  of  both  needles  toward  the  right. 

Y.  Three  movements  of  both  needles  toward  the  right. 

z.  Is  omitted  and  replaced  by  s. 

The  above  alphabet  is  only  one  of  the  different  combinations 
in  the  English  telegraph. 

The  sign  of  the  cross,  t,  indicates  the  termination  of  a  word, 
and  is  designated  by  a  single  movement  of  the  left  needle  tow- 
ard the  left ;  the  same  signal  is  given  when  the  receiving  oper- 
ator does  not  understand  his  correspondent's  message. 

The  letter  E  is  the  signal  for  "yes"  and  "understand" 

The  signal  E,  however,  is  repeated  twice,  that  is,  two  move- 
ments of  the  left  needle  toward  the  right. 

The  words  "wait,"  "rgo  on,"  seen  on  the  right  and  left 
side  of  the  bottom  of  the  dial  face,  are  of  much  importance  in 
the  transmission  of  messages.  Suppose  London  wishes  to  cor- 
respond with  Dover.  The  operator  sends  signal  indicating  Do- 
ver as  the  office  desired.  If  the  operator  at  Dover  Nis  engaged, 
and  cannot  receive  the  message  from  London,  he  sends  the  let- 
ters R  R,  which  means  "wait"  "When  he  is  ready  to  receive 
the  dispatch  from  London,  he  sends  the  letters  w  w,  which  in- 
dicate the  arbitrary  term,  "  go  on"  The  correspondence  then 
proceeds.  Suppose  London  wishes  to  send  a  message  to  Ton- 
bridge,  Ryegate,  Ashford,  or  any  other  office.  The  arbitrary 
signal  indicating  each  station,  is  made ;  thus,  for  London  the 
letter  R  is  the  signal,  for  Tonbridge,  the  letter  E,  for  Dover,  w, 
and  so  on.  London  signals  Tonbridge,  and  the  alarum  attach- 
ment being  in  circuit,  the  bell  is  sounded,  which  calls  the  at- 
tention of  the  operator,  who  immediately  repairs  to  his  instru- 
ments, and  reads  the  signal  calls  being  made  by  London,  the 
operator  at  Tonbridge  responds  by  sending  the  signals  R  and 
E,  which  means  that  he  is  present,  and  the  signal,  "  go 
on,"  is  also  sent  if  he  is  ready  to  receive  the  message.  Lon- 
don then  proceeds,  first  by  ringing  the  bell,  and  then,  in  the 
sending  of  the  words  by  signaling  each  letter.  If  Tonbridge 
does  not  understand  he  sends  the  signal  of  the  cross,  t,  and 
if  he  understands,  he  sends  the  signal  E.  When  the  message 


THE    ALARUM    APPARATUS. 


229 


is  finished,  London  deflects  his  left  hand  needle  twice  to  the 
left.    .Tunbridge  returns  the  signal  as  a  finish. 

The'  numerals  are  indicated  by  the  formation  of  the  letters, 
preceded  by  the  signals  H  and  the  cross,  t.  These  signals 
mean  that  figures  are  to  be  sent,  and  not  letters.  These  fig- 
ures are  given  by  the  deflections  representing  the  letters  c,  D, 
E,  H,  L,  M,  N,  R,  u  and  v.  The  w  is  used  as  a  space  mark 
between  the  figures,  thus,  for  $123  00  is  sent  c  D  E  w  v  v. 
The  dollar,  sterling,  franc,  shilling,  penny,  and  other  terms,  have 
arbitrary  signals. 

DESCRIPTION    OF    THE    ALARUM    APPARATUS. 


Fig.  11. 


The  mechanism  of  the  alarum 
apparatus  is  arranged  at  the  upper 
part  of  the  instrument.  They  are 
all  based  upon  the  same  principles 
in  science  and  art,  but  some  differ 
immaterially  from  others  in  mech- 
anism. 

Fig.  11  represents  the  mechan- 
ism of  the  alarum.  A  is  the  electro 
magnet.  B  is  the  armature  of  soft 
iron,  susceptible  of  attraction  when- 
ever the  electric  current  traverses 
the  coils  or  bobbins  A.  The  arma- 
ture is  prevented  from  coming  in 
contact  with  the  electro-magnets 
by  stop  pins  of  copper,  insulated 
with  ivory,  inserted  in  its  face. 
The  armature  is  mounted  on  the 
lever  arm,  c,  which  carries  at  its  lower  end  a  short  projecting 
piece,  e,  which,  catching  in  a  stop  on  the  circumference  of  the 
wheel,  d,  prevents  it  from  moving.  When  the  current  ceases 
to  traverse  the  helices  or  coils,  the  armature  is  drawn  back  to 
its  normal  position  by  the  small  spring,  /.  The  principal 
pieces  of  the  clock-work  are  shown  in  the  figure,  namely  the 
cog-wheel,  &,  is  connected  by  a  pinion  with  the  cog-wheel,  a, 
which  works  /,  and  this  again  gives  motion  to  d,  which  carries 
the  stop.  The  anchor  escapement,  g1,  works  on  the  wheel,  /, 
and  on  the  axis  of  the  same  wheel  is  placed  the  double-headed 
hammer,  h.  On  completing  the  battery  circuit,  the  armature, 
B,  is  attracted  by  the  electro  magnet,  the  long  arm  of  the  lever, 
c,  moyes  to  the  left,  and  the  wheel,  d,  being  then  set  at  libe.rty, 
the  mainspring  in  the  barrel,  or  the  weight  suspended  there- 
from, which  is  kept  constantly  wound  up,  sets  it  in  motion,  and 


230  THE  ENGLISH  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH. 

the  hammer  is  instantly  put  into  rapid  vibration,  striking  alter- 
nately the  opposite  sides  of  the  bell,  D  ;  the  ringing  is  kept  up 
as  long  as  the  circuit  is  closed,  but  the  moment  it  is  broken, 
the  armature  is  detached  by  the  spring,  /,  and  the  catch  is 
again  pressed  into  its  place  on  the  wheel,  d.  It  is  not  the  vol- 
taic current  that  rings  the  bell,  but  the  mainspring  in  the  bar- 
rel, or  the  weight  thereto  attached.  All  that  the  electric  cur- 
rent ddes  is  to  disengage  the  catch.  Any  size  bell  can  be  rung 
by  an  arrangement  of  this  kind.  This  is  verified  by  the  ringing 
of  the  church  'bells  in  Boston,  to  give  the  alarm  of  fire.  A  cen- 
tral station  transmits  the  electric  current  through  a  wire  ex- 
tending to  the  bells  of  some  dozen  churches.  An  electro  mag- 
net at  or  near  each  bell,  disengages  a  catch,  and  the  mechanism 
is  put  in  motion,  and  the  bell  is  rung  a  given  time,  and  the 
hammer  strikes  the  bell  a  given  number  of  times  to  indicate 
the  section  of  the  city  in  which  the  fire  is  located. 

The  bell  arrangement  herein  described  is  common  to  all 
electric  telegraphs.  I  have  described  it,  because  I  deemed  it 
necessary  to  enable  the  reader  to  understand  its  application  to 
the  needle  telegraph. 

From  the  description  of  the  English  needle  telegraph,  the 
reader  will  see  that  it  is  not  an  "  inefficient  contrivance,"  but 
really  an  ingenious  piece  of  mechanism,  blending  principles  of 
science  and  art  peculiarly  simple,  and  at  the  same  time  won- 
derfully utilitarian.  It  is  a  perfect  system,  and  has  proved  to 
be  eminently  practicable.  A  month's  study  and  practice  renders 
an  operator  capable  of  managing  an  instrument.  Expertness 
follows  practice  and  close  application  in  the  perfection  of  ma- 
nipulation. An  operator  can  send  some  150  letters  per  minute, 
but  the  rapidity  of  the  signals  would  be  difficult  to  be  under- 
stood. An  expert  can  receive  at  the  rate  of  100  letters  per 
minute.  The  usual  rate  is  as  fast  as  the  receiver  can  con- 
veniently write  them. 

COMBINING    AND    ARRANGING    OF    ELECTRIC    CIRCUITS. 

The  arrangement  of  the  wires  on  the  English  telegraph  lines 
are  apparently  complicated,  but  in  reality  their  connections  are 
under  the  most  perfect  organization.  To  enable  the  reader  to 
understand  something  more  of  the  details  of  the  English  sys- 
tem, I  have  selected  a  few  examples  to  illustrate  the  respective 
points  referred  to. 

The  North  Kent  Line,  from  London  to  Rochester,  has  a 
through  group  of  five  chief  stations  on  one  pair  of  wires ;  and 
two  shorter  groups,  of  six  and  seven  stations  respectively,  on  a 
second  pair.  They  are  all  double-needle  instruments,  with 


ARRANGEMENT    OF    ELECTRIC    CIRCUITS.  281 

alarums  on  one  of  the  needle  wkes.  The  branches  to  Tun- 
bridge  Wells,  to  Maidstone,  to  Ramsgate,  to  Deal,  and  to  Mar- 
gate have  each  a  pair  of  wires  for  double-needle  instruments  at 
their  stations,  and  a  third  wire  for  the  alarum.  At  Tunbridge, 
the  switchmen  have  single-needle  instruments  and  alarums 
on  one  and  the  same  wire.  All  stations  are  furnished  with 
an  earth- wire,  and  all  groups  must  terminate  in  the  earth. 

The  silent  apparatus  is  an  application  of  the  earth-wre,  as 
at  Tunbridge,  Ashford,  and  Folkestone,  on  the  main  line  ;  and  at 
Lewisham,  Woolwich,  and  Grravesend,  on  the  North  Kent  line. 
Take  Tunbridge,  for  an  example  :  wires  1  and  2  pursue  an  un- 
interrupted course  from  London  to  Dover,  and  include  the  Tun- 
bridge instrument  in  their  course ;  hence,  if  London  makes  a 
signal  for  Dover,  or  Dover  for  London,  it  must,  of  course,  be 
visible  at  Tunbridge  ;  and  if  Tunbridge  makes  a  signal  for  Lon- 
don, it  must  be  seen  at  Dover  ;  because  the  circuit  begins  with 
the  London  earth-plate,  and  is  continued  by  the  unbroken  wire 
to  the  Dover  earth-plate  ;  and,  although  not  required  at  Dover, 
the  current  in  this  case  must  go  there  to  get  to  the  earth  and 
complete  the  circuit.  But  if  provided  with  a  means  of  getting 
to  the  earth  at  Tunbridge,  the  long  and  unnecessary  journey 
will  be  saved,  and  it  will  at  once  enter  the  earth  at  the  nearest 
spot :  if,  therefore,  when  talking  from  Tunbridge  with  London, 
two  small  wires  are  carried  from  Tunbridge  earth  to  the  line- 
wires  on  the  Dover  side  of  the  Tunbridge  instrument,  the  line 
is  cut  short,  and  the  signals  are  compelled  to  go  only  in  the 
direction  required,  namely,  up  toward  London  :  by  putting  the 
earth- wire  on  the  other  side  of  the  Tunbridge  instrument,  sig- 
nals are  passed  down  the  line  only.  The  little  arrangement, 
called  the  silent  apparatus,  is  provided  for  performing  this 
operation  readily.  Its  face  is  seen  a^the  lower  part  of  the  in- 
strument, fig.  9,  with  an  index,  showing  its  position  for  either 
operation.  Four  springs,  two  from  the  wires  on  the  London 
side  of  the  instrument,  and  two  from  those  on  the  Dover  side, 
are  resting  on  a  boxwood  cylinder  ready  for  use.  A  slip  of 
brass,  in  connection  with  the  earth -wire,  is  inlaid  in  the  wood ; 
and  by  turning  the  cylinder  in  one  direction,  the  slip  of  brass 
is  brought  into  contact  with  the  springs  on  the  London  side, 
and  by  turning  it  in  the  other,  with  those  on  the  Dover  side ; 
thus  connecting  the  up  or  the  down  wires  respectively  with  the 
earth.  This  operation  possesses  a  double  advantage :  by  re- 
ducing the  distance  one  half,  it  enables  the  station  to  work 
with  less  battery  power;  and  by  confining  the  signals  to  one 
half  of  the  wires,  it  leaves  the  other  half  at  liberty  to  other  sta- 
tions, and  so  on,  while  Tunbridge  talks  to  London,  Ashford  may 


232  THE    ENGLISH    ELECTRIC    TELEGRAPH. 

talk  on  the  continuation  of  tire  same  wires  to  Dover.  The  name 
of  this  apparatus  is  derived  from  another  adjustment  with  which 
it  is  provided :  by  pointing  the  index  to  the  word  "  silent,"  is 
moved  a  brass  slip  into  metal  connection  with  the  springs  from 
either  side  of  one  of  the  electrometers,  and  another  brass  slip 
with  those  of  the  other  electrometer ;  a  short  circuit  is  then 
made,  and  causes  the  sending  station  signals  to  appear  on  its 
own  ir^rument  only,  and  allow  signals  to  pass  on  between 
other  stations  without  entering  its  instrument ;  in  fact,  just  as 
if  the  wires  did  not  enter  the  Tunbridge  station  at  all.  The 
silent  apparatus  on  the  North  Kent  line  is  the  same  in  principle, 
but  different  in  construction. 

By  the  above  arrangement,  all  the  line  is  provided  with  in- 
struments, and  no  part  is  overcrowded  ;  and  an  examination  of 
the  plan  will  show  that  when  a  station  is  not  in  direct  commu- 
nication with  a  group,  it  can  hand  its  message  on  to  a  station 
that  is ;  for  instance,  London  gets  a  message  to  Penshurst  by 
forwarding  it  via  either  Ryegate  or  Tunbridge. 

Turn-plates. — Under  common  circumstances,  the  branch 
lines  of  telegraphs  terminate  at  the  junction  stations — as  the 
Deal  branch  at  Minster,  the  Ramsgate  at  Ashford,  the  Maid- 
stone  at  Tunbridge,  the  North  Kent  at  London.  But  there  are 
•  contrivances  for  turning  on  the  branch  wires  at  pleasure  to  the 
wires  of  the  main  line,  somewhat  as  trains  are  turned  by 
switches  from  one  line  of  rails  to  another.  The  turn-plate  is  a 
cylinder  of  boxwood,  inlaid  with  certain  slips  of  brass,  and 
mounted  for  protection  withinside  a  small  mahogany  box ; 
several  steel  springs  press  on  either  side  of  the  cylinder,  and 
are  connected  with  terminals  on  the  outside  of  the  box ;  the 
wires  are  connected  to  these  terminals.  The  slips  of  brass  are 
so  arranged  that  in  one  position  of  the  cylinder  the  springs  are 
connected  into  one  set  of  pairs  of  springs,  and  by  giving  it  a 
quarter  of  a  revolution,  they  become  connected  into  another 
set  of  pairs.  In  one  case  the  two  springs  from  the  branch  wires 
are  connected  respectively  with  springs  from  the  earth-wire  at 
the  junction  station,  while  the  main  line  is  open  through  from 
end  to  end  ;  in  the  other  case,  the  two  springs  from  the  branch 
wires  become  connected  respectively  with  the  two  wires  that  lead 
up  the  line,  while  the  two  wires  from  down  the  line  become  con- 
nected with  the  earth  at  the  junction  station. 


INTERIOR   OF   THE    ENGLISH  TElE- 
GRAPH  STATIONS, 


CHAPTER    XV. 

Interior  Arrangements  of  a  Station — Rate  of  Signalling — The  Strand  Telegraph 
Station — The  Public  Receiving  Department — Blank  Forms  of  the  English 
Telegraphs. 

INTERIOR    ARRANGEMENTS    OF    A    STATION. 

IT  is  my  purpose,  in  the  present  chapter,  to  describe  the  in- 
terior of  an  English  telegraph  station,  embracing  the  operating 

Fig.  1. 


234 


INTERIOR  OP  THE  ENGLISH  TELEGRAPH  STATIONS. 


and  the  business  departments.  It  will  be  impossible,  however, 
for  me  to  give  a  full  account  of  the  immense  business  details 
common  to  the  larger  stations,  such,  for  example,  as  the  Loth- 
bury,  in  London.  I  will  make  my  remarks  general ;  but  on 
such  things  as  will  be  sufficient  to  enable  the  foreign  telegrapher 
to  comprehend  the  peculiar  routine.  In  presenting  these  ex- 
planations, I  will  avail  myself  of  the  views  expressed  by  Mr. 
Charles  V.  Walker,  a  distinguished  telegraphic  engineer,  and 
to  whom  the  world  is  much  indebted  for  many  valuable  and 
important  improvements  in  the  art  of  electric  telegraphing. 

For  the  purpose  of  illustrating  the  organization  of  the  interior 
of  an  office,  I  will  first  explain  the  wire  connections,  which  will 
be  seen  illustrated  in  fig.  2,  as  arranged  upon  the  interior  wall 
of  the  station  at  Tunbridge.  This  station  is  just  midway  be- 

Fig.  2. 


tween  London  and  Dover.  It  is  a  commanding  position  upon 
the  line,  and  it  has  charge  of  branch  lines  centring  there  ;  and, 
besides  the  supervision  of  the  affairs  on  that  range  of  lines,  it  is 
the  first  station  from  London,  holding  a  position  on  the  through 
wires,  and  from  it  the  branch  lines  to  Tunbridge  Wells  and  to 


ARRANGEMENTS    OF    A    STATION. 


235 


Maidstone  diverge.      In  regard  to  the  station,   Mr.  "Walker 
graphically  writes,  viz. : 

"It  is  midway  between  the  capital  and  the  coast,  and  in  a 
central  position,  in  regard  to  the  rest  of  the  district.  Here  the 
conduct  and  management  of  the  telegraph  department  is  carried 
on :  we  have  here  our  staff  for  maintaining  the  integrity  of  the 
line  work,  for  cleaning  and  repairing  the  apparatus,  and  for 
keeping  all  stations  supplied  with  battery  power  :  and  here  we 
keep  our  stores.  We  befriend  and  assist  all  stations,  and  are 
their  prime  resource  in  time  of  distress  and  difficulty,  helping 
on  their  messages  when  their  own  powers  are  crippled,  and, 
under  all  circumstances,  securing  the  successful  working  of  the 
line. 

Fig.  3. 


"  Fig.  3  is  an  accurate  sketch  of  the  interior  of  the  Tunbridge 
office,  just  as  it  now  appears.  The  telegraph  table  supports  four 
iustruments,  and  there  is  a  fifth  on  a  bracket  on  the  wall.  The 


236  INTERIOR  OF  THE  ENGLISH  TELEGRAPH  STATIONS. 

wires,  which  are  cotton-covered  copper,  enter  the  room  above 
the  window,  and  passing  on,  are  led  in  coils  down  the  wainscot 
to  their  respective  destinations.  Some  of  the  batteries  are  in 
the  closet  beneath  the  table,  and  others  are  in  a  battery-room 
across  the  station  yard.  The  screen  to  the  left  is  the  Rubicon, 
beyond  which,  by  the  necessary  rules  of  the  telegraph  service, 
the  public  are  not  allowed  to  pass. 

( (  Fig.  2,  which  is  drawn  to  scale,  is  a  plan  of  the  wires  and 
instruments,  shown  in  their  places  in  fig.  3.  The  wires  are 
numbered  on  their  right  to  correspond.  Nos.  7,  8,  and  9,  are 
the  Tunbridge  Wells  wires  ;  the  letter  u  is  put  on  the  right  side 
of  the  up  wires,  and  the  letter  D  on  the  down  wires.  An  up 
wire  is  one  that  comes  from  the  London  side,  a  down  wire  from 
the  Dover  side.  The  last  wire,  marked  E,  is  the  earth  wire, 
and  is  connected  with  the  gas  pipes. 

"  A  is  a  mahogany  tablet,  carrying  the  old  form  of  lightning 
conductors,  one  for  each  line-wire.  A  brass  elbow,  carrying 
points  and  a  small  ball,  is  attached  to  each  wire,  and  a  similar 
elbow  is  placed  opposite  to  each,  with  the  points  and  ball  as 
near  as  possible  to  the  other,  without  being  in  actual  contact. 
This  second  set  of  elbows  are  screwed  upon  a  slip  of  brass  that 
leads  from  the  earth- wire  E,  as  shown  at  the  upper  part  of  the 
system.  The  principle  is,  that  atmospheric  charges,  collected 
by  the  line- wires,  shall  discharge  by  the  points  or  balls  to  the 
earth  ;  and  true  enough,  in  thunder-storms,  very  vivid  and  loud 
discharges  occur  between  these  balls  ;  but  enough  often  remains . 
to  damage  the  instruments,  so  that  these  conductors  are  now 
rejected.  The  table  next  below  A  carries  a  set  of  lightning 
conductors  on  a  new  principle. 

"  B  is  a  tablet  carrying  three  brass  rods.  The 'upper  one,  E,  is 
seen  to  be  in  connection  with  the  earth- wire  E,  so  that  it  is 
virtually  a  continuation  of  the  earth- wire  brought  for  conveni- 
ence sake  into  near  proximity  to  the  back  of  the  instruments. 
The  others,  marked  c  and  z9  are  connected  respectively  with  the 
copper  and  zinc  ends  of  the  battery.  They  extend  along  the 
tablet,  and  +hus  brir^  battery  power  close  at  hand  to  the  in- 
struments. I  have  drawn  only  a  portion  of  them  to  prevent 
confusion. 

"  The  table  and  its  four  instruments,  shown  in  perspective  in 
fig.  3,  are  here  given  in  plan.  The  instrument  next  the  win- 
dow, at  which  the  officer  on  duty  is  seated,  is  the  through  in- 
strument, communicating  with  London  and  Dover.  2  is  the 
single-needle  instrument.  It  is  the  termination  of  a  group,  of 
which  Ryegate  is  the  commencement.  3  is  one  of  two  instru- 
ments, its  companion  being  at  Tunbridge  Wells.  4  is  the  ter- 


ARRANGEMENTS    OF    A    STATION.  237 

minal  instrument  of  the  Maidstone  group ;  the  other  termina- 
tion is  at  Maidstone.  5  is  one  of  two  instruments,  its  fellow 
being  at  my  residence.  To  include  it  in  this  plan,  I  have 
moved  it  a  little  from  its  true  position.  The  dotted  lines  are 
the  outlines  of  the  instruments  themselves.  The  relation  of 
these  five  instruments  with  those  at  other  stations,  may  be 
readily  gathered  from  the  plan.  On  one  instrument  only,  No. 
2,  have  I  shown  how  the  terminals,  c  and  z,  are  connected  with 
the  battery  wires :  brass  wires  are  led  down  to  them  from  the 
table  B.  I  have  shown  the  terminals  c  and  z  on  the  rest,  but 
have  omitted  the  wires  to  avoid  crowding.  I  have  given  out- 
lines of  galvanometers  and  electro-magnets  on  all  the  instru- 
ments, that  the  connections  may  be  traced.  From  the  earth- 
wire  E,  a  wire  goefc  to  all — to  Nos.  1,  2,  and  3,  it  passes  direct, 
to  4  and  5  it  arrives  by  a  circuitous  course,  by  the  intervention 
of  the  turn-plates  a  b  c.  The  wires  that  go  from  the  l?ft- 
hand  side  of  the  galvanometer  all  lead  up  the  line,  or  toward 
London.  Those  from  the  ng7i£-hand  side  lead  down  the  line, 
or  from  London.  This  may  be  seen  by  tracing  the  wires  on 
the  plan.  When  the  wires  cross  in  the  plan,  it  must  be  under- 
stood that  they  do  not  touch  each  other.  We  can  easily  enough 
trace  the  wires  that  go  uninterruptedly  upward  to  the  table  A  ; 
but  it  requires  some  further  description  to  understand  what 
happens  to  those  whose  course  is  through  a  turn-plate. 

"  The  turn-plate  c  is  for  putting  the  Maidstone  branch  in  com- 
munication with  London  ;  the  double  action  turn-plate  a  is  for 
putting  the  superintendent's  instrument  into  connecting  with 
either  London  or  Dover  ;  the  turn-plate  b  is  for  connecting  both 
wires,  either  up  or  down  the  line,  with  the  same  needle  coil,  in 
the  cases  of  connection  between  the  line  wires.  I  have  not 
been  able  to  give  here  a  section  of  their  cylinders,  as  the  plan 
is  on  too  small  a  scale.  We  will,  however,  show  their  applica- 
tion by  tracing  wire  1 ;  first,  while  the  through  communication 
between  London  and  Dover  is  open ;  and,  secondly,  when  com- 
munication is  established  between  London  and  Maidstone. 

"  Our  first  example  will  be  the  course  of  a  signal  passing 
from  London  to  Dover.  *  I  have  marked  out  this  course  by  small 
arrow-heads.  It  enters  the  station  by  wire  1  up,  the  first  wire 
to  the  left ;  it  is  led  to  the  left  side  of  the  turn-plate  a,  which 
it  enters  by  the  second  terminal ;  it  passes  through  the  box  and 
the  cylinder,  and  out  on  the  other  side  by  the  terminal  im- 
mediately opposite :  the  cylinder  in  this  position  has  a  bit  of 
brass  for  this  wire  inlaid  on  either  side,  and  connected  by  a  brass 
bolt  running  through  the  cylinder.  The  current  ndw  passes  in 
a  direct  line  to  the  turn-plate  £,  entering  it  by  the  second  ter- 


238  INTERIOR  OF  THE  ENGLISH  TELEGRAPH  STATIONS. 

minal  on  the  left-hand  side,  and  passing  in  the  direction  of  the 
contiguous  arrow-head,  leaving  it  by  the  first  or  upper  terminal 
on  the  same  side.  In  this  drum,  when  thus  arranged,  there  is 
inlaid  a  slip  of  brass,  of  sufficient  length  to  allow  the  springs 
of  both  these  terminals  to  press  upon  it.  The  current  now  goes 
on  to  turn-plate  c,  which  it  enters  by  the  first  or  upper  terminal 
on  the  left,  and  comes  out  by  the  second  on  the  same  side,  the 
connection  being  exactly  similar  to  that  last  described.  It  now 
pursues  its  course  without  interruption,  to  the  telegraph  instru- 
ment, which  it  enters  on  the  left-hand  side  of  the  left-Jiand 
coil :  it  circulates  around  the  coil ;  and,  on  leaving  it,  circulates 
round  the  coil  of  the  electro-magnet  belonging  to  the  alarum. 
Its  course  is  then  to  the  upper  terminal  on  the  right-hand  side 
of  turn-plate  b,  coming  out  by  the  second  terminal  on  the  same 
side,  and  so  leaving  the  station  to  continue  its  course  to  Dover 
by  down  wire  No.  1,  D. 

"  We  will  now  trace  the  course  of  the  same  up- wire  1,  when 
the  turn-plate  c  is  so  turned  that  London  is  put  in  com- 
munication with  Maidstone.  The  current  pursues  the  same 
course  as  before,  until  it  arrives  at  the  turn-plate  c :  it  now 
enters  it  by  the  upper  terminal  on  the  left  side,  and  passing 
through  the  box  and  drum,  leaves  it  by  the  upper  terminal  on 
the  right  side  ;  it  then  descends  to  the  left-hand  side  of  the  left- 
hand  coil  of  the  Maidstone  instrument,  No.  4 ;  passes  round  the 
coil,  and  continues  its  course  to  Maidstone  by  wire  3  down, 
which  becomes  the  No.  1  of  the  Maidstone  branch  at  Paddock 
Wood,  as  shown  in  the  previous  plan.  But  the  turn-plates  are 
so  constructed,  that  while  they  make  a  particular  connection 
for  one  part  of  the  line,  they  provide  perfectly  for  the  part  not 
so  immediately  concerned,  by  putting  the  wires  that  lead  to 
that  part  in  connection  with  the  earth,  and  so  the  circuit  is 
complete,  as  far  as  it  goes.  In  the  present  instance,  the  same 
operation  that  turns  1  and  2  up-wires  to  Maidstone,  connects 
the  earth  with  the  up  side  of  the  through  instrument,  and  the 
communication  is  thus  kept  perfect  between  Dover  and  Tun- 
bridge  on  the  through  instrument.  By  following  with  the  eye, 
and  in  the  reverse  direction  to  the  arrows,  the  wire  that  comes 
from  the  left  coil  of  the  through  instrument,  it  is  traced  to  the 
second  terminal  of  the  turn-plate  c ;  the  connection  there  is 
such,  that  the  circuit  is  continued  through  the  box  and  cylinder 
to  the  second  terminal  on  the  opposite  side :  this  is  in  connec- 
tion with  the  lower  terminal  on  the  same  side,  whence  a  wire 
descends  to  the  common  earth- wire.  What  has  here  been  said 
of  wire  1,  equally  holds  good  in  respect  to  wire  2. 

"  Turn-plate  a  has  allowed  the  circuit  of  wire  1  up  to  enter 


ARRANGEMENTS    OF    A    STATION.  239 

one  side  and  pass  over  to  the  other ;  but  another  position  of  the 
cylinder  will  close  this  circuit,  and  guide  the  current  out  by  the 
terminal  next  above  the  one  at  which  it  enters.  The  wire  from 
this  terminal  leads  to  the  left  side  of  the  left  coil  of  the  instru- 
ment, No.  5 ;  it  passes  out  on  the  right  side  of  the  coil  by  the 
wire  that  passes  upward,  and  which  leads  along  part  of  the 
Tunbridge  Wells  branch  line,  and  under  the  Hastings  road  to 
the  companion-instrument  in  the  superintendent's  study. 

"  The  action  of  this  turn-plate  may  be  better  understood,  by 
showing  how  it  operates  in  its  three  positions  upon  the  two 
wires  that  lead  to  it  from  the  No.  5  instrument.  When  this  cir- 
cuit terminates  at  Tunbridge  station  the  course  of  the  current 
is  directly  through  the  box  where  there  are  three  terminals, 
each  connected  with  the  earth  by  a  common  wire.  When  it  is 
to  •  be  turned  on  and  to  terminate  at  London,  the  course  is  out 
of  the  box  on  the  same  side  it  enters;  and  when  it  is  to 
terminate  in  Dover  the  course  is  through  the  drum,  but  so  con- 
trived •  as  to  come  out  by  the  pair  of  wires  that  pass  between 
the  two  boxes,  the  arrangements  being  such  that  the  earth 
is  in  each  case  connected  with  the  circuit  not  then  in  use. 

"  It  would  occupy  too  much  time  to  describe  the  course  of 
the  whole  series  of  wires;  but,  from  what  has  been  said,  the 
careful  reader  will  have  no  difficulty  in  studing  the  disposi- 
tion of  each,  as  they  are  all  faithfully  traced  and  correctly 
numbered.  And,  by  comparing  this  plan  with  the  general 
plan  of  the  line,  there  can  be  no  great  difficulty  in  connect- 
ing the  special  arrangements  of  this  office  with  the  general 
disposition  of  the  line. 

"  The  mode  by  which  both  wires,  either  up  or  down,  are 
connected  with  the  left  needle,  by  turn-plate  £,  can  be  soon 
explained.  When  all  is  well  the  drum  is  so  presented  to  the 
springs  that  strips  of  brass  connect  them  in  pairs,  two  pairs 
being  on  each  side  of  the  box.  They  were  so  connected  when 
we  traced  the  course  of  wire  1  just  now.  Suppose  the  wires 
down  the  line  are  connected,  and  it  is  desirable  to  join  them 
both  on  the  left  needle-coil  inside  Tunbridge  station :  from  the 
right-hand  side  of  the  box  the  top  wire  leads  to  the  left  needle, 
and  the  two  middle  wires  are  the  down  wires,  we  merely  turn 
the  cylinder  and  a  long  slip  of  brass  presents  itself,  and  presses 
on  the  three  springs,  connecting  at  once  both  wires  with  one 
needle,  and  leaving  the  other  needle  out  of  circuit.  The  same 
is  done  for  the  up  wire  by  turning  the  handle  in  the  reverse 
direction,  and  presenting  the  brass  slip  on  the  othor  side. 

"  The  character  of  the  bell  circuit  may  be  further  illustrated 
from  this  plan.  Wire  1  from  London,  in  its  course,  after  pass- 


240  INTERIOR  OF  THE  ENGLISH  TELEGRAPH  STATIONS. 

ing  the  left  needle  coil  of  No.  1  instrument  has  been  seen  to 
pass  the  bell-coil  or  electro-magnet,  before  it  left  the  station  on 
its  way  to  Dover.  The  magnet  would  act  and  the  bell  ring ; 
but  if  the  bell-handle  were  turned,  the  current  would  mostly 
pass  across  at  *  by  the  stouter  wires.  These  wires  are  con- 
tinued round  the  room,  and  there  is  another  bell-handle  within 
reach  of  the  clerk,  who  can  make  the  short  circuit  at  J  without 
leaving  his  desk. 

"  The  Maidstone  branch  bell,  No.  4,  is  on  a  third  wire,  distinct 
from  the  needle-coil.  Wire  5,  D,  descends  to  the  electro-magnet ; 
it  is  continued  from  the  magnet  to  the  ringing  key  ;  it  is  thence 
led  upward,  and  joined  to  the  earth- wire  EX,  on  the  tablet  B. 
The  Tunbridge  Wells  bell- wire  9  pursues  a  similar  course ; 
coming,  however,  first  to  the  ringing  key,  and  then  to  the 
electro-magnet,  and  away  thence  to  the  earth- wire.  Wire  4,  u, 
which  comes  from  Ryegate,  performs  a  similar  office.  I  have 
given  the  outline  of  the  bell-case,  and  the  bracket  on  which  it 
stands,  to  which  latter  the  ringing-key  is  attached.  As  thus 
described,  these  three  bells  are  always  in  circuit,  and  they  are. 
so  arranged  at  all  stations  that  have  them ;  but  here  we  have 
supplementary  apparatus  by  which  the  short  circuit  can  be 
made,  when  the  noise  of  the  bell,  ringing  for  other  stations, 
would  interrupt  business  here. 

"  Fittings  such  as  we  have  now  described  exist  in  all  stations, 
limited  in  each  according  to  the  requirements  of  the  station. 
But  from  this  hasty  sketch  the  most  careless  reader  will  have 
seen  what  great  facilities  may  be  gained  by  well-arranged 
means  of  intercommunication  between  the  instruments.  I 
might  have  enlarged  upon  the  capabilities  of  this  station,  and 
have  shown  how  we  can  take  one  part  of  a  dispatch  from  Dover 
by  the  telegraph  at  one  end  of  the  table,  at  the  same  time  we 
are  sending  another  part  on  to  London  by  that  at  the  other  ; 
how  we  can  cut  off  the  line  and  test  its  character ;  how  we  can 
watch  the  variations  in  insulation  or  the  augmentation  of  re- 
sistance, and  feel  out  the  weaker  points  and  provide  remedies ; 
and  how  the  eye  of  the  chief  officer  of  the  department  can 
command  the  whole  line  by  night  from  his  home,  as  well  as 
by  day  from  his  office,  and  quick  as  thought  can  transmit  in- 
structions in  all  emergencies,  in  season  and  out  of  season  ;  but 
I  must  pass  on." 

RATE    OF    SIGNALLING. 

The  rate  at  which  newspaper  dispatches  are  transmitted 
from  Dover  to  London,  is  a  good  illustration  of  the  perfect  state 


RATE    OF    SIGNALLING.  241 

to  which  the  needle  telegraph  has  attained,  and  of  the  apt  ma- 
nipulation of  the  officers  in  charge.  The  mail,  which  leaves 
Paris  about  mid-day,  conveys  to  England  dispatches  contain- 
ing the  latest  news,  which  are  intended  to  appear  in  the  whole 
impression  of  the  morning  paper.  To  this  end,  it  is  necessary 
that  a  copy  be  delivered  to  the  editor  in  London  about  three 
o'clock,  A.  M.  The  dispatches  are  given  to  the  telegrapher 
at  Dover  soon  after  the  arrival  of  the  boat,  which,  of  course, 
depends  on  the  wind  and  the  weather.  The  officer  on  duty  at 
Dover,  having  first  hastily  glanced  through  the  manuscript,  to 
see  that  all  is  clear  to  him  and  legible,  calls  London,  and  com- 
mences the  transmission.  The  nature  of  these  dispatches  may 
be  daily  seen  by  reference  to  the  Times.  The  miscellaneous 
character  of  the  intelligence  therein  contained,  and  the  con- 
tinual fresh  names  of  persons  and  places,  make  them  a  fair 
sample  for  illustrating  the  capabilities  of  the  electric  telegraph 
as  it  now  is.  The  clerk,  who  is  all  alone,  placing  the  paper 
before  him  in  a  good  light,  and  seated  at  the  instrument,  de- 
livers the  dispatch,  letter  by  letter,  and  word  by  word,  to  his 
correspondent  in  London  ;  and,  although  the  eye  is  transferred 
rapidly  from  the  manuscript  copy  to  the  telegraph  instrument, 
and  both  hands  are  occupied  at  the  latter,  he  very  rarely  has 
cause  to  pause  in  his  progress,  and  as  rarely  also  does  he  com- 
mit an  error.  And,  on  account  of  the  extremely  limited  time 
within  which  the  whole  operation  must  be  compressed,  he  is 
not  able,  like  the  printer,  to  correct  his  copy. 

At  London,  there  are  two  clerks  on  duty,  one  to  read  the 
signals  as  they  come,  and  the  other  to  write.  They  have  pre- 
viously arranged  their  books  and  papers ;  and,  as  soon  as  the^ 
signal  for  preparation  is  given,  the  writer  sits  before  his  mani-* 
fold  book,  and  the  reader  gives  him  distinctly  word  for  word  as 
it  arrives :  meanwhile,  a  messenger  has  been  dispatched  for  a 
cab,  which  now  waits  in  readiness.  When  the  dispatch  is  com- 
pleted, the  clerk  who  has  received  it,  reads  through  the  man- 
uscript of  the  other,  in  order  to  see  that  he  has  not  misunder- 
stood him  in  any  word.  The  hours  and  minutes  of  commen- 
cing and  ending  are  noted,  and  the  copy  being  signed,  is  sent 
under  official  seal  to  its  destination,  the  manifold  facsimile  be- 
ing retained  as  the  office  copy,  to  authenticate  verbatim  what 
has  been  delivered.  This  copy  and  the  original  meet  together 
at  the  chief  telegraph  office  at  Tunbridge,  early  in  the  day,  and 
are  compared.  When  the  work  is  over,  and  the  dispatches 
have  reached  their  destination,  the  clerks  count  over  the  num- 
ber of  words  and  the  number  of  minutes,  and  find  the  rate  per 
minute.  From  twelve  to  fifteen  words  per  minute  has  become 

16 


242  INTERIOR  OF  THE  ENGLISH  TELEGRAPH  STATIONS. 

a  very  ordinary  rate  ;  seventeen  or  eighteen  words  per  minute 
is  of  very  common  occurrence,  and  even  twenty  words.  Indeed, 
when  all  is  well,  and  the  insulation  is  good,  seventeen  or  eigh- 
teen words  is  likely  to  be  the  average. 

In  1849,  Mr.  Walker  selected  eleven  messages,  the  minimum 
of  which  was  73  words,  and  the  maximum  was  364  words. 
The  aggregate  number  of  words  was  2,638.  The  total  time 
occupied  in  the  transmission  of  these  eleven  messages  was  162 
minutes,  making  an  average  of  16^  words  per  minute. 

In  1854,  while  I  was  in  London,  Mr.  Foudrinier,  the  secretary 
of  the  Electric  Telegraph  Company,  instituted  an  inquiry  in 
regard  to  the  celerity  of  the  signalling  then  in  practice.  He 
selected  eleven  messages,  containing  in  the  aggregate  244 
words,  and  the  time  required  to  transmit  them  was  689  sec- 
onds, or  at  the  rate  of  21^  words  per  minute.  This  trial  was 
made  on  the  English  double-needle  telegraph.  At  this  experi- 
ment, the  minimum  celerity  was  16  f  words  per  minute,  and 
the  maximum  was  24^  words  per  minute. 

While  visiting  the  office  of  the  Magnetic  Telegraph  Com- 
pany, in  Liverpool,  in  1854,  I  was  informed  by  the  brothers 
Bright,  that,  with  their  apparatus,  the  average  celerity  attain- 
ed at  a  trial  was  27-g-  words  per  minute ;  the  maximum  was 
37-g-  words  per  minute.  The  apparatus  used  by  the  Magnetic 
Company  is  described  elsewhere  in  this  work,  as  employing 
magneto-electricity.  An  opinion  is  entertained  by  the  friends  of 
this  improvement,  that  the  increased  celerity  in  the  last 
experiments  cited,  was  owing  to  the  use  of  this  species  of 
electricity. 

THE    STRAND    TELEGRAPH    STATION. 

I  have  explained  to  the  reader  the  arrangement  of  the  wires 
in  a  station,  and  there  is  but  little  left  for  me  to  say  in  regard  to 
the  operating  department.  Fig.  1  is  a  view  of  the  operating 
room  of  the  telegraph  office  on  the  Strand,  Charing  Cross,  Lon- 
don. I  have  visited  this  office  frequently,  and  I  recognize  the 
drawing  as  very  correct.  In  this  office,  I  saw  several  young 
ladies  employed  in  the  service  of  the  company.  To  the  right, 
in  the  figure,  are  two  ladies  seated,  one  of  them  is  watching 
the  signals,  and  repeating  the  words  thus  formed  to  the  other, 
who  is  engaged  in  writing  the  message  as  thus  given.  At 
the  centre  apparatus  is  a  male  operator  transmitting ;  and  to 
the  left  is  a  female  operator,  also  transmitting.  In  the  mid- 
dle, sitting  by  a  table,  is  employed  a  clerk,  preparing  the  mes- 
sages for  delivery.  In  front  and  to  the  left,  are  two  male  oper- 
ators engaged  in  sending  by  the  Bain  chemical  telegraph  instru- 


THE    PUBLIC    RECEIVING    DEPARTMENT. 


243 


ments.  This  room  is  on  the  second  floor.  On  the  first  floor  is 
the  public  reception-room.  Figs.  2  and  3  have  been  already 
described. 


THE    PUBLIC    RECEIVING    DEPARTMENT. 
Fig.  4. 


.  The  public  business  room  of  the  station  is  separate  from  the 
operating  department.  Fig.  4  represents  the  receiving  room  of 
the  great  Lothbury  station,  London.  In  this  room  will  be  found 


244  INTERIOR  OF  THE  ENGLISH  TELEGRAPH  STATIONS. 

one  or  more  clerks  for  the  reception  of  dispatches  from  the 
public.  Arrangements  are  made  to  give  the  public  an  oppor- 
tunity to  prepare  their  messages  in  private  ;  no  one  can  overlook 
and  see  what  another  is  writing.  Grreat  regard  has  been  given 
to  this  subject.  Blanks  are  furnished,  and  upon  these  blanks 
are  written  the  message  desired  to  be  sent,  and  all  dispatches 
offered  must  be  signed  by  the  sender.  If  messages  are  brought 
into  an  office  on  plain  paper,  the  person  bringing  such  is  re- 
quested to  copy  the  communication  upon  the  printed  forms 
provided  by  the  company.  If  it  is  not  copied  or  written  on  the 
company's  forms,  it  is  refused.  If  the  customer  cannot  write, 
one  of  the  company's  clerks  copies  the  message,  reads  it  to  the 
customer,  keeps  the  original,  and  obtains  the  signature  or  mark 
of  the  person,  at  the  foot  of  the  company's  paper.  The  message 
is  then  sent,  the  company  being  free  from  liability. 

Printed  forms  have  been  used  by  the  telegraph  companies 
in  England  from  the  first  established  lines.  The  difference  of 
cost  between  ordinary  paper  and  the  printed  forms  is  very 
small,  and  the  printed  headings  facilitate  the  registration ;  and 
the  defined  position  of  the  address  from  and  to,  and  of  the  body 
of  the  message,  materially  aids  the  instrument  clerk  in  for- 
warding the  communication.  To  all  good  customers  small 
books  of  forms  are  issued.  Larger  books  lie  at  the  places  of 
general  resort  (such  as  the  exchanges,  reading  rooms,  &c.,  &c.) ; 
while  casual  customers  find  forms  ready  at  the  company's 
offices  upon  counters  of  a  height  suited  for  writing,  when  stand- 
ing, and  subdivided  into  spaces,  with  fluted  glass  screens  be- 
tween each,  to  prevent,  as  before  stated,  any  person  seeing 
another's  message. 

As  a  commercial  affair  the  companies  regard  the  use  of  the 
blank  forms  as  indispensably  necessary,  so  that  the  stipula- 
tions thereon  printed  shall  become  the  conditions  upon  which 
the  company  agrees  to  send  the  message,  and  upon  which  the 
sender  presents  the  same  for  transmission,  all  duly  signed  by 
him. 

When  the  message  is  thus  presented,  every  condition  con- 
tained on  the  blank  forms  a  contract.  Being  legally  signed 
by  the  sender  completes  it  upon  his  part.  The  reception  of  the 
money  for  its  transmission  by  the  company,  completes  the  con- 
tract by  both  parties.  They  are  from  that  moment  bound  and 
responsible  according  to  the  stipulations  therein  set  forth,  and 
from  which  neither  party  can  recede  without  the  consent  of 
the  other. 

The  company's  cashier  quickly  counts  the  words  in  the  body 
of  the  message  (the  address  not  being  included,  but  passing 


THE    PUBLIC    RECEIVING    DEPARTMENT.  245 

free),  endorses  the  message,  and  writes  a  receipt  of  the  amount ; 
the  customer  is  handed  the  receipt^  upon  the  money  being 
paid.  Parties  sending  messages  are  advised  to  write  them 
distinctly  ;  and  the  cashier  reads  the  message,  in  order  to  see 
that  the  writing  is  legible,  before  handing  it  through  to  the 
instrument  room. 

The  cashier  enters  upon  a  list,  opposite  to  the  consecutive 
number  of  the  message,  the  amount  received ;  and,  on  being 
passed  through  to  the  instrument  room,  the  lad  receiving  the 
message  marks  the  number  upon  a  similar  list,  and  sends  the 
message  to  the  instrument  for  which  it  is  intended.  The  clerk 
at  the  instrument  then  dispatches  it  to  or  toward  its  destina- 
tion, receiving  an  affirmative  or  negative  signal  after  each 
word;  if  the  latter,  the  word  is  repeated,  not  having  been 
rightly  understood  by  the  receiving  clerk  at  the  distant  station. 
So  commencing  the  message,  the  sending1  clerk  signals  the 
number  of  words  the  message  contains  (previously  inscribed  on 
the  paper  by  the  cashier),  and,  as  soon  as  completed,  the 
receiving  clerk's  writer  counts  the  number  of  words  received, 
to  see  that  the  message  is  correct  as  to  length;  and,  as  will 
have  been  seen,  the  "understand"  or  "not  understand" 
signals  after  each  word,  check  the  words  themselves — admit- 
ting, when  the  system  is  carefully  carried  out,  of  little  possibil- 
ity of  mistake. 

In  the  foregoing  I  have  embodied  the  routine  observed  in 
the  chief  stations.  In  small  stations,  where  there  is  no  great 
influx  of  messages,  the  checking  is  not  carried  out  to  such  an 
extent. 

As  soon  as  the  message  has  been  sent,  it  is  returned  to 
the  checking  lad,  who  files  it,  and  draws  his  pen  through  its 
consecutive  number,  to  intimate  that,  as  far  as  the  due  for- 
warding is  concerned,  the  company  have  performed  their  duty, 
and  it  is  his  business  to  see  that  the  signal  clerk  has  endorsed 
upon  the  document  the  time  at  which  he  sent  jt,  the  station  to 
which  he  signalled  it,  and  his  initials.  By  such  an  arrange- 
ment all  chance  of  a  message  being  mislaid  is  avoided ;  as,  if 
the  communication  is  not  returned  in  a  quarter  of  an  hour  to 
have  its  number  marked  off  the  list,  it  is  the  duty  of  the  check- 
ing clerk  to  inquire  after  it,  and  to  ascertain  why  it  has  not 
been  dispatched. 

Very  little  time  is  lost  in  such  an  arrangement,  and  the  chance 
of  error  of  any  nature  greatly  diminished. 


246  INTERIOR  OF  THE  ENGLISH  TELEGRAPH  STATIONS. 


BUSINESS  FORMS  OF  THE  ENGLISH  TELEGRAPHS. 

I  annex  a  series  of  blank  forms  used  by  the  respective  tele- 
graph companies  in  Great  Britain.  They  are  herein  presented 
in  their  adopted  form,  and  about  the  same  size,  as  those  in  use 
by  the  lines  in  England.  I  also  give  the  blank  receipts  and 
account  forms. 

Document  A  is  a  blank  form,  which  is  used  by  the  public  in 
the  presentation  of  a  message,  to  be  transmitted  by  the  tele- 
graph company.  The  two  pages  represent  the  face  of  the  blank 
form  in  which  the  message  is  written,  and  the  heading  is  to  be 
filled  by  the  company's  clerk.  The  patron  signs  the  message. 
Documents  B  and  C  are  printed  on  the  back  of  the  sheet  on 
which  the  message  is  written,  represented  by  document  A. 

These  forms  present  the  tariff  of  insurance  and  assumed  re- 
sponsibility. Document  D  is  the  head  or  caption  of  a  message 
as  sent  to  the  public.  The  face  of  the  sheet  is  about  the  size 
of  the  usual  letter  paper,  only  half  of  the  blank  being  repre- 
sented by  document  D. 

Document  E  is  a  blank  used  by  the  companies  for  messages 
received  from  a  distant  office,  and  which  is  to  be  transmitted 
further  by  another  line.  The  size  of  this  blank  is  the  same  as 
document  A,  only  half  of  the  sheet  being  represented.  The 
forms  at  the  bottom  of  the  page  are  to  be  filled,  and  then  sent 
to  the  next  line.  In  order  to  prevent  confusion,  the  blanks  are 
printed  in  different  colored  inks. 

Document  F  is  the  form  of  an  account  sent  out  with  the 
messenger,  accompanying  a  message  for  collection. 

Document  Gr  is  the  form  of  a  receipt  given  the  customer,  on 
the  reception  of  his  message  for  transmission,  at  the  counter  of 
the  comDany  bv  the  cashier. 


BUSINESS   FORMS   IN   THE   ENGLISH   TELEGRAPHS. 


247 


02 


2    o> 

5  - 


aJ 


^000 
I        oiOOO 

i  <*<*>^s 


02 
02 

H 


.2  .8 


'£ 


«*««*€* 


s 


a 


c^ioeot- 


P 

QQ 


P 

O 

EH 

OQ 


a  e  5-I  § 


,  rH       -^ 

g^s 

m  «^ 


^rS 


s  a 


•§ 


02 

O 

M 
EH 

I— I 

ft 

^4 

O 
O 


ilj 


r^OOO  O       S     ^ 

.roooo    ^    3 


§111  ll'l 

^«4*«4<«*      3     ^      ^ 

til!  &33 

a  o  o  o     >•    H    3 

^  »-i  <N  co    s  ^  .a 

a^2^^ 


248 


INTERIOR    OF   THE    ENGLISH   TELEGRAPH    STATIONS. 


EH 
02 


rh 


o 


«s 


-•    o 


e  1 1 

Jj»  S    o     EH 


Sill  I 


1  I 


I  4  l  * 

s  «  ^  ^ 


i 


§  a 


Mi 


BUSINESS    FORMS    IN    THE    ENGLISH    TELEGRAPHS. 


249 


! 

! 

| 

f' 

1 

18 

.2 

! 

1 

>> 

rQ 

^ 
OQ 

! 
g 

o 

1 

(< 

Q 

«s 

o 

1 

«*^» 

V^fc- 

%« 

'  I 

£ 

0     . 

3 
*rf    d 

|| 

§ 

fs 

OQ 

II 

J 

<^te, 

£J& 
58 

^-^- 

S 

,'S 

1 

4_j    QJ 
Co    (t 
»^    Cfl 

>o 

>» 

a 

Q)  ^ 

(U    fl] 

5  S 

s. 

j 

s» 

£3 

•*J  o 

§i 

'O'S 

g 

0 

U 
%i 

xn  H 

ibove,  an 
rsed  Cor 

| 
H 

iu  o 

j 

H    Q 

£>  a 

arJS 

4->   d> 

£3-5 

j 

go 

85 

K.—I 

(U    rt 

tl 

£   IH 

a 

o'a 

4 

1 

i 

3 

O  nS 

250      INTERIOR  OF  THE  ENGLISH  TELEGRAPH  STATIONS. 


S  2~ 
fftS 

ill 


£    a  H 

>  IS 

3g| 

££  g 

*  1 5 

~  o>  •+* 

a  a>s 

ill 


«s    II! 


$ 


II 


t  « 

o 


J 


.s  "S 

fi  1 

w  "e  ^ 

1  !  * 

•S  ^  rO 

&  -2  -2 


i3^^&^S^&^^e^WS^^^^^ 


BUSINESS    FORMS    IN   THE   ENGLISH   TELEGRAPHS. 


251 


10 

QO 
r-H 

J  1 

J2;       f£ 

COMPANY 

• 

H 

O 

j 

a       C!) 

H 
co 

I1 

0 

Z 

o 
o 

1 

1 

z 

0 
J 

I 

rf 

| 

^^  ^ 

-si 

>  o 

O            03 

1  .§ 

1     O       H 

|8 

rt| 

.§> 


±tt^4ttttttW' 


252 


INTERIOR    OF    THE    ENGLISH    TELEGRAPH    STATIONS. 


3 

t£ 

i 


•LOJ> 


BUSINESS   FORMS    IN    THE    ENGLISH   TELEGRAPHS. 


253 


ou  £vd  put?  ' 

JO  88J    OU  8J«S    0^. 
!  ! 


a.re  no^ — -g;  - 


i 


O 

o 

*•  w 

(i        p. 

i  21 

I   a 

9 


i   1   1 

•§S-2 

I    &    s 


254 


INTERIOR   OP   THE   ENGLISH   TELEGRAPH   STATIONS. 


§ 


.b 


AVY'S  ELECTRO-CHEMICAL 
TELEGRAPH, 


CHAPTER    XVI. 

Nature  of  the  Invention  described — The  Transmitting  Apparatus — The  Receiver 
— The  Instruments  combined — The  Manipulation — The  Signal  Alphabet. 

NATURE    OF    THE    INVENTION    DESCRIBED. 

ON  the  4th  of  July,  1838,  was  sealed  a  patent  to  Mr.  Ed- 
ward Davy,  of  England,  for  an  electric  telegraph,  which  com- 
bined the  fundamental  elements  of  subsequent  chemical  sys- 
tems. The  patent  was  very  extensive,  and  embraced  many 
valuable  improvements  in  the  art.  It  was  bought  by  the 
Electric  Telegraph  Company  of  England,  but  never  used. 

The  following  outline  description  of  the  invention  will  serve 
to  give  an  idea  of  its  combinations : 

Three  wires  were  to  be  used,  and  points  of  metal  wire  were  to 
be  caused  to  press,  by  means  of  the  motion  of  magnetic  needles, 
upon  chemically  prepared  fabric  at  the  distant  or  receiving 
station. 

The  fabric  to  be  employed  was  calico  or  paper,  and  it  was  to 
be  moistened  with  a  solution  of  hydriodate  of  potash  and  muri- 
ate of  lime. 

The  motion  of  a  needle  to  the  right  caused  a  mark  to  be 
made  on  one  part  of  the  fabric,  and  the  motion  of  the  same 
needle  to  the  left,  caused  a  mark  to  be  made  on  another  part 
of  the  fabric ;  and  the  same  for  each  needle  attached  to  the 
respective  wires.  Thus  the  single  or  combined  marks  were 
made  to  express  letters  or  other  desired  symbols. 

THE    TRANSMITTING    APPARATUS. 

Fig.  1  represents  a  top  view  of  the  arrangement  of  the 
wires,  mercury  cups,  and  batteries  of  the  transmitting  station. 
The  close  parallel  lines  reuresent  the  wires,  of  which  DAB  and 

255 


256 


DAVY'S  ELECTRO-CHEMICAL  TELEGRAPH. 


c  are  those  which  proceed  to  the  receiving  station.     1'  2'  and 
3X  are  the  three  batteries,  of  which  p  and  N  are  their  respective 

Fig.  l. 


H 


poles.  The  small  circles  formed  at  the  termination  of  the  wires, 
and  marked  7,  1,  10,  2,  20,  &c.,  are  mercury  cups,  in  which 
the  terminating  wiros  are  immersed.  The  wires  1  and  20,  and 
2  and  10,  &c.,  which  cross  each  other,  are  no  in  contact,  but 
perfectly  insulated.  The  wires  shown  in  this  figure  are  all 

Fig.  2. 


C' 


10 


i®) 


secured  permanently,  with  their  mercury  cups  to  one  common 
base-board.  The  letters  H  j  K  M  o  and  u  represent  the  places 
of  the  six  finger-keys  used  in  transmitting  signals.  There  is 


THE    TRANSMITTING   APPARATUS.  257 

also  another  key  at  7,  for  uniting  the  wire  D  and  D.  In  this 
figure,  however,  the  keys  themselves  are  omitted,  in  order  to 
render  more  clear  the  arrangement  of  wires  under  and  around 
them.  Another  figure,  2,  is  here  introduced  to  illustrate  the 
plan  of  one  set  of  wires  and  their  two  keys.  In  fig.  2  is  rep- 
resented, in  a  top  view,  the  two  wooden  keys,  A  and  B,  and 
their  axes,  at  E  and  F.  G  is  the  battery,  of  which  9  is  the 
positive  pole,  and  10  the  negative  pole.  The  small  circles, 
marked  1,  2,  3,  4,  5,  6,  7,  and  8,  represent  the  mercury  cups. 
c  and  G')  and  also  D,  are  the  extended  wires.  The  keys,  A  and 
B,  have  each  two  wires,  passing  at  right  angles  through  the 
wooden  lever.  The  wires  of  the  key  A  are  marked  1  and  2, 
and  5  and  6,  and  those  of  the  key  B  are  marked  3  and  4,  and 
7  and  8.  These  wires,  directly  over  the  mercury  cups,  are*  bent 
down  a  convenient  length,  so  as  to  become  immersed  in  the 
cups,  when  the  lever  is  depressed;  and  rise  out  of  them,  when 
the  lever  is  elevated.  Now,  if  the  key  A  is  depressed,  the  cup 
1  is  brought  in  connection  with  cup  2 ;  and  5  is  connected  with 
6  by  the  wires,  supported  by  the  lever,  being  immersed  in  the 
mercury  ;  and  the  key  B  not  being  depressed,  there  is  no  con- 
nection of  the  cup  3  with  4,  or  7  with  8.  At  x  and  x,  under 
the  lever,  are  springs,  which  keep  the  lever  elevated,  and,  con- 
sequently, the  wires  out  of  the  cups,  when  the  keys  are  not 
pressed  down. 

Fig.  3. 


Fig.  3  represents  a  side  view  of  the  lever  or  key  A,  and  its 
axis  at  E.  R  is  the  platform  supporting  the  standard  of  the 
axis,  the  stationary  wires,  the  battery  G,  and  the  mercury  cups, 
a  a  and  10.  x  is  the  spiral  spring,  for  the  purpose  of  carrying 
back  the  lever,  after  the  finger  is  taken  off,  and  sustaining  it 
in  its  elevated  position.  Through  the  centre  of  the  spiral  passes 
a  rod,  with  a  head  upon  it  at  the  top  of  the  lever,  to  limit  its 
upward  motion.  At  its  lower  end,  the  rod  is  secured  in  the 
platform  R.  4  and  8  are  the  two  wires  supported  by  the  lever 
A,  and  are  seen  to  project  down  directly  over  the  mercury  cups, 
a  and  a,  so  that  by  depressing  the  key,  they  both  enter  the  cups 

17 


258 


DAVY'S  ELECTRO-CHEMICAL  TELEGRAPH. 


and  form  a  metallic  connection.     The  key  B,  fig.  2,  has  the 
same  fixtures,  and  is  similarly  arranged  as  the  key  A,  fig.  3. 

THE    RECEIVING    INSTRUMENT. 

Fig.  4  represents  a  top  view  of  the  arrangement  of  multi- 
pliers at  the  receiving  station.  R7  RX  R'  and  R  R  R  are  six 
magnetic  needles  or  bars,  each  of  which  move  freely  on  a  ver- 
tical axis  passing  through  their  centres.  The  lower  point  of 
their  axes  is  immersed  in  cups  of  mercury,  in  which  also  ter- 
minate the  wires  1 1 1  and  L  L  L.  The  wires  D"  A'  B'  and  cx  are 

Fig.  4. 


those  coming  from  the  transmitting  station.  A?  BX  and  cx  each 
enter  the  needle  arrangement,  and  first  passing  from  left  to 
right  over  the  magnetic  bars  RX  R'  and  RX,  in  the  direction  of 
their  length,  then  down  and  under  and  round,  making  many 
turns,  leave  these  three  needles  and  pass  under  the  needles  R  R 
and  R,  and  in  like  manner  from  right  to  left  round  them,  mak- 
ing a  number  of  turns,  then  pass  off  and  unite  together  in  the 
wire  9,  which  is  a  continuation  of  D".  This  wire  is  called  the 
common  communicating  wire,  and  the  wires  AX  BX  and  cx  are 
called  signal  wires,  though  they  too  are  occasionally  common 
communicating  wires.  At  right  angles,  there  projects  from  each 
magnetic  bar  a  metallic  tapered  arm,  which  rests  against  the 
studs  v  v  v  v  v  v,  when  the  needle  is  undisturbed.  But  when 
the  needles  are  made  to  move  in  the  direction  to  carry  the  arms 


THE    INSTRUMENTS    COMBINED. 


259 


to  the  left,  they  are  brought  in  contact  with  the  metallic  stops 
s  s  s  and  T  T  T.  To  each  of  these  stops,  it  will  be  observed,  a 
wire  is  soldered,  and  continued  respectively  from  s  s  s  to  1  3  5, 
and  from  T  T  T  to  2  4  6.  It  will  also  be  observed,  that,  from 
each  of  the  mercury  cups  below  the  magnet  bars,  the  wires  i 
and  L  and  i  and  L,  and  i  and  L  proceed  and  unite  in  pairs  at  L 
L  L  ;  these  three  united  wires  are  then  continued,  and  the  whole 
are  joined  in  one  at  8.  The  wires  123456  are  continued, 
in  a  manner  hereafter  to  be  described,  and  are  connected  with 
one  pole  of  a  battery.  The  wire  8  is  also  continued  and  connect- 
ed with  the  other  pole.  So  that  if  any  one  of  the  needles  should 
be  made  to  move  its  arm  to  the  left,  thereby  coming  in  contact 
with  its  metallic  stop,  the  circuit  would  be  complete,  and  the 
current  would  pass  along  the  wire  1,  for  example,  to  the  metal- 
lic stop,  then  to  the  arm,  and  to  the  magnetic  bar,  then  to  the 
axis,  then  to  the  mercury,  then  to  the  wire  i,  and  thence  to  the 
wire  8.  In  the  same  manner  the  current  would  pass,  if  any 
other  arm  was  brought  against  its  metallic  stop. 

THE    INSTRUMENTS    COMBINED. 

In  order  to  understand  the  combined  operation  of  the  keys 
and  needles,  fig.  5  is  here  introduced.  The  right-hand  figure 
is  the  same  as  fig.  4,  and  the  left  hand  the  same  as  fig.  1. 

Fig.  5. 
Transmitting  Station.  Part  of  Receiving  Station. 


B.   9 


260  DAVYS    ELECTRO-CHEMICAL    TELEGRAPH. 

The  wires  DX/  A?  B'  and  cx  are  detached  from  their  correspond- 
ing wires  of  the  transmitting  station,  and  it  may  be  imagined 
that  many  miles  of  wire  intervene  and  connect  the  two.  In 
the  left-hand  figi  re,  those  mercury  cups  above  and  below  1  and 
10,  are  joined  by  two  wires  passing  through  a  moving  lever,  in 
the  same  manner  as  has  been  described  in  fig.  2.  We  will,1 
therefore,  call  the  key  carrying  these  two  connecting  wires  H,  In 
like  manner  the  key  for  the  cups  above  and  below  the  numbers 
2  and  20,  is  called  j ;  for  3  and  30,  is  K  ;  for  4  and  40,  is  M  ; 
for  5  and  50,  is  o ;  for  6  and  60  is  u.  The  key  which  connects 
the  two  mercury  cups  on  the  right  and  left  of  number  7,  of  the 
wire  DXX,  is  called  7.  There  are  7  keys,  two  for  each  battery, 
V  2X  and  3X,  and  each  wire  A/  BX  cx,  and  one  for  the  common 
wire  DXX. 

It  will  now  appear,  that  if  the  key  u  and  7  are  depressed,  the 
cups  above  and  below  numbers  6  and  60,  and  the  cups  on  each 
side  of  number  7,  will  be  connected  together,  so  that  the  current 
leaving  p,  or  the  positive  pole  of  the  battery  3X,  goes  to  the  lower 
cup  50  ;  then  by  the  stationary  cross- wire  to  upper  cup  6  ;  then 
passes  to  lower  cup  6,  by  the  wire  supported  by  the  lever  u, 
which  is  now  pressed  down,  and  its  ends  immersed  in  the  two 
cups  ;  then  along  the  wire  D,  to  the  left-hand  cup  7  ;  then  to 
the  right-hand  cup  7,  by  the  wire  supported  by  the  lever  7,  and 
which  is-  immersed  in  the  two  cups  ;  then  through  the  extended 
wire  to  DXX,  of  the  receiving'  station  ;  then  through  9,  to  the  two 
multiplying  coils  of  the  wire  cx,  deflecting  the  arm  of  the  needle 
R  to  the  right,  against  the  stop  v,  and  the  arm  of  the  needle  RX 
to  the  left,  against  the  metallic  stop  s,  as  indicated  by  the  arrow 
at  s ;  then  along  the  extended  wire,  back  to  the  lower  cup  60,  of 
the  transmitting'  station ;  then  to  upper  cup  60,  through  the 
wire  supported  by  the  lever  u ;  then  to  N,  the  negative  pole  of 
the  battery  3'. 

It  will  be  observed  of  the  two  needles,  R  and  RX,  in  the  circuit  of 
the  same  wire  cx,  that  if  R  is  deflected  to  the  right  against  the  stop 
v,  then  RX  will  be  deflected  to  the  left  against  the  metallic  stop  s. 
The  current,  to  produce  these  deflections,  is  through  the  wire 
cx,  in  the  contrary  direction  to  that  indicated  by  the  arrow  of  wire 
cx.  But  if  R  is  deflected  to  the  left  against  the  metallic  stop  T,  then 
RX  will  be  deflected  to  the  right  against  the  stop  v.  The  current  to 
produce  these  deflections  will  then  be  through  the  wire  cx,  in 
the  direction  of  the  arrow  of  that  wire.  The  same  effect  is  pro- 
duced upon  the  two  other  pairs  of  needles  of  the  wires  AX,  and 
also  BX.  These  contrary  movements  of  the  two  needles,  when  a 
current  is  passing,  are  produced  by  the  coils  being  so  wound 
(as  described  with  fig.  4),  that  the  wire  passes  round  one  needle 
in  a  contrary  direction  to  what  it  does  round  the  other. 


PROCESS    OF    MANIPULATION.  261 


THE    MANIPULATION    DESCRIBED. 

If  the  keys  o  and  7  be  depressed,  the  cups  above  and  below, 
5  and  50,  and  on  each  side  of  number  7,  will  be  connected. 
The  fluid  will  then  pass  from  P,  or  positive  pole  of  the  bat- 
tery 3X,  to  the  lower  cup  50 ;  then  through  the  key  wire  to 
upper  cup  50 ;  then  along  the  extended  wire  cx  to  the  receiving1 
station ;  then  through  the  coils  of  the  multipliers,  deflecting 
the  arm  of  the  needle  R  to  the  left  against  the  metallic  stop  T  ; 
and  the  arm  of  the  needle  RX  to  the  right  against  the  stop  v,  as 
indicated  by  the  arrow  at  v  ;  then  to  wire  9  and  DX/  ;  then  along 
the  extended  wire  back  to  the  transmitting'  station,  to  the  right 
hand  cup  7  ;  then  by  the  key  wire  to  the  left-hand  cup  7  ;  then 
to  wire  D  ;  then  to  upper  cup  5,  and  through  the  key  wire  to 
lower  cup  5 ;  then  by  the  cross  wire  to  upper  cup  60,  and  then 
to  N,  or  negative  pole  of  the  battery. 

It  has  now  been  shown  the  route  of  the  current,  when  the 
keys  u  and  7,  and  the  keys  o  and  7  were  depressed.  It  will  be 
observed,  that  when  the  keys  u  and  7  were  used,  the  current 
through  the  wire  D/X  was  from  left  to  right ;  and  when  the  keys 
o  and  7  were  used,  the  current  was  from  right  to  left.  Thus, 
by  means  of  the  six  keys,  the  current  of  each  battery  may  be 
made  to  pass  in  either  direction  through  the  common  communi- 
cating wire  D/X.  By  the  keys  u  M  j,  with  7,  the  current  is  made 
to  pass  from  left  to  right  along  the  wire  DXX.  By  the  keys  o  K 
H,  with  7,  the  current  is  made  to  pass  from  right  to  left  along 
the  wire  D/X.  By  these  six  keys  all  those  various  deflections  of  the 
six  needles  are  produced,  which  are  necessary  to  close  the  circuit 
of  such  of  the  wires  123456,  with  the  wire  8,  as  are  re- 
quired for  making  the  signals  desired,  on  an  instrument  now  to 
be  described. 

Fig.  6  represents  a  top  view  of  that  part  of  the  instrument  at 
the  receiving  station,  by  which  the  signals  are  recorded.  The 
seven  wires  on  the  left  of  the  figure  are  a  continuation  of  these 
wires,  marked  123456  and  8,  in  fig.  5.  The  first  six  pass 
through  a  wooden  support,  b  b,  and  terminate  on  the  edge 
of  the  platinum  rings  a  a  a  a  a  and  a,  forming  a  metallic  con- 
tact. The  six  platinum  rings  surround  a  wooden  insulating 
cylinder  t,  which  revolves  upon  axes  in  the  standards  h  and  i. 
The  rings  are  broad  where  they  come  in  contact  with  the 
wooden  roller,  and  are  bevelled  to  an  edge  where  they  come 
in  contact  with  the  six  wires.  Y  represents  a  compound  battery, 
with  one  pole  of  which  wire  8,  from  the  needle  arangement,  fig. 
5,  is  connected,  and  from  the  other  pole  the  wire  proceeds  to  tho 
electro-magnet  z  z  ;  it  then  passes  on,  and  is  brought  in  connco 


262 


DAVY'S  ELECTRO-CHEMICAL  TELEGRAPH. 


Fig. 


tion  with  the  metallic  cylinder  d,  at  the  point  g.     The  cylinder  d 
revolves  upon  an  axis,  and  is  supported  in  the  standards  k  and  I 

To  the  cylinder  is  attached  a 
barrel  n,  upon  which  is  wound 
a  cord,  supporting  the  weight  e, 
by  which  the  cylinder  is  made 
to  revolve,  c'  c'  represents  a 
prepared  fabric,  such  as  calico, 
impregnated  with  hydriodate 
of  potash  and  muriate  of  lime, 
and  is  placed  between  the  pla- 
tinum rings  a  a  a  a  a  a,  and  the 
metallic  cylinder  d ;  o  is  a  cog- 
wheel upon  the  end  of  the  axis 
of  the  cylinder  d,  and  is  connect- 
ed with  other  machinery,  omit- 
ted here,  but  shown  in  fig.  7, 
which  is  a  side  elevation  of  part 
of  fig.  6 ;  o  is  the  cog-wheel, 
fig.  7,  on  the  arbor  of  the  cylin- 
der d.  B  and  B  are  the  two 
sides  of  the  frame  containing 
the  clockwork,  and  is  secured  to 
the  platform  R  ;  d  is  part  only  of  the  metallic  cylinder,  upon 
which  is  seen  a  portion  of  the  prepared  fabric  K.  The  cog-wheel 
o  drives  the  pinion  A,  and  the  shaft  of  the  fly-vane  G.  M  is  an 

Fig.  7. 


end  view  of  the  electro-magnet,  represented  by  z  z,  in  fig.  6,  of 
which  N  and  p  are  the  two  ends  of  the  wire  composing  the  helix. 


PROCESS    OF    MANIPULATION. 


263 


D  is  its  armature,  constructed  so  as  to  move  upon  an  axis  rep- 
resented by  two  small  circles.  To  the  armature  are  connected, 
and  capable  of  moving  with  it,  two  arms,  E  and  i,  which  pro- 
ject, so  as  to  come  in  contact  with  the  pallet  a  of  the  fly  G.  F 
is  a  spiral  spring,  one  end  of  which  is  fastened  to  the  armature 

D,  and  the  other  passes  through  a  vertical  hole  in  the  screw  s, 
in  the  bar  T,  by  which  the  armature  is  held  up  in  the  position 
now  seen,  when  not  attracted  by  the  electro-magnet.     Now,  if 
the  wires  N  and  p  connected  with  battery  Y,  fig.  6,  have  their  cir- 
cuit closed,  the  current  passing  through  the  helix  of  the  magnet 
M,  brings  down  the  armature  D  in  the  direction  of  the  arrow, 
which  raises  the  arm  i,  against  which  the  pallet  a  of  the  fly -vane 
is  resting,  and  releases  the  fly.     It  then  makes  a  half  revolu- 
tion, and  is  again  arrested  by  the  pallet  against  the  lower  arm 

E,  and  the  cylinder  D,  with  its  fabric,  has  advanced  a  half  divis- 
ion.    If  the  circuit  is  now  broken,  the  armature  D  is  carried  up 
by  the  spring  F,  at  the  same  time  the  arm  E  releases  the  pallet 
a,  and  the  fly  makes  another  half  revolution,  and  is  again  stop- 
ped by  the  aim  i.      The  cylinder  now  advances  another  half 
division,  making  a  whole    division    the  fabric  has  advanced. 
The  purposes  for  which  this  is  designed  will  how  be  described. 

Fig.  8. 


Fig.  8  represents  a  top  view  of  the  whole  apparatus  of  the 
receiving'  station.  The  fabric,  G/  c',  is  marked  in  equal  divis- 
ions across  it,  and  in  six  equal  divisions  in  the  direction  of  its 


264 

length,  thus  marking  it  into  squares.  Each  platinum  ring,  a  a 
a,  &o.,  when  the  instrument  is  not  in  operation,  is  in  contact 
with  the  fabric  at  the  middle  of  the  squares  across  the  fabric. 
It  will  be  observed,  that  the  wires  123456  are  in  connection 
with  the  battery  Y  and  the  circuit  complete,  except  at  the  arms 
of  the  needles.  Suppose,  for  example,  the  arm  of  the  needle  R' 
of  the  wire  cx,  is  brought  up  against  the  stop  of  the  wire  5,  at 
s,  the  circuit  is  then  closed,  and  the  current  leaves  the  battery, 
and  passes  to  the  electro-magnet,  causing  the  cylinder  and  fab- 
ric to  move  half  a  division,  then  to  the  metallic  cylinder  d;  then 
through  the  fabric  c'  c',  resting  upon  the  cylinder,  where  it  is 
in  contact  with  the  platinum  ring  a,  of  the  wire  5,  then  to  the 
platinum  ring,  then  to  wire  5,  then  to  the  metallic  stop  s, 
then  to  the  arm  of  the  needle  RX,  along  its  axis  to  the  mercury, 
then  to  the  wire  i,  then  to  the  wire  8,  and  to  the  other  pole  of 
the  battery  Y.  Thus  the  current  is  passed  through  the  prepar- 
ed fabric,  and  a  mark  produced  thereon  in  the  middle  of  its 
square.  If  the  circuit  is  now  broken,  the  cylinder  moves  another 
half  division,  which  will  bring  the  rings  to  the  centre  of  the 
squares,  ready  for  the  next  signal. 

But  one  battery,  Y,  is  used  for  all  the  six  circuits,  formed 
with  the  wire  8,  so  that,  when  three  of  the  circuits  are  closed 
at  the  same  instant,  as  will  be  shown  hereafter,  the  current 
passes  through  the  three  wires  of  their  respective  circuits,  making 
each  their  appropriate  mark  upon  the  fabric. 

I  will  now  proceed  to  describe  the  manner  of  operating  with 
the  two  instruments,  at  their  respective  stations :  and,  first,  I 
will  here  designate  each  needle  by  its  own  peculiar  mark  of 
reference.  Let  the  two  needles  upon  the  wire  A?  be  denoted 
by  A  s  and  A  T  ;  those  of  the  wire  BX  by  B  s  and  B  T  ;  and  those 
of  the  wire  c',  by  c  s  and  c  T.  It  will  appear  obvious,  from  the 
foregoing  description,  that  but  one  needle  of  each  wire,  A?  &  cx, 
can  be  made  to  close  its  circuit  at  the  same  instant.  However, 
two  needles,  or  three  needles  of  different  wires,  may  close  their 
circuits  at  the  same  instant,  but  no  higher  number  than  three. 
The  various  combinations  of  one  mark,  two  marks,  and  three 
marks,  upon  the  same  row  of  six  cross  divisions  of  the  fabric, 
constitute  the  characters  representing  letters. 

Fig.  9  represents  the  transmitting1  station,  which  may  be 
supposed  to  be  London,  and  fig.  10  the  receiving  station,  which 
may  be  at  Birmingham,  with  four  wires  extending  from  station 
to  station,  or  three  only,  if  the  ground  be  substituted  for  the 
wire  D".  Now,  if  the  keys  be  depressed,  the  following  deflections 
of  the  two  needles  of  each  key  will  be  produced : 


TRANSMITTING    AND    RECEIVING    STATIONS. 


265 


• 

60 

E 


1 


266       DAVY'S  ELECTRO-CHEMICAL  TELEGRAPH. 

THE    SIGNAL    ALPHABET. 

The  keys,  H  7,  move  the  arm,  A  S,  to  the  right,  A  T,  to  the  left. 
J7,  "  AS,     «      left,    AT,      «     right. 

K7,  «  BS,     «      right,  BT,      «     left. 

"       M7,  «  BS,     «      left,    BT,      «     right, 

07,  «  OS,     «      right,  CT,      «     left. 

U  7,  OS,     «     left,    C  T,      "     right. 

These  are  all  the  various  deflections  which  it  is  possible  to 
give  the  six  needles.  Those,  however,  which  deflect  to  the 
right,  not  closing  the  circuit,  produce  no  effect,  and  are  of  no 
account.  I  will,  therefore,  omit  them,  and  simply  give  the 
table,  thus  : 

The  keys,  H  7,  move  the  arm  A  T,  to  the  left.     No.  1 
"         J  7,  "  A  S,         «  «    2 

"        K  7,  "  B  T,         "  "    3 


u 

K7, 

U 

BT, 

it 

tt 

M7, 

a 

B  S, 

a 

il 

07, 

u 

•    CT, 

« 

11 

U7, 

a 

C  S, 

u 

"  4. 
"  5. 
«  6. 


Telegraphic  Letters. 

1  .  ... 

2  .  ... 

3  . 


ABCDEFaHIJKLMNOPQ,RSTUVWXYZ 

The  above  represents  the  telegraphic  characters  marked  upon 
the  prepared  fabric.  The  spaces  are  numbered  from  the  top. 

The  first  six  of  the  telegraphic  letters  require  each  a  signal 
wire,  and  the  common  wire  D,  with  one  battery. 

The  next  six  require  each  two  signal  wires,  with  two  bat- 
teries, whose  joint  currents  pass  in  the  same  direction  on  the 
common  wires  D. 

The  next  six  require  each  two  signal  wires  only,  with  two 
batteries  joined  together,  so  as  to  form  a  compound  battery  ; 
the  negative  pole  of  one  connected  with  the  positive  pole  of  the 
other. 

The  next  two  require  each  three  signal  wires,  with  three 
batteries,  whose  joint  currents  pass  in  the  same  direction  along 
the  common  wire  D. 

The  next  six  require  each  three  signal  wires  only,  with  three 


THE    SIGNAL    ALPHABET. 


267 


batteries.  One  of  the  signal  wires,  with  its  battery,  is  used  as 
a  common  wire  for  the  other  two.  Hence  the  current  of  the 
two  batteries  of  the  two  signal  wires  unite  in  one,  and  are  con- 
nected with  the  battery  of  the  common  wire  as  a  compound 
battery. 

In  the  following  table,  the  first  column  represents  the  keys, 
which,  when  depressed,  produce  a  deflection  of  the  needles, 
represented  in  the  second,  third,  and  fourth  columns,  by  means 
of  their  batteries,  and  thus  closing  the  circuit  of  the  wires, 
12345  and  6,  by  which  the  fluid  is  made  to  pass  through 
the  prepared  fabric,  and  mark  upon  its  space,  or  spaces,  num- 
bered 12345  and  6,  in  the  fifth  column.  In  the  sixth  col- 
umn are  the  letters  which  the  marks  upon  the  fabric  are 
intended  to  represent. 


Keys. 

Needles. 

Needles. 

Needles. 

Spaces  on  Fabric. 

Letters, 

H7, 

AT, 

- 

. 

1, 

A 

J  7, 

A  S, 

- 

• 

2, 

B 

K7, 

B  T, 

- 

. 

3, 

C 

M7, 

B  S, 

. 

- 

4, 

D 

0  7, 

C  T, 

- 

• 

5, 

E 

U7, 

C  S, 

- 

. 

6, 

F 

HK7, 

AT, 

B  T, 

. 

13, 

G 

J  M  7, 

A  S, 

B  S, 

-. 

24, 

H 

K  07, 

B  T, 

C  T, 

• 

35, 

I 

MU7, 

B  S, 

C  S, 

•'   •»;••• 

46, 

J 

HO  7, 

AT, 

C  T, 

. 

15, 

K 

J  U  7, 

A  S, 

C  S, 

v» 

26, 

L 

HM, 

AT, 

B  S, 

.  *  • 

14, 

M 

J    K, 

A  S, 

BT, 

. 

23, 

N 

K  U, 

B  T, 

C  S, 

. 

36, 

0 

M  0, 

B  S, 

C  T, 

• 

45, 

P 

HU, 

AT, 

C  S, 

. 

16, 

Q 

J   0, 

A  S, 

C  T, 

- 

25, 

R 

HK07, 

AT, 

BT, 

CT, 

135, 

S 

J  MU7, 

AS, 

B  S, 

C  S, 

246, 

T 

HKU, 

AT, 

BT, 

C  S, 

136, 

U 

J  M  0, 

A  S, 

BS, 

C.T, 

245, 

V 

HMU, 

AT, 

BS, 

C  S, 

146, 

w 

J  K  U, 

AS, 

B  T, 

C  S, 

236, 

X 

HMO, 

AT, 

B  S, 

CT, 

145, 

Y 

J  KO, 

AS, 

B  T, 

CT, 

234, 

Z 

The  patent  of  Mr.  Davy  embraces  the  following  claims, 
which  will  be  found  to  be  very  important,  in  regard  to  the 


268 

combination  of  electric  circuits.  The  claims  are  as  fol- 
lows, viz. : 

First.  The  mode  of  obtaining  suitable  metallic  circuits  for 
transmitting  communications  or  signals  by  electric  currents,  by 
means  of  two  or  more  wires,  which  I  have  called  signal  wires, 
communicating  with  a  common  communicating  wire,  and  each 
of  the  signal  wires  having  a  separate  battery,  and,  if  desired, 
additional  batteries,  for  giving  a  preponderance  of  electric  cur- 
rents through  the  common  communicating  wire,  as  above  de- 
scribed. 

Secondly.  I  claim  the  employment  of  suitably  prepared  fab- 
rics for  receiving  marks  by  the  action  of  electric  currents  for 
recording  telegraphic  signals,  signs,  or  comunications,  whether 
the  same  be  used  with  the  apparatus  above  described,  or 
otherwise. 

Thirdly.  I  claim  the  mode  of  receiving  signs  or  marks  in 
rows  across  and  lengthwise  of  the  fabric,  as  herein  described. 

Fourthly.  I  claim  the  mode  of  making  telegraphic  signals  or 
communications  from  one  distant  place  to  another,  by  the  em- 
ployment of  relays  of  metallic  circuits,  brought  into  operation 
by  electric  currents. 

Fifthly.  The  adapting  and  arranging  of  metallic  circuits  in 
making  telegraphic  communications  or  signals,  by  electric  cur- 
rents, in  such  manner,  that  the  person  making  the  communica- 
tion shall,  by  electric  currents  and  suitable  apparatus,  regulate 
or  determine  the  place  to  which  the  signals  or  communications 
shall  be  conveyed. 

Sixthly.  I  claim  the  mode  of  constructing  the  apparatus 
which  I  have  called  the  escapement,  whether  it  be  applied  in 
the  manner  shown,  or  for  other  purposes,  where  electric  cur- 
rents are  used  for  communicating  from  one  place  to  another. 

Seventhly.  I  claim  the  mode  of  constructing  the  galvanom- 
eter herein  described. 

And,  lastly,  I  claim  such  parts  as  I  have  herein  pointed  out, 
as  being  useful  for  other  purposes,  as  above  described. 


BAIN'S   PRINTING   TELEGRAPH, 


CHAPTER    XVII. 

DESCRIPTION    OF    THE    PRINTING    TELEGRAPH    APPARATUS. 

ON  an  examination  of  English  authorities  for  the  preparation 
of  this  work,  I  have  "been  very  often  surprised  to  find  the  many 
ingenious  contrivances  invented  by  Mr.  Alexander  Bain.  He 
was  not  a  commercial  man,  but  his  inventive  powers  were 
most  wonderful.  He  has  given  to  the  world  some  invaluable 
inventions  in  various  departments  of  the  sciences  and  arts. 

As  early  as  1840,  Mr.  Bain  was  active  in  the  production  of 
a  printing  telegraph,  of  which  full  accounts  are  to  be  found  in 
the  various  publications.  I  present  the  following  as  a  descrip- 
tion of  his  printing  apparatus  : 

The  figure  overleaf  exhibits  the  arrangements  of  Mr.  Bain's 
telegraph.  Imagine  two  figures  the  same,  one  representing 
the  Portsmouth,  and  the  other  the  London  station.  The  same 
letters  will  refer  to  either  instrument :  d,  i  and  h  represent  the 
signal  dials,  insulated  from  the  machine,  x  is  a  hand  or 
pointer.  The  small  dots  represent  twelve  holes  in  the  dial, 
corresponding  with  the  twelve  signals,  and  two  blanks,  1,  2,  3, 
4,  5,  6,  7,  8,  9,  0.  u  is  a  similar  hole  over  the  starting  point 
of  the  hand,  x.  R  is  a  coil  of  wire,  freely  suspended  on  centres. 
K  K  is  a  compound  permanent  magnet  placed  within  the 
coil,  and  immovably  fixed  upon  the  frame  of  the  machine.  J 
and  j  are  sections  of  similar  permanent  magnets,  s  is  a  spiral 
spring  (and  there  is  another  on  the  opposite  side)  which  con- 
veys the  electric  current  to  the  wire  coil,  and  at  the  same  time 
leaves  the  coil  free  to  move  in  obedience  to  the  magnetic  in- 
fluence. So  long  as  the  electricity  is  passing,  the  wire  coil  con- 
tinues to  be  deflected,  but  the  instant  the  electric  current  is 
broken,  the  springs,  s,  bring  back  the  coil  to  its  natural 
position.  L  is  an  arm  fixed  to  and  carried  by  the  wire  coil, 
R  and  R,  to  stop  the  rotation  of  the  machinery.  B  is  a  main 
spring  barrel,  acting  on  the  train  of  wheels,  G,  H  and  i,  which 
communicate  motion  to  the  governor,  w,  and  the  hand,  x. 

269 


270 


BAIN'S    PRINTING    TELEGRAPH. 


On  the  arbor  of  the  wheel,  H,  is  fixed  a  type  wheel,  c,  at  a 
little  distance  from  the  paper  cylinder,  A,  on  which  the  mes- 
sages are  to  be  imprinted,  p  is  a  second  main  spring  barrel, 
with  its  train  of  wheels,  M,  o.  Q  is  a  fly,  or  vane.  On  the 
arbor  of  the  wheel,  o,  there  is  a  crank,  v,  and  the  two  pallets, 
a  and  £,  which  prevent  the  train  of  wheels  from  rotating,  by 


coming  in  contact  with  the .  lever,  z.  When  the  telegraph  is 
not  at  work,  a  current  of  electricity  is  constantly  passing  from 
the  Portsmouth  plate,  buried  in  the  ground,  through  the 
moisture  of  the  earth,  to  the  plate  in  the  ground  at  the  London 
station.  From  the  copper  plate  of  that  station  the  electric 
current  passes  up  through  the  freely  suspended  multipying 
coils,  R  and  R  (which  it  deflects  to  the  horizontal  position), 


DESCRIPTION    OF    THE    APPARATUS.  271 

into  the  machinery,  and  thence  to  the  dial,  by  means  of  a 
metal  pin  inserted  in  the  hole,  u ;  from  the  dial  it  passes  by  a 
single  insulated  conducting  wire,  1,  suspended  in  the  air,  back 
to  the  first  machine;  traversing  which,  it  passes  through  the 
freely  suspended  multiplied  coil,  R  and  R,  which  it  deflects, 
also,  to  the  horizontal  position  to  the  plate  from  which  it 
started,  and  thus  completes  the  circuit. 

When  a  communication  is  to  be  transmitted  from  either  end 
of  the  line  (one  station  only  being  able  to  transmit  at  a  time), 
the  operator  draws  out  the  metal  pin  from  the  hole,  u,  in  the  dial 
of  his  machine ;  the  electric  circuit  is  then  broken,  and  the 
ends  of  the  multiplying  coils,  R  and  R,  at  both  stations,  are 
carried  upward,  in  the  direction  of  the  arrow,  by  the  force  of 
the  spiral  springs.  The  arms,  L,  attached  to  the  two  coils, 
moving  to  the  right,  release  the  lever,  Y,  which  leaves  the 
machinery  free  to  rotate,  and  as  the  moving  and  regulating 
powers  are  the  same  at  both  places,  the  machines  go  accurately 
together  ;  that  is,  the  hands  of  both  machines  pass  over  similar 
signals  at  the  same  instant  of  time,  and  similar  types  are  con- 
tinually brought  opposite  to  the  printing  cylinders  at  the  same 
moment.  An  inspection  of  the  wheel- work  will  show  that  this 
movement  will  have  caused  the  governor,  w,  to  make  several 
revolutions,  and  the  divergence  of  the  balls,  in  obedience  to 
centrifugal  force,  will  have  raised  one  end  of  the  lever,  z,  and 
depressed  the  other,  which  allows  the  pallet,  a,  to  escape ;  but 
the  rotation  of  the  arbor  is  still  opposed  by  contact  with  the 
second  pallet,  b.  The  operator  having  inserted  the  metal  pin 
in  the  hole,  under  the  signal  which  he  wishes  to  communicate, 
the  moment  the  hand  of  the  dial  comes  in  contact  with  it,  the 
circuit  is  again  completed,  and  both  machines  are  stopped 
instantly.  The  governor  balls,  collapsing,  depress  the  left 
hand  end  of  the  lever,  z,  clear  the  pallet,  &,  and  this  allows 
the  crank  spindle,  v,  to  make  one  revolution. 

The  motion  of  the  crank  by  means  of  the  crank  rod,  T,  act- 
ing on  the  lever,  E,  presses  the  type  against  the  paper  cylinder, 
A,  and  leaves  an  impress  upon  the  paper ;  at  the  same  time,  a 
spring,  e,  attached  to  an  arm  of  the  lever,  E,  takes  into  a  tooth 
of  the  small  ratchet  wheel,  D,  on  the  spindle  of  the  long  pinion, 
F,  which  takes  into  and  drives  the  cylinder  wheel ;  so  that  the 
crank  apparatus,  going  back  to  its  former  position,  after  im- 
pressing a  letter,  moves  the >  signal  cylinder  forward,  and  pre- 
sents a  fresh  surface  to  the  action  of  the  next  type.  As  the 
cylinder  moves  round,  it  has  also  a  spiral  motion  upward, 
which  causes  the  message  to  be  printed  in  a  continuous  spiral 
line  until  the  cylinder  is  filled.  In  order  to  mark,  in  a  distinct 


272 


N  BAIN'S  PRINTING  TELEGRAPH. 


and  legible  manner,  the  letters  printed  by  the  apparatus,  two 
thicknesses  of  riband,  saturated  with  printing  ink  and  dyed, 
are  supported  by  two  rollers  so  as  to  interpose  between  the 
type  wheel  and  the  cylinder  (the  rollers  are  not  shown  in  the 
figure,  to  prevent  confusion).  If  a  second  copy  of  the  message, 
thus  simultaneously  printed  at  two  distinct  places,  is  desired 
at  either,  a  slip  of  white  paper  is  placed  between  the  ribands 
to  receive  the  imprint  at  the  same  time  as  the  cylinder. 

Fig.  2. 


Figure  2  represents  a  top  view  of  the  coil  and  magnets  of 
Mr.  Bain's  machine.  B  is  the  compound  permanent  magnet, 
with  six  bars.  N  is  the  north  pole,  and  s  the  south  pole.  A  A 
are  the  sides  df  the  brass  frame  containing  the  coils;  c  c 
are  the  spiral  springs  on  each  side :  a  a  is  the  axis  of  the 
coil :  o  o  is  a  part  of  the  frame  containing  the  clock-work  (not 
shown  in  this  figure),  supporting  one  centre  of  the  coil,  and 
i  r,  a  support  for  the  other  centre.  N  and  p  are  the  wires, 
one  of  which  is  in  connection  with  the  ground,  and  the  other 
with  the  extended  wire.  When  the  circuit  is  closed,  and  the 
current  from  p  pole  of  the  battery  is  in  the  direction  of  the 
arrow  above,  and  then  through  the  coil  to  the  other  pole,  N,  in 
the  direction  of  the  arrow  below,  the  end,  D,  of  the  coil  will  be 
depressed,  and  the  end,  u,  will  rise ;  reverse  the  current  and 
the  effect  is  the  elevation  of  the  end,  D,  of  the  coil,  and  the 
depression  of  the  end,  u. 


THE  BRETT  PRINTING  TELEGRAPH. 


CHAPTER    XVIII. 

Brett's  Printing  Telegraph — Description  of  the  Composing  Apparatus — The 
Printing  Apparatus  and  Manipulation — The  Compositor  or  Commutator 
described — Mr.  Brett's  Last  Improvement. 

BRETT'S  PRINTING  TELEGRAPH. 

THE  printing  telegraph  system,  patented  by  Mr.  Jacob  Brett, 
in  Great  Britain,  is  founded  upon  the  House  system,  of 
America,  and  patented  by  Mr.  Brett,  in  the  first  place,  as  a 
communication. 

These  gentlemen,  Messrs.  Royal  E.  House,  of  America,  and 
Jacob  Brett,  of  England,  some  years  since,  co-operated  together 
in  this  printing  telegraph.  The  former  patented  the  same  or 
a  similar  apparatus,  in  the  United  States  of  America.  After 
the  issuing  of  the  first  English  and  American  patents,  Mr. 
House  continued  his  energies  in  the  perfection  of  his  mechanism 
until  he  produced  the  beautiful  and  effective  printing  telegraph, 
since  used  on  many  lines  in  the  United  States.  Like  results 
attended  the  labors  of  Mr.  Brett,  except  that  the  system 
perfected  by  him  has  not  been  permanently  used  on  the  lines 
in  Europe.  The  following  description  of  the  machinery  will 
serve  to  explain  the  instrument  patented  by  Mr.  Brett,  and 
known  in  Europe  as  his  printing  telegraph. 

The  apparatus  comprises  two  essential  mechanisms,  the 
"Transmitter"  or  "Compositor,"  and  the  "Receiver"  or 
"  Printer."  I  will  first  describe  the  former. 

DESCRIPTION     OF    THE    COMPOSING    APPARATUS. 

The  compositor  is  a  key-board,  having  some  28  keys,  and  30 
or  40  may  be  used,  if  desired,  arranged  as  in  figs.  1  and  2. 
Above  these  keys  is  an  axis,  A  A',  which  is  called  the  axis  of 
the  keys,  bearing  at  its  extremity  a  wheel  R,  called  a  circuit- 
wheel.  This  wheel  receives  a  movement  from  a  weight  p,  fig. 

273 


274 


THE    BRETT    PRINTING    TELEGRAPH. 


2,  attached  to  a  cord  c,  which  is  rolled  around  the  drum  B,  hav- 
ing a  toothed  wheel  R',  which  connects  with  a  pinion  p,  placed 
upon  the  same  axis  as  the  wheel  R3.  This  wheel  R2  connects 

Fig.  1. 


OUT 


[J 


900 


\\ 


R.S 


\\ 
TV  V 


in  its  turn  with  the  pinion  pa.  The  pinion  p2  is  fixed  upon  the 
same  axis  as  the  wheel  RS,  and  moves  wheel  RS  with  its  own 
movement ;  this  wheel  R3,  in  its  turn,  connects  with  a  pinion 
p<,  fixed  to  the  vertical  axis  A,  which  turns  with  the  fly-wheel 
v.  The  axis  of  keys  A.  A',  being  fastened  to  the  wheel  R3  by  a 

Fig.  2. 


system  of  two  wheels  transmitting  the  movement  R4  and  R5  at 
right  angles,  turns  itself  under  the  influence  of  the  weight  p. 
There  are  fixed  upon  the  axis  of  the  keys  28,  30,  or  40  metallic 
points — analogous  to  the  pins  of  a  music-box,  or  a  crank 
organ — about  a  quarter  of  an  inch  high,  which  represent  a 
helix  on  the  surface  of  an  axis,  which  correspond  to  the  letters 
of  the  alphabet,  figures,  and  other  telegraphic  signals.  This 
same  axis  of  keys,  therefore,  bears  at  its  other  extremity  the 
said  wheel  of  the  circuit  R,  furnished  with  14,  15,  or  20 
teeth,  and  which  has  for  its  object  to  open  and  shut  alternately 


THE    PRINTING    APPARATUS    AND    MANIPULATION. 


275 


the  voltaic  current,  consequently  to  interrupt  and  to  establish 
the  current.  One  of  the  wires  /1?  communicates  through  the 
printing  apparatus,  with  the  conducting  wire  of  the  line ;  the 
other  wire,  /2,  communicates  with  one  pole  of  the  battery. 
Two  springs,  rr  rn  are  in  metallic  contact,  as  well  as  the  wires 
f\  /s?  with  the  two  pressure  screws  n±  n^.  The  first  of  these 
springs  presses  upon  the  teeth  of  the  wheel  R,  the  second  spring 
presses  upon  the  drum  of  the  same  wheel.  The  fly-wheel  v 
has  for  its  object  the  regulation  of  the  whole  system  of  the 
composer,  in  order  that  the  axis,  after  having  been  stopped  by 
the  lowering  of  one  of  the  rods  under  the  keys,  may  continue  its 
revolution  until  the  finger  ceases  to  press  the  key.  The  teeth  cor- 
respond exactly  to  the  rods  placed  in  the  axis,  so  that  when  the  rod 
of  a  key  stops  the  axis,  by  touching  against  the  little  pins  of 
the  axis ;  the  spring,  r,  touches  the  point  of  one  of  the  teeth, 
and  the  circuit  is  closed. 


/  \  \.f     J^«  •— »  .     •'  . mU£JX*j ,  : 


THE    PRINTING    APPARATUS    AND    MANIPULATION. 

Figs.  3  and  4  represent  the  printing  instrument,  resting  upon 
a  support  s.     E  EJ  are  the  two  electro-magnets,  the  bar  AX  AI  is 


276  THE    BRETT    PRINTING    TELEGRAPH. 

the  armature ;  the  extremities  of  the  wire  surrounding  them,  are 
fixed  to  the  two  pressure  screws  inserted  at  the  hase.  One  of 
these  screws  receives  the  wire  coming  from  the  composer,  and 
the  other  receives  the  line  wire.  The  armatures  turn  on  a  hinge 
around  the  north  pole  of  the  electro-magnet,  to  which  they  are 
respectively  attached,  and  they  are  united  by  a  rectangular  bar 
B  B,  which  bears  on  its  middle  a  lever-rod  or  arm,  T  T,  which 
the  armatures  draw,  when  they  are  attracted  by  the  electro- 
magnets. A  spring  r,  borne  by  one  of  the  arms  of  the  lever  L  LI, 
tends  to  elevate  the  rod,  and  to  detach  the  armatures,  when  the 
current  does  not  pass.  The  two  arms  of  the  lever  L  Lt  form  a 
right  angled  escapement-anchor,  letting  pass  and  stopping  alter- 
nately the  wheel  R,  of  about  three  inches  in  diameter,  and  about 
one  tenth  of  an  inch  thick,  and  furnished  with  28,  30,  or  40 
teeth.  Each  of  these  teeth  bears  in  relief  a  letter  or  point ;  one 
tooth  alone  remains  blank  to  form  spaces.  These  letters,  the 
point,  and  the  blank  space,  correspond  to  the  letters,  &c.  of  the 
cylindor  of  the  composer.  This  wheel  R  is  called  a  type-wheel ; 
its  anterior  limb  bears  14  little  metallic  points,  about  one  tenth 
of  an  inch  long.  The  prolonged  arms  of  the  escapement  act 
upon  these  points.  When  one  of  the  arms  takes  hold  of  a  point, 
the  other  lets  go  another  point,  and  this  effect  is  reproduced  at 
each  oscillation  of  the  armature.  A  weight  attached  to  the 
cord  c  tends  to  turn  the  type-wheel  constantly.  When  the 
circuit  closes,  the  axis  of  the  keys,  as  well  as  the  type-wheel, 
tends  constantly  to  turn  under  the  action  of  the  weight.  The 
alternate  breaking  and  closing  of  the  circuit,  produced -by  the 
keys,  causes  the  armature  to  oscillate,  and  the  oscillations  of 
the  armature,  resisted  by  the  action  of  the  spring  r,  will  give 
to  the  rod  T  a  to-and-fro  movement,  which  will  change  into  an 
oscillatory  movement  the  escapement  anchor,  and  into  a  move- 
ment of  periodical  revolution  of  the  type-wheel.  The  type-wheel 
will  ordinarily  make  160  revolutions  in  a  minute,  and  it  will  stop 
when  the  rotation  of  the  axis  of  the  keys  is  stopped  by  the 
pressure  of  the  finger  upon  one  of  the  keys.  The  letters  are 
printed  thus :  Wheel  B  is  connected  to  a  cylinder,  upon  which 
cylinder  is  enrolled  a  band  of  narrow 
paper,  the  said  cylinder  turning  around 
with  its  axis  a  a,  resting  upon  two  sup- 
ports, s  s7,  two  pendulums  or  cranks  b  b, 
terminating  in  two  eccentrics  placed  upon 
an  axis,  a  a,  perpendicular  to  the  plane 
of  the  table,  turn  with  the  axis  of  the 
paper  cylinder.  By  the  movement  of 
these  eccentrics,  fig.  5,  the  rotary  movement  of  the  axis 


THE    PRINTING    APPARATUS    AND    MANIPULATION.  277 

a  a  becomes  for  these  cranks  a  to-and-fro  movement,  which 
brings  the  cylinder  of  paper  near  to  the  type- wheel,  and  re- 
moves it  therefrom,  thus  bringing  it  in  contact  with  and  sep- 
arating it  from  said  type-wheel  alternately.  It  is  also  neces- 
sary that  the  cylinder  of  the  paper  should  turn  upon  its  axis, 
in  order  to  present  at  each  approach  a  new  blank  part  of  the 
paper  to  the  type-wheel.  This  rotation  goes  on  by  means  of 
the  reverse  escapement  anchor,  e\  e ;  the  branch  e\  is  fastened 
to  the  frame  by  a  point  J9,  around  which  it  turns  as  around  an 
axis ;  the  branch  e  is  fixed  to  the  rod  /,  which  is  fastened  to 
the  axis  a  of  the  cylinder  of  the  paper,  and  is,  consequently, 
displaced  with  that  cylinder.  Two  springs  press  the  two 
branches  of  the  anchor  against  the  teeth  of  a  wheel  attached  to 
the  cylinder  of  the  paper ;  when  the  cylinder  withdraws  from 
the  type-wheel,  the  extremity  el9  pressing  against  the  nearest 
tooth,  causes  the  cylinder  to  turn,  and  the  extremity  e,  acting 
as  a  stop,  prevents  the  cylinder  from  turning  backward.  At 
the  axis,  around  which  this  rotatory  movement  of  the  cylinder 
takes  place,  is  a  screw,  fig.  5,  entering  into  a  hollow  screw 
placed  upon  the  support.  The  cylinder  is  displaced  in  the 
direction  of  its  axis,  so  that  the  printed  letters  form  upon  its 
surface  a  continuous  helix,  so  that  no  two  letters  can  produce 
confusion,  by  being  placed  one  upon  the  other. 

The  most  suitable  substance  for  making  a  good  impression  is 
plumbago,  reduced  to  a  powder ;  it  is  placed  in  a  groove  or 
slot,  cut  upon  the  circumference  of  the  roller  r,  and  is  covered 
with  linen.  A  sufficient  quantity  of  the  powder  passes  through 
the  pores  of  the  linen  to  ink  the  type. 

I  have  not  yet  indicated  how  the  axis  a  a,  with  its  eccen- 
trics, is  made  to  turn ;  it  receives  its  rotation  from  a  clock 
movement  produced  by  a  weight  P2.  It  turns  incessantly, 
so  long  as  nothing  stops  it,  and  each  of  its  revolutions  brings 
near  to  and  removes  away  alternately  from  the  type- wheel  the 
cylinder  of  the  paper.  It  is  important  that  it  should  turn  only 
when  it  is  desirable  to  print,  at  which  time  the  type  of  the  letter 
which  we  wish  to  fix  upon  the  paper  is  in  contact  with  the 
cylinder.  The  result  is  obtained  thus :  LI  L*  is  a  lever  fixed  at 
its  strongest  extremity  L^  upon  an  axis  borne  upon  the  frame 
of  the  apparatus,  and  around  which  it  turns;  the  other  ex- 
tremity LI  being  bent  back,  presses  against  the  posterior  limb 
of  the  type- wheel,  which  limb  is  furnished  with  28  points, 
similar  to  those  of  the  anterior  limb,  and  corresponding  to  the 
28  letters  or  signs  on  the  circumference ;  the  bent  extremity 
of  the  arm  of  the  lever  LI  connects  with  the  points,  and  rests 
upon  them,  rises  with  the  point  which  bears  it,  leaves  this  point, 


278 


THE     BRETT     PRINTING    TELEGRAPH. 


and  falls  back  upon  the  succeeding  points,  &c.  A  metallic 
rod  £j,  fixed  near  the  extremity  L*  of  the  lever,  communicates 
with  an  hydraulic  apparatus,  called  a  governor •,  the  mechanism 
of  which  I  will  presently  describe.  The  object  of  the  "  gov- 
ernor" is  to  regulate  the  movement  of  the  lever  L\  i2,  so  that  it 
rises  rapidly  and  descends  slowly  with  a  graduated  velocity. 
The  arm  of  the  lever  L\  u  bears  a  point  or  horizontal  rod,  jt/, 
which  glides  over  the  eccentric  E,  placed  on  the  axis  a,  and  turn- 
ing with  that  axis.  The  portion  of  the  circumference  of  the 
eccentric  E,  the  farthest  removed  from  the  axis,  is  thicker,  and 
has  two  notches  about  a  quarter  of  an  inch  apart,  which 
notches  catch  one  after  another  of  the  points  as  j/,  so  that  the 
eccentric  stops  in  its  rotation.  Now,  let  the  point  pf  rest  upon 
the  portion  of  the  eccentric  nearest  to  the  axis,  the  eccentric 
which  presents  to  it  by  turns  the  various  points  of  the  surface, 
brings  to  it  the  first  notch  into  which  it  falls,  stopping  the 
movement  of  the  eccentric.  The  point  pf  cannot  get  out,  and 
will  not  permit  the  eccentric  to  turn,  except  said  point  pf  has 
been  raised  with  the  lever  L\  £2,  by  one  of  the  points  of  the 
type-wheel.  After  the  raising  of  the  point  p,  the  eccentric  has 
turned  again,  and  bringing  to  the  point  the  second  stop,  the 
movement  stops  a  second  time,  and  can  only  recommence  when 
the  point  following  is  disengaged  from  the  stop,  at  the  mo- 
ment when  the  extremity  LI  of  the  arm  of  the  lever  shall  leave 
that  of  the  points  of  the  type- wheel  which  has  raised  it.  The 
point  pl  will  then  be  upon  the  part  of  the  eccentric  nearest  to 
the  axis.  It  is  seen  by  this  movement  that  the  axis  a  is  forced 
to  turn,  when  the  type-wheel  stops,  and  then  by  means  of  the 
cranks  brings  the  paper  into  contact  with  the  letter  or  sign, 
covered  with  the  plumbago,  which  prints  this  letter  or  sign 
upon  the  paper. 

The  hydraulic  regulator  or  governor  is  formed,  first,  of  a 
glass  vase  v,  fig.  6,  filled  with  water,  or 
some  other  liquid  ;  second,  of  an  internal 
vase,  v,  pierced  with  holes,  through  which 
the  liquid  may  pass,  and  terminating  by 
a  flange,  upon  which  the  upper  part  of  the 
apparatus  is  screwed,  s  is  a  pointed 
metallic  valve,  rising  from  within  out- 
ward, p  is  a  hollow  piston,  raised  and 
lowered  by  the  rod  / 1  moving  in  the  cham- 
ber c  &  of  the  interior  valve  v',  leaving 
only  a  small  circular  space,  through  which 
the  water  can  pass.  "When  the  piston  is 
raised  by  the  lever  LI  LS,  fig.  3,  to  which  the  rod  t  is  attached, 


Fig.  6. 


THE    PRINTING    APPARATUS    AND    MANIPULATION.  279 

a  vacuum  is  made  in  the  chamber  c  cf,  and  the  water  comes 
suddenly  and  fills  it ;  when,  on  the  contrary,  the  piston  de- 
scends, the  water  can  only  with  difficulty  escape  from  the 
chamber  d1  d,  its  passage  consequently  becomes  very  slow,  and 
the  movement  is  thus  retarded,  as  it  is  required,  in  order  that 
the  telegraph  may  work  perfectly. 

Everything  being  arranged  as  I  have  just  said,  and  the 
electric  communication  being  established,  if  the  operator  of  the 
sending  station  presses  one  of  the  keys  with  his  finger,  the  key 
A,  for  example,  the  type-wheel  will  stop,  when  the  same  letter 
A  arrives  in  front  of  the  paper ;  then  the  lever  L  L\,  fig.  3,  will 
turn,  bring  the  cylinder  in  contact  with  the  wheel,  and  press 
the  letter  against  the  paper,  which  will  receive  the  im- 
pression of  that  letter.  As  it  withdraws,  the  cylinder  will  turn 
upon  its  axis,  and  will  present — on  being  brought  back  by  the 
movement  of  the  axis  and  of  the  cranks — a  new  white  space 
to  the  new  letter  to  be  printed. 

The  mechanism  for  sounding  the  bell  is  very  simple.  M,  fig. 
3,  is  a  bell,  N  is  the  clapper,  borne  upon  a  rod  or  spring  fixed 
to  the  frame  by  an  axis,  around  which  it  turns,  and  of  which 
the  lower  part  is  a  small  lever-arm,  resting  upon  a  pin  about 
one  fifth  of  an  inch  long,  when  the  eccentric  turns,  raises  the 
little  lever-arm  of  the  spring,  and  causes  the  clapper  to  descend 
and  strike  the  bell. 

I  have  said  nothing  yet  of  the  other  portion  of  fig.  3.     This 
portion  represents  another  manner  of  employing  the        -$\g.  7 
voltaic  action.  The  rod  or  lever-arm  T  is  now  hori- 
zontal ;  it  is  fastened  on  the  one  part  to  one  of  the 
arms  of  the  escapement,  by  means  of  a  pin,  upon 
which  it  works,  on  the  other  part  to  an  eccentric 
placed  upon  a  horizontal  axis  6',  represented  with 
the  eccentric  in  fig.  7.     This  same  axis  b  bears  a 
lever,  e^  represented  in  fig.  8,  and  furnished  with 
points  g  and  g^,   designed  to  stop  the   crooked  parts  to  the 
right  and  left  of  b,  in  fig.  7.     B  B  B  B  B,  fig.  3,          Fi    Q 
are  hollow  bobbins  or   spools,  magnets  which 
attract    when    the    current   traverses     them; 
these  little  vertical  magnets  a  a,  are  attached 
to    the  armature  A  AX  of  B/  BX  B/  BX,    another 
but  a  similar  system  of  magnets ;  A/  A/  is  the 
armature,  E2  E2  are  the  extremities  of  the  wire 
of  the  second  system.    When  the  first  circuit  is 
closed   by  the  armature  A  A,  the  extremity  E2 
is  then  in  contact  with  EJ  and  the  second  circuit  is  closed  in  its 
turn.     The  two  circuits  are  also  opened  at  the  same  time. 


280 


THE    BRETT    PRINTING    TELEGRAPH. 


Nothing,  however,  prevents  placing  the  second  electro-magnet 
system  with  a  local  battery  or  electro-magnetic  machine.  The 
second  system  is  in  reality  only  a  relay.  The  lever  E'  descends 
and  rises  with  the  armature,  according  as  the  circuit  is  closed 
or  opened. 

The  axis  6,  in  its  eccentric  rotation,  moves  away  and  ap- 
proaches near  the  points  g  and  g-',  which  are,  by  turns,  in 
contact  with  the  points  crooked  to  the  right  and  left  of  £,  fig.  7. 
If  the  armature  is  attracted,  the  point  £•'  is  lowered,  and  leaves 
the  crooked  point  to  the  left  of  £,  fig.  7.  The  axis  and  the  eccen- 
tric make  a  demi-revolution,  and  the  rod  T  is  drawn  toward  the 
left,  but  at  the  same  time  the  point  g  rises,  presses  against  the 
point  to  the  right  of  &,  and  the  movement  is  stopped  ;  it  recom- 
mences if  the  armature,  in  raising  itself,  lowers  the  point  g*, 
and  disengages  said  point  from  the  crooked  point  to  the  right 
of  £,  fig.  7 ;  the  axis  and  the  eccentric  will  make  a  new  half 
turn,  and  the  rod  T  will  be  carried  forwa.rd.  The  axis  and  the 
eccentric  are  set  in  motion  by  the  weight  p,  by  means  of  the 
system  of  cog-wheels  represented  in  the  drawings.  When  the 
current  ceases,  the  armature  is  raised  by  the  spring  placed  at 
K.  The  alternate  movement  of  the  rod  T  acts  also  upon  the 
lever  LI  LI,  precisely  in  the  same  manner  as  in  the  case  when 
that  rod  is  vertical.  Mr.  Brett  has  greatly  improved  this  appa- 
ratus, and  has  rendered  the  correspondence  much  more  sure,  so 
that  by  a  combination  of  wheels,  called  by  him  "  stop- wheels," 
the  type-wheel,  and  the  needle  accompanying  it,  return  to 
zero,  or  to  the  point  of  departure  after  each  impression  of  a 
letter. 

The  new  compositor  is  represented  by  figs.  9  and  10 :  A, 
fig.  10,  is  the  axis  of  the  pins  in  communication  with  the  keys 
and  circuit  wheel,  N  ;  i  is  a  friction  wheel  or  moveable  cylin- 
der fastened  to  the  lever  arm,  j.  The  axis  of  this  lever  has  its 
centre  of  rotation  on  the  axis  of  the  tooth  wheel,  H,  and  of  the 
pinion,  p.  The  wheel,  H,  transmits  its  movement  to  the  wheel, 
F,  having  the  same  number  of  teeth,  so  that  when  the  part  p 
Q  A,  of  the  frame  fig.  9,  is  depressed  by  the  pressure  on  one 

Fig.  9. 


THE    PRINTING    APPARATUS    AND    MANIPULATION. 


281 


of  the  keys,  the  rod,  T,  disengages  the  friction  wheel,  K,  at  the 
same  time  the  tooth  wheel,  H,  causes  the  wheel,  F,  to  move. 
The  two  friction  wheels,  i  K,  turn,  moving  the  axis  of  the  keys 
A,  together  with  the  circuit  wheel,  M,  and  the  catch  wheel,  o. 
The  pinion,  G,  bears  a  fly  wheel,  i  i,  which  regulates  the  velo- 
city of  the  machinery.  A  weight  attached  to  a  cord  which  is 
enrolled  upon  the  cylinder,  B,  communicates  the  movement  to 
the  wheels,  E  and  F,  to  the  pinion,  G,  and  to  the  wheel,  c, 
together  with  the  catch  wheel,  D.  Another  weight,  p,  attached 
to  a  cord,  rolled  around  the  pulley,  L,  brings  the  axis,  A,  borne 
by  the  gudgeons,  t  /,  to  its  first  position,  when  it  has  turned, 
after  the  friction  wheels  are  disengaged.  The  number  of  teeth 
of  the  circuit  wheel.  N,  is  equal  to  half  the  number  of  the  let- 
ters or  signals.  It  turns  upon  the  same  hollow  axis,  with  the 
stop  wheel,  o.  A  point  projecting  from  the  circuit  wheel  acts 
upon  a  second  stop  wheel,  M,  which  latter  wheel  has  its  centre 

Fig.  10. 


upon  the  axis  of  the  keys,  A.  When  this  axis  turns  with  the 
friction  wheels,  i  K,  it  moves  the  wheel  N  ;  but  when  the  fric- 
tion wheels  are  disengaged,  and  the  axis,  A,  turns  upon  itself, 
moving  the  friction  wheel,  M,  the  circuit  wheel,  N,  together 
with  the  wheel,  o,  is  stopped  by  the  click,  v,  fig.  9,  so  that  this 
circuit  wheel  turns  in  one  direction  only,  notwithstanding  the 
to-and-fro  movement  of  the  axis,  A.  If,  therefore,  we  lower 
one  of  the  keys,  and  with  it  the  bars  p  q,  fig.  9,  by  the  means 
of  the  lever  arm,  these  bars,  in  lowering,  raise  the  upper 
part  of  the  frame  and  the  axis,  T,  turns  a  rod  attached  to  one 
of  the  extremities  of  T,  raises  the  lever,  j,  and  with  it  H  and  t , 
the  friction  wheel,  K,  is  set  at  liberty ;  the  axis,  A,  turns  until 
it  is  stopped  by  the  pin  of  the  key  cylinder,  corresponding  to 
the  key  which  has  been  lowered.  If  you  cease  to  press,  the 
lower  part  of  the  frame  rises,  the  pin  ceases  to  stop  the  key 
cylinder,  the  action  of  the  weight,  p,  makes  itself  felt,  the 
cylinder  returns  to  its  primitive  position,  but  the  click,  v,  still 
acting,  the  stop  wheel,  o,  keeps  the  type  wheel,  N,  in  the  posi- 


282 


THE    BRETT    PRINTING    TELEGRAPH. 


tion  to  which  it  has  arrived.    The  type  wheel  will  make  a  new 
movement  forward  if  you  lower  another  key. 

THE   COMPOSITOR    OR    COMMUTATOR    DESCRIBED. 

Figs.  11  and  12  represent  the  compositor  or  commutator, 
finally  adopted  by  Mr.  Brett,  The  axis,  A,  hears  a  circuit 
wheel,  c,  fig.  12,  the  number  of  teeth  of  which  equals  half  the 
number  of  letters  or  signals  of  the  telegraph.  Two  catch 


Fig,  11. 


Fig.  12. 


or  stop  wheels,  B  and  D,  turn  upon  the  same  axis  ;  the  num- 
ber of  their  teeth  being  double  that  of  the  circuit  wheel.  They 
are  made  of  one  single  piece ;  and  the  wheel,  B,  is  fixed  to  the 
circuit  wheel ;  a  click,  e,  pressed  by  a  spring,  R,  which  pre- 
vents it  from  turning  backward,  and  permits  it  to  turn  only  in 
one  direction.  The  axis,  A,  fig.  11,  also  bears  a  lever  arm  or 
crank,  G  H  i,  with  an  indicator,  K,  which  points  upon  the  dial 
to  the  letter  which  we  wish  to  transmit  or  print.  A  click,  F, 
also  pressed  by  a  spring,  catches  into  a  stop  wheel,  D,  and 
serves  to  make  it  turn  toward  the  right  at  the  same  time 
with  the  crank,  the  stop  wheel,  c,  and  the  circuit  wheel,  D  ; 
but  when  the  crank  is  moved  to  the  left,  in  order  to  bring  the 
index,  K,  upon  a  letter,  the  click  slides  over  the  teeth  of  the 
wheel,  D,  which  remains  at  rest ;  thus  the  click,  e,  fig.  12,  pre- 
vents the  wheel  B,  and  the  circuit  wheel  from  turning.  Two 
copper  bands  or  springs,  M  N,  press,  one  upon  the  exterior  part 
of  "the  circuit  wheel,  and  the  other  upon  the  teeth  of  the  circum- 
ference of  the  same  wheel,  and  communicate  by  means  of  two 
pressure  screws  with  the  two  poles  of  the  battery  of  the  con- 
ducting wires  of  the  circuit.  The  roller,  i,  fixed  at  the  ex- 
tremity of  the  crank,  H,  serves  for  the  better  guiding  and  main- 
taining it  in  its  rotary  movement.  A  stop  pin,  j,  renders  it 
fixed  when  the  indicator,  K,  arrives  at  the  desired  letter.  The 


MR.  BRETT'S  LAST  IMPROVEMENT. 


283 


movement  of  the  apparatus  is  as  follows  :  Turning  the  crank 
to  left,  brings  the  indicator,  K,  upon  the  letter  to  be  printed  at 
a  distance  ;  then  turning  the  crank  to  the  right  in  order  to 
come  back  to  the  fixed  starting  point,  the  circuit  wheel  is 
caused  to  turn,  which  establishes  and  breaks  the  circuit  as  many 
times  as  is  necessary,  in  order  that  the  type  wheel  may  present 
to  the  paper  the  particular  letter  marked  by  the  indicator. 

MR.  BRETT'S  LAST  IMPROVEMENT. 

Fig.  13  represents  the  new  form  given  by  Mr.  Brett  to  his 
printing  telegraph.       The  weights  are  replaced  by  a  spring, 

Fig.  13. 


two  systems  of  common  wheels  gives  motion  to  the  type- wheel, 
and  communicates  the  movement  to  the  paper.  The  type 
wheel,  R,  is  moved  by  the  pinion,  A,  and  the  arbor,  i,  and  its 
rotation  is  regulated  by  the  electric  escapement  represented  in 
fig  14.  The  pinion,  A,  communicates  with  a  toothed  wheel,  B, 
furnished  with  a  second  pinion,  c,  placed  upon  the  same  arbor 
as  the  escapement  wheel,  D.  This  escapement  wheel  is  by  turns 
.stopped  and  released  by  an  escapement  anchor,  «,  of  which  the 
axis  bears  a  permanent  magnet,  /?,  serving  as  an  armature  to 
the  electro  magnet,  a  a'.  According  as  the  electric  current 
traverses  in  one  direction  or  another  the  wire  of  the  electro- 
magnet, the  armature  is  attracted  or  repelled ;  this  alternative 
movement  is  transmitted,  first  to  the  anchor,  then  to  the  escape- 


284 


THE    BRETT    PRINTING    TELEGRAPH. 


ment  wheel,  then  to  the  arbor  of  the  pinion,  A,  and  finally  to 
the  type- wheel,  which  moves  regularly  step  by  step. 

The  type- wheel,  R,  is  fixed  upon  a  hollow  axis,  A,  and  this 
axis  bears  on  one  side  a  little  toothed  wheel,  applied  against 
the  face  of  the  type-wheel ;  on  the  other  side  a  fixed  pulley,  L, 
upon  which  is  coiled  a  cord  bearing  a  weight,  the  action  of 
which  constantly  brings  back  the  type- wheel  to  the  starting 
point,  or  zero.  A  new  toothed  wheel  is  fixed  to  this  pulley, 
and  a  circular  metallic  disk  is  fixed  to  the  arbor,  i,  bearing  a 
click  which  engages  with  the  teeth  of  a  little  toothed  wheel,  and 
prevents  it  from  turning  back.  A  toothed  wheel,  R,  of  larger 

Fig.  14. 


diameter,  is  also  fixed  upon  the  same  axis,  i,  so  that  it  may 
turn  for  a  certain  time,  and  then  turn  backward,  in  order  to 
lower  the  prolongation  of  the  disk,  D,  bearing  a  point  which  en- 
gages in  a  little  opening  made  on  the  circumference  of  the 
toothed  wheel,  r,  very  near  its  rim ;  this  toothed  wheel  is  set  in 
motion  by  the  action  of  the  extremity  of  a  lever  operating  by 
means  of  an  eccentric,  as  has  been  explained  in  the  description  * 
of  the  first  machine  or  apparatus.  Now  if  one  of  the  letters,  or 
one  of  the  characters  of  the  type- wheel,  has  been-  brought  be- 
fore the  paper,  a  lever  similar  to  L!  L2,  fig.  3,  engages  in  the 
opening  made  in  the  stop  wheel  that  presses  against  the  type 
wheel.  This  lever  causes  the  said  stop  wheel  to  turn,  and  with 


MR.  BRETT'S  LAST  IMPROVEMENT.  285 

it  the  eccentric  already  described,  which,  puts  in  motion  the 
whole  train  of  wheels  of  the  printing  machinery,  and  in  its 
turn,  during  its  revolution,  presses  a  piston  against  the  paper, 
and  the  letter  is  printed.  While  the  paper  advances  after  the 
printing  of  the  letter,  sufficient  to  make  room  for  the  next  let- 
ter, another  lever  presses  again  upon  the  teeth  of  the  wheel,  r, 
giving  it  a  rotary  movement,  sufficient  to  disengage  the  click  of 
the  disk,  D.  The  type  wheel  being  set  at  liberty,  returns  to 
zero,  and  resumes  its  first  position  upon  the  arbor,  i.  You  may 
now  proceed  to  print  another  letter. 

The  arbor  of  the  lever,  has  a  second  arm  fastened  by 
means  of  a  rod,  to  an  hydraulic  and  pneumatic  piston,  similar 
to  that  which  has  been  represented  in  the  figure,  and  which 
serves  to  render  the  impression  of  the  character  perfect,  regular, 
and  neat. 

Mr.  Brett  calls  attention  to  the  disposition  given  by  him  to 
the  letters  upon  the  disk  of  the  type  wheel,  this  disposition 
being  very  necessary  to  abridge  the  labor  in  the  transmission 
of  dispatches  ;  in  fact,  the  letter  E,  for  example,  in  the  English 
language,  and  still  more  so  in  the  Grerman,  occurs  three  thou- 
sand times,  while  the  letter  z  appears  but  once. 

I  hope  the  foregoing  description  will  enable  the  reader  to  un- 
derstand the  intricate  mechanism  of  this  apparatus.  The 
drawings  and  the  lettering  are  not  as  perfect  as  I  had  hoped  to 
attain.  The  letters  mentioned  in  the  description  are  not  all 
to  be  found  in  the  drawings,  and  in  this  imperfect  state  I  pre- 
sent the  apparatus  with  its  novelty. 


THE  MAGNETO-ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH. 


CHAPTER    XIX. 

Application  of  Magneto-Electricity  to  Telegraphing — Its  Advantages — Descrip- 
tion of  Henley's  Apparatus — The  Brights'  Apparatus — Its  Comparative 
Celerity. 

APPLICATION    OF    MAGNETO-ELECTRICITY    TO    TELEGRAPHING. 

THE  magneto-electric  telegraph  is  a  needle  system.  It  is 
practically  employed  on  the  lines  of  the  Magnetic  Company 
in  Great  Britain.  The  Messrs.  Bright  having  tried  magneto- 
electricity,  most  faithfully,  on  the  lines  of  their  company  for 
several  years  past,  commend  it  as  of  superior  utility.  They  in- 
formed me,  that  a  pair  of  magnets,  costing  at  Sheffield  305., 
and  perhaps  40s.  to  45s.  according  to  finish,  will  send  a  strong 
current  on  a  well-insulated  pole  line  for  200  miles,  and  on  an 
underground  wire  above  100  miles.  Weak  signals  had  been 
received  on  250  miles  underground  wires,  while  on  the  same 
lines,  a  battery  of  six  twelve-cells,  was  necessary  to  perform 
the  work,  at  a  cost  of  d£7,  10s.,  besides  the  cost  of  renewals. 

A  magnet,  if  the  keepers  are  put  on  when  the  instrument  is 
not  in  use,  will  retain  its  magnetism  for  an  indefinite  time. 
They  had  worked  magnets  two  and  three  years  without  remag- 
netizing  them.  The  experiments  made  with  magneto-elec- 
tricity by  these  gentlemen,  establish  the  practicability  of  its 
application  to  telegraphing ;  in  this,  however,  there  is  a  differ- 
ence of  opinion  among  scientific  telegraphers.  Mr.  Bakewell, 
in  his  late  work  on  electricity,  asserts,  that  electricity  generated 
in  this  manner  is  small  in  quantity,  and  of  comparatively  great 
intensity,  therefore  more  liable  to  be  diverted  from  this  circuit 
by  imperfect  insulation  ;  and  as  another  objection  to  this  form 
of  telegraph,  he  states,  that  the  needle  sends  signals  in  one 
direction  only.  Two  communicating  wires  are  consequently 
required  to  obtain  the  same  combination  of  deflections  that 
can  be  given  with  a  single  wire,  when  a  voltaic  current  is 

286 


THE  MAGNETO-ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH. 


287 


transmitted.  The  great  advantage,  however,  of  this  system 
is,  that  it  dispenses  with  the  use  of  voltaic  batteries,  which  are 
troublesome  and  expensive  ;  but  it  remains  a  question  to  be 
determined  by  practical  experience,  whether  this  advantage 
is  sufficient  to  counterbalance  the  objections  attending  the  use 
of  magneto-electricity. 

The  Magnetic  Company  have  several  thousand  miles  of  wires, 
on  all  of  which  this  system  is  used,  and  the  brothers  Bright, 
who  have  been  engaged  in  that  company's  service  for  some 
six  years,  concur  in  the  opinion  of  its  superiority  over  the  vol- 
taic telegraphs. 

It  would  be  unjust,  not  to  fairly  consider  the  opinions  of 
such  experts  as  have  expressed  their  admiration  or  approval 
of  magneto-electricity  for  telegraphic  purposes.  In  America, 
but  few  trials  have  been  made  on  the  telegraph  lines  to  use 
this  species  of  electricity,  but  of  these  trials  reference  will  be 
found  elsewhere  in  this  book.  On  the  continent  of  Europe, 
there  are  no  lines  employing  it.  In  Great  Britain,  it  has  only 
been  successfully  used  on  the  Magnetic  Company's  lines, 
as  hereinbefore  stated.  Without  further  comment,  I  will  give 

Fig.  l. 


9 
288  THB  MAGNETO-ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH. 

its  advantages,  and  a  description  of  the  apparatus  as  furnished 
me  by  Mr.  Henley,  one  of  the  inventors. 

Fig.  1  is  a  representation  of  Mr.  Henley's  instrument,  as 
used  in  the  office  for  telegraphic  service.  Before  giving  a  de- 
scription of  this  very  simple  apparatus,  I  will  present  the  ad- 
vantages claimed  for  it  by  the  inventor,  which  are  as  follows : 

ADVANTAGES  OF  MAGNETIC  OVER  VOLTAIC    ELECTRICITY. 

1st.  Capability  of  working  without  expense,  except  first  cost. 

2d.  Being  always  ready  for  instant  use,  however  long  it  may 
have  remained  inactive. 

3d.  From  its  simple  construction  (being  entirely  free  from 
all  clockwork  or  complicated  movements,  and  also  from  all 
apparatus  found  in  other  telegraphs  for  cutting  off  or  revers- 
ing the  electric  current),  it  cannot  get  out  of  order. 

4th.  The  magnetic  needle  used  for  the  indications  being 
freely  suspended  on  a  vertical  axis,  without  springs  or  weight 
of  any  kind  to  keep  it  in  the  neutral  position,  and  being  sub- 
jected to  the  energetic  action  of  an  electro-magnet  instead  of 
wire  coils,  moves  with  a  much  less  electric  force  than  any  other 
telegraph  whatever  ;  it,  therefore,  follows,  from  the  well-known 
fact  of  the  great  diminution  of  the  power  of  the  current  in 
passing  through  long  conductors,  that  this  telegraph  will  work 
at  a  greater  distance,  or  through  a  greater  resistance,  than  any 
other,  the  distance  at  which  any  telegraph  will  work  through 
a  given  sized  wire  being  in  an  exact  ratio  with  the  electric 
force  required  to  work  such  telegraph.  There  have  been  many 
ingenious  contrivances  made  which  would  work  beautifully  in 
a  room,  but  are  totally  useless  when  practically  tried  between 
distant  stations.  Another  severe  test  of  the  capability  of  a 
telegraph  is  a  damp  state  of  the  atmosphere,  especially  when 
the  earth »is  used  (as  it  always  is  now)  as  part  of  the  circuit. 
Every  supporting  post,  when  its  earthenware  insulators  be- 
come covered  with  moisture,  conveys  a  great  part  of  the  cur- 
rent to  the  earth,  but  from  experiments  tried  on  the  South 
Devon  railway  (known  to  be  the  worst  insulated  line  in  the 
kingdom),  and  in  the  most  unfavorable  weather,  the  magneto- 
electric  current  from  this  machine  was  found  to  pass  the  whole 
distance  of  the  line,  and  also  through  a  great  length  of  fine 
wire  at  each  station,  without  any  loss  whatever  ;  this  arises, 
not  from  the  electricity  being  of  a  different  kind,  but  from  its 
quantity  and  intensity  being  so  adjusted  that  the  wet  posts 
should  offer  more  resistance  than  the  whole  length  of  the 
metallic  wire.  In  addition  to  this  apparatus  never  requir- 
ing renewal,  a  very  important  fact  is  the  small  space  re- 


DESCRIPTION    OF    HENLEY'S    APPARATUS.  289 

quired ;  the  magneto-electric  telegraph,  18  inches  long  by  4 
inches  wide,  will  transmit  a  current  much  farther  than  twelve 
24-cell  batteries,  occupying  a  space  of  19^  square  feet. 

Fig.  2. 


DESCRIPTION  OF  HENLEY'S  APPARATUS. 

Each  instrument  has  two  parts,  one  for  producing  the  cur- 
rent and  transmitting  it  in  the  required  direction,  and  the  other 
for  receiving  it  from  a  distant  station.  The  first  consists  of 
two  compound  permanent  bar  magnets  A  A,  about  10  inches 
long,  placed  in  a  horizontal  position  parallel  with  each  other, 
about  an  inch  apart ;  at  each  end  is  suspended,  on  separate 
axles,  a  soft  iron  armature,  on  the  cylinders  of  which  are  wound 
long  coils  of  fine  copper  wire  covered  with  cotton,  B  B.  Each 
pair  of  coils  forming  one  armature,  is  connected  by  one  end  of 
the  wire  of  each  coil — the  other  end  of  each  is  carried  through 
the  axle  (but  insulated  from  it)  to  the  base  in  two  spirals.  The 
wires  pass  under  the  base,  one  end  of  each  goes  to  the  electro- 
magnet of  its  own  dial,  and  thence  to  the  line  and  through 
the  distant  instrument  until  it  communicates  with  the  earth ; 
the  other  is  led  direct  to  the  earth,  connections  being  made  by 
the  terminals  at  the  back  of  the  instrument.  The  other  arma- 
ture and  its  connections  are  just  the  same,  and  answer  the 
same  purpose  with  the  other  side  of  the  dial.  The  armatures 
are  moved  by  levers,  c  c,  the  ends  of  which  pass  through  the 
outer  case  for  the  convenience  of  working  ;  their  motion  is 
limited  by  India-rubber  stops  fixed  on  the  brass  casting  on 
which  the  magnets  are  placed  and  the  axles  suspended.  The 
ends  of  the  magnets  are  covered  with  soft  iron  caps  projecting 
inward  so  as  to  bring  the  poles  within  about  half  an  inch  of 
each  other ;  these  soft  iron  poles  increase  the  power  of  the  mag- 
nets greatly,  besides  which  they  will  condense  the  whole  power 
of  the  magnet  at  any  particular  point.  The  second  or  receiv- 
ing part  of  the  instrument  consists  of  a  dial  mounted  on  four 

19 


290 


THE  MAGNETO-ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH. 


Fig.  4. 


pillars  in  an  inclined  position,  this  "being  the  best  for  reading 
the  indications,  "besides  reducing  the  friction  of  the  needle 
pivots  to  one  twentieth  part.  Under  the  dial  two  electro- 
magnets, D  D  are  fixed,  one  for  each  needle.  It  may  be  men- 
tioned, that  electro-magnets  have  been  attempted  to  be  used 
before  for  deflecting  the  needle,  by  placing  une  end  of  the  needle 
between  the  poles  of  the  magnet,  but  never  succeeded,  owing 
to  the  residual  magnetism  left  after  the  battery  current  had 
ceased.  This  was  always  sufficient  to  keep  the  needle  de- 
flected, except  they  made  it  very  heavy  at  the  bottom,  or  used 
a  strong  spring  to  keep  it  in  the  upright  position  ;  it  then  re- 
Fig  3.  quired  a  strong  current  to  overcome  that  resistance, 
and  the  spring  or  weight  required  adjusting  accord- 
ing to  the  strength  of  the  battery,  or  the  state  of  the 
weather.  In  the  magneto-electric  telegraph  two 
pieces  of  soft  iron  are  placed  on  the  poles  of  the  elec- 
tro-magnet of  a  semicircular  shape,  which  thus  forms 
four  poles.  (See  fig.  3.)  Within  these  is  suspended  a  mag- 
netic needle,  the  axis  of  which  is  prolonged  through  the  dial, 
carrying'  an  index  or  pointer.  This,  as  well  as  the  magnetic 
needle,  is  limited  in  its  motion  by  stops  oh  the  dial. 

Figs.  4  and  5  represent  the  magnetic 
needle,  and  the  horns  of  the  magnet.  On 
pressing  down  the  lever,  the  ends  of  the  ar- 
mature change  place  with  respect  to  the  poles 
of  the  magnet.  This  produces  a  current  of 
electricity  in  the  armature,  and  through  the  cir- 
cuit, which,  passing  round  the  wire  on  the  elec- 
tro-magnet, causes  it  to  become  magnetic.  As 
shown  in  the  diagram,  fig.  4,  there  are  then 
•p-  5  four  distinct  forces  acting  on 

the  needle  to  deflect  it  in  the 
position  shown  ;  the  two  south 
poles  of  the  electro  magnet 
attracting  one  end  of  the  nee- 
dle, and  repelling  the  other, 
and  the  two  north  poles  the 
same  with  the  other  end 
"While  the  handle  is  kept  down, 
although  no  electricity  is  pass- 
ing, the  needle  is  kept  deflect- 
ed by  the  residual  magnetism 
in  the  horns.  On  allowing  the 
lever  to  return  by  the  force 
of  the  spring  on  the  base,  the 
ends  of  the  armatures  and 
magnets  again  change  places, 


291 

and  a  current  of  electricity  is  produced  in  the  opposite  direc- 
tion, which  entirely  neutralizes  the  residual  magnetism,  and 
then  reverses  the  poles  of  the  electro-magnet,  bringing  the  nee- 
dle to  the  opposite  side ;  but  in  the  single-needle  telegraph,  the 
armature  takes  a  midway  position  between  the  poles,  which 
has  the  effect  of  neutralizing  the  residual  magnetism  only.  Fig. 
5  represents  the  electro-magnets,  with  the  horns  attached. 

In  the  ordinary  needle  telegraph,  a  diamond-shaped  Fi  6 
needle  is  suspended  within  coils  of  wire.  (See  fig.  6.) 
On  the  passing  of  an  electric  current  the  needle  has  a 
tendency  to  move  at  right  angles  to  the  wire.  When  a  flash 
of  lightning  strikes  the  wires,  the  needle  cannot  move 
quickly  enough,  but  the  poles  move,  that  is  to  say,  the  polarity 
of  the  needle  is  placed  at  right  angles  to  its  former  position  ; 
consequently,  on  the  passing  of  the  battery  current,  it  has  a 
tendency  to  remain  stationary ;  in  this  way  200  or  300  miles 
of  telegraph  are  rendered  inoperative  in  a  single  night.  On  in- 
specting the  magneto-electric  telegraph,  it  will  be  obvious  this 
cannot  occur — the  lightning  in  passing  through  the  instrument 
will  not  act  primarily  on  the  needle,  but  secondarily  by  the 
electro-magnet ;  this  becoming  magnetic  will  deflect  the  nee- 
dle if  the  current  is  passed  in  one  direction,  and  if  in  the  other 
will  have  a  tendency  to  retain  it  in  its  ordinary  position  ;  and 
if  any  change  occurs,  it  would  be  by  the  needle  becoming 
stronger.  Should  the  telegraph  remain  a  long  time  out  of  ac- 
tion, the  horns  of  the  electro-magnet  form  keepers  to  the  nee- 
dle, and  maintain  its  power;  and,  likewise,  by  the  arrange- 
ment of  armatures  and  permanent  bar  magnets,  the  latter  will 
always  retain  their  power;  the  poles  are  brought  so  near 
together,  that  the  armature  before  leaving  one  magnet  is  on  the 
other .  This  arrangement  gives  three  advantages  :  the  magnets 
always  have  the  protection  of  a  soft  iron  keeper,  and  the  two 
currents  produced  by  leaving  one  magnet  and  approaching  the 
other,  are  combined  in  one,  doubling  the  strength  and  duration 
of  the  current ;  and  it  is  evident,  if  the  magnets  were  farther 
apart,  when  the  armature  was  quite  free  of  both  poles,  it  would 
alter  the  magnetic  character  of  the  other  armature,  and  thus 
produce  a  cnrrent  in  it,  and  move  the  wrong  needle. 

The  signals  are  indicated  on  the  dial  by  the  separate  or  com- 
bined motions  of  the  two  needles,  for  instance,  A,  B,  and  c, 
are  separately  indicated  by  one,  two,  and  three  motions  of  the 
left  needle;  D,  E,  and  F,  by  similar  motions  of  the  right  nee- 
dle ;  G,  one  left  and  one  right;  H,  one  left  and  two  right ;  i, 
K,  by  the  reversed  motions  of  the  needles  ;  for  the  remainder  of 
the  letters,  the  simultaneous  motions  of  both  needles  are  used 


292  DESCRIPTION    OF    THE    BRIGHTS5    APPARATUS. 

in  addition  to  one  or  more  of  either  needle  ;  marks  are  placed 
on  the  dial  near  eaeh  letter,  to  indicate  what  motions  are  re- 
quired for  it ;  two  marks  meeting  at  the  bottom  like  the  letter 
v,  signifies  the  simultaneous  motion  of  both  needles. 


The  Magnetic  Telegraph  Company,  under  the  able  adminis- 
tration of  the  distinguished  telegraph  electricians,  the  brothers 
Bright,  have  on  its  lines  an  instrument  operated  by  magneto- 
electricity,  invented  by  those  gentlemen.  In  principle  it  is  the 
needle  telegraph,  worked  by  the  inductive  influence  exercised 
by  magnets  upon  electro-magnetic  coils,  when  placed  in  propin- 
quity to  the  poles  of  the  permanent  magnets.  Fig.  7  repre- 
sents this  apparatus. 

Fig.  7. 


This  instrument  is  placed  upon  an  ordinary  table,  before 
which  the  operator  sits  ;  letters  a  a  represent  the  compound 
horseshoe  magnets,  formed  of  steel,  and  screwed  to  g.  Those 
which  I  have  frequently  seen  in  England  and  Scotland,  in  the 
offices  of  this  company,  have  magnets  about  15  inches  from 
the  poles  to  the  back  or  bend,  about  5  inches  in  height,  made 
of  12  plates,  and  in  breadth  about  1 J  inches  ;  b  b  and  b'  b'  are 
induction  coils  attached  to  the  axles  moved  by  the  handles  c  c. 
The  operator  placing  his  hands  on  c  c,  by  depressing  and  el- 
eva,ting  them,  a  current  of  electricity  is  generated.  One  of  the 
wires  terminating  each  pair  of  the  inductive  coils,  is  connected 
to  an  insulated  cam  ;  the  other  end  of  each  pair  of  coils  is  con- 


CELERITY    COMPARED    WITH    OTHER    NEEDLE    SYSTEMS.         293 

ducted  directly  to  the  earth  :  c  c,  the  metallic  cams,  are  insula- 
ted from  the  axles  to  which  they  are  attached  by  ivory  plates  ; 
//  are  two  springs  connected  with  the  line  wires,  and  resting 
against  the  screws  of  the  bearings  g  g,  which  are  bridge  pieces, 
in  connection  with  the  indicating  portion  of  the  instrument : 
h  h  is  the  outside  of  the  dial  plate,  and  i  i  are  the  indicating, 
needles  moved  by  the  magnetic  needles  inside  on  the  same 
axles  ;  x  x  are  thumb  screws,  by  which  the  regulators  are  ad- 
justed ;  z  z  z  z  are  adjusting  pins  between  which  the  needles 
beat. 

The  internal  arrangement  is  much  the  same  as  given  in  the 
description  of  Mr,  Henley's  machine,  and,  in  fact,  fig.  5.  is  a 
drawing  of  an  electro-magnet  given  me  by  the  brothers  Bright, 
on  one  of  my  visits  to  Liverpool. 

The  spring  /,  when  at  rest,  is  in  contact  with  the  bridge 
piece  g*,  and  the  line  wire  is  in  direct  communication  with  the 
indicatiug  dial  face.  The  electric  or  magnetic  current  from 
other  stations  of  the  line  pass  from  the  line  wire  through  the 
indicating  coils,  and  thence  to  the  earth,  which  on  pass- 
ing through  the  coils  produces  the  desired  indication,  or  move- 
ment of  the  needles.  When  the  handle  is  depressed,  then  the 
metallic  "cam"  attached  to  the  axle  presses  upon  the  spring, 
and  moves  it  away  from  the  bearing  g*,  at  which  time  the  cur- 
rent of  magneto-electricity  produced  in  the  induction  coils,  by 
the  changing  of  their  position,  as  regards  the  pole  of  the  per- 
manent magnet,  passes  to  the  line  wire,  and  this  movement 
deflects  the  needle  from  "  zero"  at  other  stations. 

When  the  depressing  motion  of  the  handle  ceases,  and  it  be- 
gins to  ascend,  a  different  current  is  induced,  which  also  flows 
through  the  line  wire ,  bringing  the  needles  of  the  other  stations 
back  to  zero,  from  which  they  had  been  taken  as  just  above 
described  ;  but  at  the  same  time  the  apparatus  of  the  operating 
station  is  not  changed,  because  the  connection  between  the 
spring  /  and  the  bearing  £•,  remain  incomplete.  When  the 
spring  /  is  brought  into  contact  with  the  bridge  piece  g-,  on  the 
cam  c,  which  sets  it  at  liberty,  the  line  wire,  in  which  a  por- 
tion of  the  lost  current  has  been  fixed,  as  in  trasmission,  seeks 
to  gain  its  equilibrium,  and  the  recoil  current  passes  through 
the  indicating  part  of  the  apparatus,  and  holds  the  needle  at 
zero,  in  the  proper  position  to  be  actuated  by  currents  from  the 
other  stations. 

ITS    CELERITY    COMPARED    WITH    OTHER    NEEDLE    SYSTEMS. 

In  the  arrangement  of  the  dial  of  this  apparatus,  the  broth- 
ers Bright  have  improved  its  operation  by  placing  the  adjust- 


294:  THE    BRIGHT9*    APPARATUS. 

ing  pins  z  z,  between  which  the  needles  vibrate.  In  other 
needle  systems,  the  nee'dles  move  to  the  right  or  to  the  left 
with  unequal  force,  and  on  their  restoration  to  zero,  they  swing 
beyond  as  a  pendulum,  causing  error  or  delay  in  transmission 
by  the  waiting  for  the  needle  to  rest  at  zero.  These  pins  not 
only  aid  in  celerity  of  communication,  but  they  produce  a 
sound.  The  needles  beat  against  the  pins,  and  a  sound  is  pro- 
duced sufficiently  distinct  to  be  read  by  the  operator.  In  prac- 
tical telegraphing,  therefore,  these  pins  prove  very  great  auxil- 
iaries in  communicating  dispatches.  The  operator  need  not 
depend  upon  the  eye  to  see  the  movement  of  the  needles.  The 
pins  may  be  made  to  produce  different  sounds,  and  those  sounds 
can  be  as  distinct  as  the  beats  or  movements  of  other  systems 
producing  intelligible  sounds. 

The  brothers  Bright  informed  me  that  they  found  in  prac- 
tice the  apparatus  as  arranged  by  them  much  more  reliable 
than  the  needle  system  not  having  the  stop  pins.  The  move- 
ment of  the  needles,  and  their  dead  beat,  that  is,  the  absence  of 
all  vibration  and  oscillation,  tended  to  prevent  mistakes.  In 
the  ordinary  galvanic  needle  systems,  which  have  not  the  stop 
pins,  the  needles  sway  to  and  fro,  after  each  beat,  occasioning 
more  or  less  confusion  between  letters,  which  are  formed  by  the 
combination  of  "  beats"  Such  are  the  advantages  claimed  for 
the  magneto-electric  telegraphs. 


flIGHTONS'  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPHS, 


CHAPTEE    XX. 

High  Tension  Electric  Telegraph — Gold  Leaf  Instruments — Single  and  Double 
Pointer  Needle  Apparatus — Revolving  Pointer — Improvements  in  Batteries 
and  Insulation. 

HIGH  TENSION  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH. 

THE  telegraphs  invented  and  patented  in  Great  Britain  by 
the  Rev.  H.  Highton  and  Mr.  Edward  Highton,  though  not 
in  practical  use  as  a  whole  at  the  present  time,  were  evidently 
decided  improvements  on  their  introduction.  Mr.  Edward 
Highton  had  been  for  many  years  a  telegraph  engineer,  and  he 
had  given  evidences  of  a  thorough  knowledge  of  the  intricacies 
of  this  mysterious  science  and  art.  In  giving  those  improve- 
ments, I  will  present  the  descriptions  made  by  Mr.  Edward 
Highton,  and  also  his  opinion  as  to  their  advantages  over  other 
telegraphs  of  that  day. 

The  first  patent  was  taken  out  in  1844  by  the  Rev.  H.  High- 
ton.  In  this  telegraph  electricity  of  high  tension  was  employed, 
viz.,  that  produced  either  from  the  ordinary  electric  machine, 
or  from  the  hydro-electric  machine  :  one  wire  only  was  used. 
A  piece  of  paper,  which  was  moved  uniformly  by  clock-work 
mechanism,  was  conducted  at  the  receiving  station  between 
two  points  of  metal  in  connection  with  the  line- wire,  the  points 
being  placed  one  above  the  other,  and  on  opposite  sides  of  the 
paper.  On  sending  currents  of  electricity,  the  paper  was  pierced 
by  the  electricity,  every  shock  making  a  little  hole  through 
it.  If  the  electricity  transmitted  were  positive,  a  hole  was  pierced 
at  one  of  those  points,  and  if  negative,  a  hole  was  made  at  the 
other  point.  By  the  combination  of  these  perforations  letters 
and  symbols  were  denoted. 

By  an  arrangement  of  these  dots  or  holes,  under  the  ordinary 
mathematical  law,  from  30  successive  currents  of  electricity, 
occupying,  say,  15  seconds  of  time,  no  less  than  1,073,741,824 
different  signals  could  be  made. 

295 


296  GOLD-LEAF    TELEGRAPH    APPARATUS. 

Ten  miles  of  wire  were  erected  on  the  London  and  North 
Western  Railway  for  the  purpose  of  testing  the  practicability 
of  the  plan,  and  of  obtaining  certain  fundamental  laws  as  to 
the  transmission  of  electric  currents.  The  signals  were  found 
to  be  given  with  great  certainty,  and  the  paper,  moistened  with 
dilute  acid,  was  pierced  even  when  a  Leyden  jar,  filled  only 
with  water,  and  in  size  not  greater  than  one's  little  finger,  was 
employed. 

The  plan  was  submitted  to  the  government,  and  an  offer  was 
made  to  connect  Liverpool  with  London  by  means  of  this  tele- 
graph, and  that  at  the  sole  risk  of  the  Messrs.  Highton,  pro- 
vided that  the  government  would  obtain  for  them,  for  such  pur- 
pose, liberty  to  use  the  lines  of  the  London  and  Birmingham, 
Grrand  Junction,  and  Liverpool  and  Manchester  railways.  The 
government,  however,  found  that  at  that  time  they  possessed  no 
compulsory  power  to  grant  such  license,  even  for  a  telegraph 
for  their  own  use  ;  and  hence,  in  a  bill  passing  through  Parlia- 
ment at  the  time  with  reference  to  railways,  clauses  were 
added,  giving  this  power  to  government  for  telegraphs  for 
their  own  purposes.  This,  it  is  believed,  was  done  at  the  insti- 
gation of  the  late  Sir  Robert  Peel. 

The  paper,  when  marked,  would  appear  thus  : 


Highton's  system  of  marks  for  high-tension  electricity. 

The  above,  on  one  plan,  would  correspond  with  the  number 
12,413,411,  and  would,  in  sending,  occupy  only  some  5  or  6  sec- 
onds. 

GOLD-LEAF  TELEGRAPH   APPARATUS. 

The  next  patent  was  taken  out  by  the  Rev.  H.  Highton,  M. 
A.,  in  1846.  The  Jelegraph  included  in  this  patent  is  known 
as  the  Grold-leaf  telegraph. 

A  small  strip  of  gold-leaf,  inserted  in  a  glass  tube,  was  made 
to  form  part  of  the  electric  circuit  of  the  line- wire.  A  perma- 
nent magnet  was  placed  in  close  proximity  thereto.  When  a 
current  of  electricity  was  passed  along  the  line-wire,  the  strip  of 
gold  leaf  was  instantly  moved  to  the  right  or  left,  according  to 
the  direction  of  the  current. 

This  is  a  very  delicate  instrument  and  is  worthy  of  the  read- 
er's attention.  In  order  that  it  may  be  properly  understood,  I 
have  copied  the  following  from  the  patent. 


GOLD-LEAF    TELEGRAPH    APPARATUS. 


297 


Fig.  1. 


Extract  from  the  Specification  of  the  Patent  granted  to  Henry  Highton,for  Improve- 
ments in  Electric  Telegraphs.     Sealed  February  3,  1846. 

"  In  the  electric  telegraphs  now  commonly  used  on  English 
railways,  signals  are  given  by  the  motions  of  magnetic  needles, 

which  are  caused  to  move  to  either 
side  by  the  action  of  electric  currents 
passed  in  either  direction  through  coils 
of  wire  surrounding  magnetic  needles. 
And  I  have  discovered  that  signals  can 
be  exhibited  in  electric  telegraphs  by 
motions  produced  by  electric  currents 
in  strips  of  metallic  leaf,  suitably 
i  c  placed,  in  a  very  cheap  form  of  signal 

*      •  apparatus,  resembling  a  gold-leaf  gal- 

vanometer. 

'"  The  drawing  hereunto  annexed 
represents  a  signal  apparatus,  consist- 
ing of  a  glass  tube,  A,  fitted  in  brass 
caps,  #,  #,  at  top  and  bottom,  and 
having  a  strip  of  metallic  leaf,  B 
(gold  leaf  being  the  kind  of  me- 
tallic leaf  which  I  usually  employ), 
passing  through  its  centre,  loosely 
hung,  in  metallic  contact  with  the  said  caps  ;  the  upper  extremity 
of  the  metallic  leaf  being  fixed  at  right  angles  to  its  lower  end, 
so  that  the  metallic  leaf,  from  whatever  direction  seen,  will 
present  at  some  part  its  flat  surface  to  the  eye.  The  caps,  a 
a,  (which  are  moveable,  in  order  that  the  metallic  leaf  may  be 
replaced,  if  broken,)  are  placed  in  a  circuit  suitable  for  elec- 
tro-telegraphic communication. 

"  Near  to  the  metallic  leaf  (as  on  the  outside  of  the  glass)  is 
placed  either  of  the  poles  of  a  magnet  c.  And  the  effects  of 
this  arrangement  is,  that  when  a  current  of  voltaic  electricity . 
is  caused  to  pass  through  the  circuit,  and,  therefore,  also  through 
the  metallic  leaf,  B,  included  in  it,  the  metallic  leaf  is  deflected 
to  one  side  or  the  other,  according  to  the  direction  of  the  cur- 
rent. And  the  distinct  motions  so  obtained  may  be  repeated 
and  combined,  and  used  for  the  purpose  of  designating  letters 
or  figures,  or  other  conventional  signals. 

"  One  of  the  above-mentioned  signal  apparatuses  is  placed  at 
each  terminus  of  telegraphic  communication,  and  others  may 
be  placed  at  intermediate  points. 

"  Each  terminus,  and  also  each  intermediate  station,  is  pro- 
vided with  a  voltaic  battery,  and  with  one  of  the  key-boards  in 
use  in  single  magnetic-needle  electric  telegraphs.  The  person 
in  charge  of  the  telegraph  at  either  terminus,  or  at  any  inter- 


I 


298 


GOLD-LEAF    TELEGRAPH    APPARATUS. 


mediate  station,  produces  the  requisite  connections  for  causing 
an  electric  current  to  pass  in  either  direction  through  the  cir- 
cuit, and,  therefore,  through  the  metallic  leaf  of  the  signal  ap- 

Fig.  2. 


Not 

Understand 
1 

-T 

11  -O 
13 
81 
33 
111 
113  -H 
131  -U 
133  -D 
311  -0 
313  -P 
331  -L 
333  -R 
1111  -P 
1113  -M 
1131  -B 
1133  -G 
1311  -V 


B- 1131 
C-811 
D-133 
E   1 
F-313 
G- 1133 
H-113 
1-31 
J-  3133 
K-  1331 
L-331 
M-1113 
N- 13 
0-11 
P-  1111 
-1313 


1331  - 
1333--W 
3111  -Y 
3113  -X 
3131  -Z 
8133  -J 

to  Numbers  3311    3311  to  Numbers 
to  Priv.  Sigs.  3313    3313  to  Priv.  Sigs. 

Repeat 3331    3331 Eepeat 

Wait 3333    3333 Wait 

Code llong  llong Code 

Letters 3  "      3  " Letters 


Gold-leaf  Telegraph  for  one  line-wire,  with  code-table  shown  on  dial. 

paratus  of  each  terminal  or  intermediate  station,  and  thus  cause 
the  metallic  leaf  of  all  the  signal  apparatuses  to  move  simulta- 
neously to  either  side,  so  as  to  give  the  required  signal  or  sig- 
nals. 

"  The  key-board  of  each  terminal  or  intermediate  station  has 
a  handle,  by  moving  which,  the  person  in  charge  of  the  tele- 
graph at  any  station  can  cause  an  electric  current  to  pass 
through  a  circuit,  in  connection  with  a  system  of  alarums  at  the 
terminal  and  intermediate  stations,  similar  to  those  in  use  in 
magnetic-needle  electric  telegraphs." 


GOLD-LEAP    TELEGRAPH    APPARATUS.  299 

The  next  patent  was  taken  out  in  January,  1848,  by  Messrs. 
H.  and  B.  Highton. 

At  this  time  Mr.  Edward  Highton  was  acting  as  telegraphic 
engineer  to  the  London  and  Northwestern  Railway  Company, 
and  was  pressed  by  that  company  to  invent  a  set  of  electric 
telegraphs  free  from  the  objections  and  defects  inherent  to  most 
telegraphs  then  in  use,  and  free  also  from  any  of  the  then  ex- 
isting patents. 

Every  telegraph  proposed  or  executed  at  that  time,  was  mi- 
nutely investigated,  and  their  defects  studied  with  the  greatest 
care.  Neither  time  nor  money  was  spared  to  accomplish  the 
objects  desired. ,  The  result  was  a  series  of  inventions  of  great 
variety  and  extent. 

For  these  inventions,  the  patentees  received  from  the  hands 
of  His  Royal  Highness  Prince  Albert,  as  President  of  the  So- 
ciety of  Arts,  the  greatest  honor  the  society  had  the  power  to 
bestow,  viz.,  their  Large  Gold  Medal. 

Several  of  the  plans  were  immediately  adopted  on  the  London 
and  Northwestern  Railway,  in  preference  to  those  of  the  old 
Electric  Telegraph  Company,  who  then  possessed  a  great  num- 
ber of  patents.  The  telegraphs  gave  the  greatest  satisfaction, 
and  have  been  in  constant  daily  use  ever  since. 

The  principal  feature  of  the  inventions  in  this  patent  were,  viz. : 

The  horseshoe  magnet  was  suited  to  coils,  and  was  thought 
to  be  much  superior  to  the  old  straight  magnetic  needle  and 
coil  of  Cooke  and  Wheatstone.  In  step-by-step  motion  tele- 
graphs, a  means  was  provided  for  causing  the  pointer  or  disk  at 
once  to  progress  by  one  bound  to  zero  on  the  starting  point. 

The  maximum  work  capable  of  being  produced  by  any  num- 
ber of  lines  was  taken  advantage  of,  and  thus  three  wires  were 
made  to  produce  26  primary  signals,  and  so  to  show  instantly 
any  desired  letter  of  the  alphabet.  Under  Ampere's  plan,  26 
wires  must  have  been  used,  and  under  Cooke  and  Wheatstone's 
patent,  6  wires.  Suitable  keys  were  devised  for  sending  cur- 
rents of  electricity  over  three  wires  in  the  26  orders  of  variation. 

Direct-action  printing  telegraphs  were  devised,  so  that  a  sin- 
gle touch  of  one  out  of  26  keys  caused  instantly  any  desired 
one  out  of  26  letters  or  symbols  to  be  printed. 

The  insulation  of  wires  was  improved,  and  many  other  im- 
provements relating  to  electric  telegraphs  effected. 

The  advantage  of  the  horseshoe  magnet  over  the  straight 
magnet  or  magnetic  needle  of  Professor  Wheatstone  was  thus 
stated  by  Mr.  Highton :  When  a  coil  surrounds  a  straight 
magnetic  needle,  as  used  by  Messrs.  Cooke  and  Wheatstone, 
each  convolution  of  the  wire  has  to  pass  twice  over  the  central 
or  dead  part  of  the  magnet ;  whereas,  if  the  horse-shoe  magnet 


300 


SINGLE    POINTER    TELEGRAPH. 


be  employed,  there  is  wire  only  where  there  is  magnetism  in 
the  magnet  to  be  acted  on.  This  latter  arrangement,  therefore, 
enables  all  superfluous  resistance  in  the  circuit  to  be  dispensed 
with  ;  and  hence  the  same  amount  of  electric  power  is  enabled 
to  produce  a  far  greater  effect  on  the  distant  telegraphic  instru- 
ments, or  less  power  to  produce  an  equal  effect.  Currents  of 
electricity  from  secondary  batteries  were  to  be  employed  where 
great  mechanical  effects  were  desired  at  the  distant  station. 
An  instrument  was  devised  for  this  purpose,  called  a  "  perse- 
node." 

The  next  patent  was  taken  out  by  Mr.  Edward  Highton  on 
the  7th  February,  1850. 

Fig.  3.    • 


Do 
Understand 

A- 33 

B- 1131 

0-  311 

D-133 

E-  1 

F-  313  -I 

G- 1133  -1 

H-113 

1-31 

-I-  3133 

K-  1331 

L.  331 

M-1113          o= 

N.  13 

O-  11 

P-  1111 

Q-  1313 

E.  333 

S-  Ill 

T.  3 

U-  131 

V-  1311 

•W-1383 

X-  3113 

T-  3111 

Z-  3131 

'to  Numbers  3311 
toPriv.Sigs.3313 

Repeat 3331 

Wait 3333 

Code ilong 

Letters 3    ™ 


Not       \ 
Understand 

I  -E 
3       -T 

II  -O 
13     -N 
31      -I 
33      -A 

III  -8 
113    -H 
131    -U 
133    -D 
311    -0 
313    -F 
331    -L 
333    -R 
1111  -P 
1113  -M 
1131  -B 
1133  -G 
1311  -V 
1313  -Q 
1331  -K 
1333 -W 
3111  -Y 
3113  -X 
3131  -Z 
8133  -J 

S311  to  Numbers 
3313  to  Priv.  Sigs. 

3331 Repeat 

8333 wait 

Ilong Code 

3  •'    Letters 


Single-pointer  telegraph  for  one  line-w:re,  with  code  shown  on  dial.    The  pointer  is 
loved  to  the  right  or  left  by  the  horseshoe  magnet  and  coil. 


DOUBLE-POINTER    TELEGRAPH. 


301 


SINGLE,  DOUBLE,    AND    REVOLVING  POINTER    TELEGRAPHS. 

The  patent  contains, a  great. many  improvements  indiffer- 
ent classes  of  telegraphs.  A  few  only  of  the  principal  features 
will  be  alluded  to  here. 

The  first  part  refers  to  modes  of  arranging  electric  circuits. 

Means  of  employing  electricity  of  different  degrees  of  tension, 

Fig.  4. 


/  /// 

\  V 

| 

A     2 

2     A 

B121 

3     B 

C      4 

4      C 

D    12 

6      T 

E     3 

8     M 

F   44l 
Gill 
H   21 

2  EndofWordlffl  8 
Understand  Ig  3 
Not        "      ••  6 

6  11    I 

12  D 
21   H 

I    11 

Repeat  "  2 

1    22  N 

J212 
K3S3 

Up  Train  .  .  "88 
Down  Train  "  12 

33   0 
36   L 

L    36 

Code        .      "  4 

44  P 

M     8 

N  at*1 

To  Numbers"  84  __ 
To  Letters  "484 

48   Z 
"63  R 

O   :3 
P222 

Priv.  Sigs.  "222 
Wait  "     8 

Q444 
R  6:! 
S   66 

\lq  End  of  Word 
2  Ig  Repeat 
3  "  Understand 

111  G 
121  B 
212  J 

T     6         4  "         .  .Code 

241  P 

U   88         6  "NotUnder'd 

?,33Y 

V6  6         8    "    .  ...  .Wait 

363K 

W666          12  "  Down  Train 

444  Q 

X  888         84  "  To  Numbers 

636V 

Y333         88"  ..Up  Train 
Z    48         222  "  Priv.  Sigs. 

666W 

888X 

484  "  To  Letters 

g 

/ 

7                              ^" 

\ 

s 

1  1 

)    4 

k      u           vi    '  ~ 

Double-pointer  Telegraph  for  two  line-wires,  with  code-table. 

and  of  different  periods  of  duration,  are  also  shown,  so  that  two 
kinds  of  electric  apparatus  may  be  connected  to  one  line- wire, 
and  one  only  worked,  as  desired.  By  this^ means  one  of  the 
wires  usually  employed  was  rendered  unnecessary.  Other  im- 
provements relating  to  the  dials  are  also  made 

A  new  mode  of  causing  motion  in  soft  iron,  by  temporarily 


302 


REVOLVING-POINTER    TELEGRAPH. 


•  magnetizing  it  by  the  contiguity  of  a J  powerful  magnet,  is  de- 
scribed, which  promises  to  be  of  great  value  in  electric  tel- 
egraphs, as  by  the  employment  of  this  apparatus  any  demagnet- 
ization of  the  magnets  in  thunder-storms  is  entirely  obviated, 
and  the  coils  of  wire  are  made  to  give  out  more  power, 

Fig.  5. 


Bevolving-Pointer  Telegraph,  with  double  action  escapement,  for  either  one  or  two 
line-wires,  the  pointer  being  able  to  progress  from  letter  to  letter,  or  to  pass  by  one 
bound  from  any  letter  the  whole  distance  up  to  zero. 

The  letters  in  the  rays  are  substituted  for  the  following,  viz.  :  a  —  Numbers  ;  b  —  Private 
Signals;  c—  Code;  d—  Letters;  e—  End  of  Message:  end  of  the  word  ;  f—  Repeat  ;  g—  Under- 
stand ;  h—  Wait  ;  i—  Not  understand  ;  k—  Go  on. 


,  or  vibrating  bodies,  in  step-by-step  motion  tel- 
egraphs, are  introduced  in  order  that  a  definite  period  of  time 
may  elapse  between  each  successive  current  of  electricity  ;  and 
these  same  bodies  are  caused  to  make  and  break  the  circuit,  so 
that  no  second  current  can  be  transmitted  till  all  the  instru- 
ments in  a  series  have  completed  the  word  due  to  the  prior  cur- 
rent. In  this  way,  all  overrunning  or  lagging  behind  of  one  in- 
strument, as  before  described,  is  entirely  obviated. 

Besides  these  improvements,  Messrs.  Highton  made  many 
others,  in  batteries,  construction  of  lines,  and  in  the  administra- 


IMPROVEMENT    IN    BATTERIES    AND   INSULATION.  303 

tion  of  telegraph  affairs.  They  invented  a  revolving  disk  tel- 
egraph, with  a  new  double-action  escapement  for  either  one  or 
two  line- wires  ;  also,  a  direct  letter-showing  telegraph  for  three 
line-wires,  in  which  the  instrument  produced  the  desired  letters 
instantly  into  view  in  the  centre  of  the  dial  by  means  of  three 
movable  screws  ;  and,  also,  a  printing  telegraph,  suited  for 
either  one,  two,  or  three  line  wires,  according  to  the  rapidity 
of  transmission  desired.  In  this  telegraph  the  letters  were 
printed  by  one  touch  of  a  key,  when  three  wires  were  used. 

IMPROVEMENT    IN    BATTERIES    AND    INSULATION. 

Their  improvement  in  batteries,  which  requires  not  the  slight- 
est attention  for  months  together,  many  of  which  were  em- 
ployed in  doing  the  most  severe  work  on  the  London  and  North- 
western Railway,  were  not  touched  for  periods  of  three,  four, 
and  even  twelve  months  at  a  time,  and  yet  they  gave  out, 
whenever  required,  a  constant  and  equable  flow  of  the  electric 
power.  This  was  accomplished  by  the  substitution  of  a  solu- 
tion of  the  sulphates  of  the  earths  instead  of  sulphuric  acid. 
These  gentlemen  invented  an  improvement,  relating  to  the 
manner  of  protecting  and  using  insulated  submarine  or  subter- 
ranean telegraphic  wires.  It  consisted  in  surrounding  the  in- 
sulated wires  or  strands  of  wire,  by  putting  them  in  the  middle 
of  a  wire-rope,  so  that  the  insulated  wires  may  be  surrounded 
with  a  flexible  covering  of  iron,  or  galvanized  iron  or  brass,  or 
other  hard  wire,  or  small  rods  of  such  materials.  This  patent 
was  dated  September  21,  1850. 


BAKEWELL'S  ELECTRIC  COPYING  TELEGRAPH. 


CHAPTEE    XXI. 

Manipulation  of  the  Electric  Copying  Telegraph  of  F.  C.  Bakewell  of  England — 
The  Apparatus  Described — Secrecy  of  Correspondence,  its  Advantages  and 
Disadvantages. 

MANIPULATION  OF  THE  COPYING  TELEGRAPH. 

THERE  have  been  many  plans  proposed  for  transmitting  in- 
telligence by  electricity,  and  producing,  at  a  given  destination, 
a  fac-simile  of  the  writing  presented  at  the  sending  station. 
The  following  Seems  to  be  the  most  practicable  yet  devised,  and 
the  inventor,  Mr.  F.  C.  Bakewell,  of  England,  is  confident  that 
it  will  accomplish  the  great  desideratum  on  lines  of  any 
length. 

The  copying  telegraph  transmits  copies  of  the  handwriting 
of  correspondents.  The  advantages  of  this  mode  of  transmission 
are,  that  the  communications  may  be  authenticated  by  the 
recognized  signatures  of  the  parties  by  whom  they  are  sent, 
and  as  the  writing  received  is  traced  from  the  original  message, 
there  can  be  no  errors  of  transmission ;  for  every  letter  and 
mark  made  with  the  pen  is  transferred  exactly  to  the  other 
instrument,  however  distant. 

The  electro-chemical  mode  of  marking  the  paper,  invented 
by  Mr.  Davy,  is  adopted  in  the  copying  process.  The  writing 
is  copied  on  paper  soaked  in  a  solution  of  prussiate  of  potash 
and  muriatic  acid,  a  piece  of  steel  wire  serving  for  the  pen. 
The  paper  is  placed  round  a  cylinder  about  six  inches  in  diam- 
eter, and  a  steel  wire,  connected  with  the  copper  end  of  the 
voltaic  battery,  presses  upon  it,  and  is  carried  slowly  along  by 
a  screw  as  the  cylinder  revolves.  By  this  arrangement,  when 
the  voltaic  current  passes  uninterruptedly  from  the  wire  through 
the  paper  to  the  cylinder  which  is  connected  with  the  zinc  end 
of  the  battery,  lines  are  drawn  upon  it  at  the  same  distance 
apart  as  the  threads  of  the  screw  that  carry  the  point.  These 

304 


MANIPULATION    OF    THE    COPYING    TELEGRAPH. 


305 


lines  are  in  fact  but  one  continuous  spiral  line,  commencing  at 
one  end  of  the  cylinder  and  ending  at  the  other. 

The  communication  to  be  transmitted  is  written  on  tin-foil, 
with  a  pen  dipped  in  varnish.  Thin  sealing-wax  varnish,  made 
by  dissolving  sealing-wax  in  spirits  of  wine,  answers  the  pur- 
pose best,  as  it  dries  very  quickly.  The  letters  thus  written 
form  on  the  conducting  metal  surface  a  number  of  non-con- 
ducting marks,  sufficient  to  interrupt  the  electric  current, 
though  the  deposit  of  resinous  matter  is  so  slight  as  not  to  be 
perceptible  by  the  touch. 

The  message  on  tin-foil  is  fixed  round  a  cylinder  at  the  trans- 
mitting instrument,  which  instrument  is  a  counterpart  in  its 
mechanical  arrangements  of  the  receiving  one,  and  either  of 
them  may  be  used  to  transmit  and  receive  messages.  A  metal 
style  in  connection  with  the  voltaic  battery  presses  on  the  tin- 
foil, and  it  is  carried  along  by  an  endless  screw  as  the  cylinder 
revolves,  exactly  in  the  same  manner  as  the  steel  wire  that 
draws  lines  on  the  paper  on  the  receiving  instrument.  The 
varnish  writing,  when  it  interposes  between  the  style  and  the 
tin-foil,  stops  the  electric  current ;  consequently,  at  every  part 
where  the  electric  current  is  stopped  by  the  varnish  at  one 
instrument,  the  steel  wire  ceases  to  make  marks  on  the  paper 
at  the  other  station.  Both  instruments  are  so  regulated  that 
the  cylinders  rotate  exactly  together,  therefore  the  successive 
breaks  of  the  electric  current  by  the  varnish -letters  cause  cor- 
responding gaps  to  be  made  in  the  lines  on  the  paper ;  and  the 
succession  of  these  lines,  with  their  successive  gaps  where  the 
letters  occur,  produces  on  the  paper  of  the  receiving  instrument 
the  exact  forms  of  the  letters.  The  letters  appear  of  a  white 
or  pale  color  on  a  ground  of  blue  lines,  there  being  about  nine 
or  ten  lines  drawn  by  the  wire  to  make  one  line  of  writing.  In 
the  diagram,  A  shows  the  writing  on  tin-foil,  from  which  the 
copy  is  made  in  the  form  shown  at  B. 

Fig.  1. 


306 

It  is  essential  to  the  correct  working  of  the  instruments  that 
the  cylinders  should  rotate  exactly  together.  This  synchronous 
movement  of  the  two  instruments  is  effected  hy  means  of  reg- 
ulating electro-magnets,  aided  by  a  "  guide-line"  on  the  trans- 
mitting cylinder. 

The  moving  power  of  each  instrument  is  gravity,  accelerated 
motion  being  prevented  by  a  rapidly  revolving  fan,  which  pro- 
duces a  very  steady  movement  of  the  cylinder.  The  speed  may 
thus  be  very  easily  varied  by  adding  or  by  taking  off  weight. 
The  "  guide-line"  consists  simply  of  a  strip  of  paper  pasted 
across  the  tin-foil  at  a  right  angle,  as  shown  at  c.  That  strip 
of  paper  effectually  stops  the  electric  current,  and  leaves  a  gap 
of  equal  breadth  in  each  line  drawn  on  the  prepared  paper  of 
the  receiving  instrument.  If  the  receiving  instrument  be 
moving  at  exactly  the  same  speed  as  the  transmitting  one, 
these  gaps  in  each  line  will  be  in  the  same  relative  positions, 
and  will  fall  under  each  other  on  the  receiving  cylinder,  making 
a  broad  white  stripe  corresponding  with  the  strip  of  paper  on 
the  transmitting  cylinder.  But  if  the  receiving  cylinder  be 
moving  faster  than  the  other,  the  gaps  in  the  lines  will  not  fall 
under  one  another,  but  every  one  will  be  farther  toward  the 
right  hand.  By  noticing  the  position  of  these  gaps  on  the  paper, 
it  may  be  seen  exactly  how  much  faster  one  instrument  is 
going  than  the  other,  and  weight  may  be  taken  off  the  receiving 
instrument  until  the  gaps  form  a  continuous  stripe.  In  this 
manner  the  two  instruments  may  be  regulated  to  move  to- 
gether. It  is  immaterial  at  what  olistance  apart  they  are ;  for 
if  they  be  in  the  same  room,  or  two  hundred  miles  from  each 
other,  the  same  plan  of  adjustment  must  be  adopted. 

Supposing  the  mechanism  of  the  instruments  to  be  very  good, 
and  that  there  were  no  irregularities  on  the  surfaces  of  the  cyl- 
inders, the  plan  of  regulating  by  means  of  the  guide-line  alone 
would  be  sufficient  for  the  copying  process.  Legible  writing 
may,  indeed,  be  obtained  in  that  manner,  but  not  with  suffi-  * 
cient  accuracy  and  certainty  to  be  depended  on  in  ordinary 
working  operations.  To  secure  the  requisite  degree  of  accuracy 
and  certainty,  an  electro-magnetic  regulator  is  used.  This  may 
be  brought  into  action  by  means  of  a  second  communicating 
wire,  or  by  local  action  altogether  ;  in  the  latter  case  a  single 
wire  only  is  required  to  work  the  copying  telegraph.  When 
two  wires  are  employed,  one  of  them  is  used  for  the  electro- 
magnet that  regulates  the  instruments,  the  other  for  transmit- 
ting the  current  that  marks  the  paper  by  electro-chemical  de- 
composition. The  diagram  will  assist  in  explaining  the  mode 


THE    APPARATUS    DESCRIBED. 


307 


of  regulating  the  instruments  when  a  separate  wire  is  used  for 
that  purpose. 

THE    APPARATUS    DESCRIBED. 
Fig.  2. 


A  side  view  only  of  the  two  instruments  is  given,  without 
their  stands  or  other  mechanism  than  that  which  appears  on  the 
outside  of  each ;  the  trains  of  wheels  propelled  by  the  weights 
being  contained  within  the  cheeks  A  A  and  B  B,  and  the  cylin- 
ders being  on  the  opposite  sides.  The  wheel  D  is  fixed  to  the 
projecting  arbor  of  a  fast-moving  wheel  next  to  the  fan,  and  it 
makes  twelve  revolutions  to  one  of  the  cylinder.  Two  springs 
e  e,  insulated  from  the  instruments  by  being  mounted  on  wood, 
are  connected  by  wires  c  z  to  the  voltaic  battery,  and  to  the 
electro-magnet  M  on  the  other  instrument.  The  other  end  of 
the  coil  of  wire  round  the  electro-magnet  is  fixed  to  the  voltaic 
battery,  so  that  when  the  two  springs  e  e  touch,  the  circuit  of 
the  battery  is  completed,  and  the  electro-magnet  is  instantly 
brought  into  action.  This  occurs  once  every  revolution  of  the 
wheel  D,  by  the  projecting  part  g  pressing  the  two  springs  to- 
gether. The  wheel  E  on  the  instrument  A  is  fixed  on  to  the 
arbor  of  a  wheel  corresponding  with  that  of  D,  and  likewise 
makes  twelve  revolutions  to  one  revolution  of  the  cylinder. 

The  keeper  K  of  the  electro-magnet  has  an  arm  or  lever  L 
added  to  it,  which  reaches  to  the  circumference  of  the  wheel  E, 
and,  when  the  keeper  is  attracted  by  the  magnet,  rubs  against 
a  projecting  part  of  the  circumference  o,  and  thus  operates  as  a 
break  to  check  the  motion  of  the  instrument.  In  regulating 
the  instruments  to  rotate  synchronously  by  these  means,  a 
heavier  weight  is  put  on  A  than  on  B,  to  cause  it  to  rotate 
considerably  faster  than  the  other  when  the  break  is  not  applied. 
But  when  both  instruments  are  set  in  motion,  the  lever  being 
pulled  down  each  time  that  the  springs  are  pressed  together  by 


308 


BAKEWELI/S    ELECTRIC    COPYING    TELEGRAPH. 


the  wheel  D,  the  break  is  thus  put  in  operation  just  sufficiently  to 
make  the  movements  of  the  two  instruments  correspond.  By 
this  arrangement,  it  will  be  observed  that  one  instrument  regu- 
lates the  other  ;  and  it  has  it  under  such  complete  control  that 
if  the  speed  of  B  be  diminished,  the  movement  of  A  will  be  re- 
tarded by  the  longer  continued  action  of  the  break,  and  be  made 
to  rotate  equally  slowly,  and  even  to  stop  by  stopping  the 
motion  of  B. 

When  the  instruments  are  worked  at  a  distance  from  each 
other,  the  electro-magnet  M  is  put  into  action  by  a  local  battery, 
and  the  contact  is  made  and  broken  by  an  intermediate  small 
electro-magnet,  as  in  Mr.  Morse's  telegraph.  In  that  manner 
the  copying  telegraph  has  transmitted  messages  with  perfect 
accuracy  from  Brighton  to  London. 

When  a  single  communicating  wire  only  is  used,  the  instru- 
ments are  regulated  independently  of  each  other  by  means  of 
pendulums.  Clock-movements,  with  pendulums  that  beat  four 
times  in  a  second,  are  employed  at  each  instrument.  These 
pendulums  at  every  vibration  strike  against  springs,  at  each 
contact  with  which  the  electro  -magnets  which  regulate  the 
instruments  are  brought  into  action. 

The  arrangement  of  the  mode  of  making  and  breaking  con- 
tact by  the  pendulum  will  be  easily  understood  by  the  diagram. 

Fig.  3. 


The  pendulum  D  is  connected  by  the  wire  c  to  the  electro- 
magnet M.  The  springs  s  s/  are  connected  with  the  voltaic 
battery  v,  from  which  a  wire  z  connects  with  the  other  end  of 
the  coil  of  the  electro-magnet.  It  will  be  evident,  therefore, 
that  when  the  rod  of  the  pendulum  vibrates  against  s  s',  the 
voltaic  circuit  is  completed  through  the  magnet,  which  is 


SECRECV    OF    CORRESPONDENCE.  309 

"brought  into  action  in  regulating  the  instruments  as  rapidly  as 
the  pendulum  beats. 

The  guide-line  serves  to  indicate  with  the  greatest  accuracy 
whether  the  pendulums  at  two  corresponding  stations  are 
beating  together ;  for  if  one  be  vibrating  faster  than  the  other, 
the  guide-line  on  the  paper  will  be  slanting  instead  of  perpen- 
dicular ;  and  by  means  of  an  adjusting  screw  to  raise  or  lower 
the  pendulum-bob,  the  two  may  be  readily  adjusted  to  beat, 
together.  In  this  manner  a  variation  of  even  the  thousandth 
part  of  a  second  may  be  observed  and  corrected. 

It  may  probably  be  supposed,  because  the  metal  style  has  to 
pass  over  each  line  of  writing  nine  or  ten  times  to  complete  it, 
that  the  copying  process  must  be  necessarily  slow ;  but  it  is,  on 
the  contrary,  very  rapid.  A  cylinder  six  inches  in  diameter  will 
hold  a  length  of  paper  on  which  one  hundred  letters  of  the 
alphabet  may  be  written  in  a  line.  The  cylinder  revolves 
thirty  times  in  a  minute ;  and  allowing  ten  revolutions  to  com- 
plete each  line  of  writing,  the  rate  of  transmission  is  three 
hundred  letters  in  a  minute.  Much  greater  speed  than  that  has 
been  obtained. 


SECRECY    OF    CORRESPONDENCE. 

One  of  the  advantages  which  the  copying  process  also  pos- 
sesses is  the  means  it  affords  of  maintaining  the  secrecy  of  cor- 
respondence. It  is  now  customary  for  those  who  wish  their 
communications  not  to  be  known  to  transmit  'messages  in 
cipher,  by  which  certain  letters  or  figures  have  significations 
given  to  them  which  aro  only  intelligible  to  the  parties  corre- 
sponding. This  plan  has  the  disadvantage  of  being  liable  to 
error,  as  the  clerks  are  ignorant  of  the  meaning  of  the  symbols 
they  transmit.  By  the  copying  telegraph  the  symbols  made  on 
the  tin-foil  are  transmitted  as  accurately  as  if  written  in  full,  for 
no  manipulation  whatever  is  required,  the  effect  being  produced 
altogether  by  mechanism. 

There  is  also  a  special  mode  of  maintaining  secrecy  by  trans- 
mitting the  messages  impressed  on  the  paper  invisibly.  If  the 
paper  be  moistened  with  diluted  acid  alone,  the  iron  is  depos- 
ited OP  the  paper,  but  no  mark  whatever  is  visible,  and  the 
paper  remains  blank  until  it  is  brushed  over  with  a  solution  of 
prussiate  of  potash,  which  instantly  renders  it  legible.  In  this 
manner  messages  written  with  colorless  varnish  may  be  trans- 
mitted without  any  one  seeing  the  contents ;  that  part  con- 
taining the  name  and  address  being  alone  rendered  legible  till 
the  message  is  delivered  to  the  person  for  whom  it  is  intended. 


NOTTS  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH, 


CHAPTER    XXI L 


ELECTRIC    DIAL    TELEGRAPH. 


ON  the  20th  of  January,  1846,  Mr.  John  Nott,  of  England, 
took  out  a  patent  for  a  particular  description  of  an  electric  tele- 
graph. 

Fig.  1. 


ELECTRIC    DIAL    APPARATUS. 


311 


In  this  instrument,  an  electro-magnet  causes  an  armature 
to  catch  into  the  teeth  of  a  wheel,  so  as  to  force  it  forward  one 
tooth  on  the  sending  of  each  current  of  electricity. 

By  the.  sending  of  currents  of  electricity  at  small  intervals 
of  time,  the  wheel,  and  pointer  attached  to  it,  may  thus  be 
worked  to  any  desired  points  on  the  dial.  Letters  were  en- 
graved on  the  dial  as  seen  in  fig.  1.  There  are  duplicate  sets 
of  the  alphabet,  to  produce  the  greater  celerity.  Any  letter 
might  be  pointed  out  by  the  hand  being  allowed  to  rest  at  such 
letter  for  a  short  period  of  time. 


INTERIOR    MECHANISM    OF    THE    APPARATUS. 
Fig.  2 


The  interior  view  of  the  telegraph  will  be  seen  in  fig.  2 
Letters  A  and  B  are  electro-magnets,  with  armatures  c  and  D 
working  on  centres  j  K  ;  E  is  a  ratchet-wheel  in  which  arma- 
tures F  and  F  work.  In  this  ratchet-wheel  the  hand  shown  on 
the  dial  in  fig.  1  is  attached.  As  the  armatures  c  and  D  are 


312 


NOTT  S  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH. 


attracted  to  the  electro-magnet  A  and  B,  the  wheel  E  moves  for- 
ward one  tooth,  and  the  hand  progresses  from  one  letter  to  the 
next.  A  similar  movement  occurs  when  the  current  ceases,  the 
armatures  being  forced  back  by  the  springs  s  and  s.  In  this 
way  the  hand  may  be  brought  successively  opposite  to  any  de- 
sired letter,  x  is  an  electro- magnet  for  sounding  the  alarm 
before  a  communication  is  made. 

Mr.  Highton  states  that  this  telegraph  was  bought  by  the 
Electric  Telegraph  Company  and  never  employed  except  to  a 
limited  extent. 

I  have  presented  this  apparatus  to  the  consideration  of  the 
reader,  because  it  embraces  combinations  similar  to  a  more 
recent  invention  proposed  in  America,  antl  for  the  purpose  of 
giving  information  on  every  improvement  calculated  to  promote 
the  art  of  telegraphing. 

Fig.  3. 


SEIMENS  AND  HALSKIE'S  GERMANIC 
TELEGRAPH, 


CHAPTEK    XXIII. 

Description  of  the  Telegraph  Apparatus— The  Alarum  Bell— Electric  Circuits 
and  Manipulation — The  Transmitter  and  its  Application. 

DESCRIPTION  OF  THE  TELEGRAPH  APPARATUS. 

THIS  apparatus  is  organized  upon  the  principles  of  the  dial- 
p.  ate  system,  and  is  universally  admitted  to  be  the  most  per- 
fect in  the  European  telegraphic  service.  The  following  de- 
scription, though  very  defective,  will  give  the  reader  a  knowl- 
edge of  its  mechanism  and  manipulation.  I  have  seen  this 
apparatus  on  the  German  railways  ;  it  was  really  a  model  of 
beauty,  and  to  me  very  simple.  It  serves  the  purposes  of  rapid 
communication ;  it  is  easy  to  keep  in  order,  and  it  is  suscepti- 
ble of  manipulation  by  the  ordinary  employes  of  the  railway 
service.  In  the  organization  and  finish  of  the  apparatus,  and 
in  the  perfection  of  the  system,  Messrs.  Seimens  and  Halskie  have 
exhibited  rare  powers,  fully  sustaining  the  distinguished  and 
enviable  reputation  enjoyed  by  those  gentlemen  in  Europe,  as 
telegraphers. 

In  fig.  1,  E  EI  are  the  poles  of  an  electro-magnet,  perpendicu- 
lar to  the  upper  side  of  the  box,  or  the  plane  of  the  drawing, 
flat  on  one  side  and  round  on  the  other.  A  AI  is  the  armature, 
something  like  a  reversed  ui ,  moveable  around  a  vertical  axis, 
which  axis  is  supported  by  two  gudgeons  fixed  on  the  support 
c ;  a  lever-arm  is  fixed  to  the  middle  of  the  armature,  and  the 
spring  RI  draws  it  continually  upward  toward  the  left,  tending 
to  separate  the  armature  from  the  electro-magnet,  so  that  it 
will  not  be  in  contact  with  it,  except  when  under  the  influence 
of  the  attraction  produced  by  the  passage  of  the  current,  and 
so  that  the  armature  will  separate  therefrom,  under  the  trac- 
tion of  the  spring,  when  the  current  is  interrupted.  The  fig. 

313 


314 


SEIMENS  AND  HALSKIE7S  GERMANIC  TELEGRAPH. 


ure  shows  how,  by  means  of  the  screw  v,  and  of  its  adjust- 
ment, the  spring  RJ  can  be  stretched  more  or  less,  and  increase 
or  diminish  the  facility  with  which  the  armature  detaches 

Fig.  1 


itself  from  the  electro-magnet.  A  long  lever  branch,  L  LJ  is 
also  fixed  to  the  armature,  and  turns  with  it  on  the  same  axis, 
and  shares  with  it  in  the  movement.  This  lever  bears  at  its 


THE    TELEGRAPH    APPARATUS. 


315 


extremity  LI?  a  rod  with  a  hook  t^  which  engages  in  the  teeth 
of  a  little  steel-toothed  wheel  rj  the  ratchet  in  descending  makes 
this  wheel  turn  one  tooth ;  when  rising,  on  the  contrary,  it 
slides  upon  the  inclined  plane  of  the  succeeding  tooth,  and  en- 
gages itself  above  it,  in  order  to  make  it  descend  in  its  turn. 
A  second  hook,  £2J  "borne  by  the  plate  PI,  prevents  the  toothed 
wheel  from  turning  back  during  the  ascending  movement  of 
the  rod  ^ ;  a  steel  needle  or  indicator  o,  fig.  1,  and  o  i,  fig.  3, 
borne  by  the  axis  of  the  toothed  wheel  rl9  turns  with  it  upon 
the  circular  dial  of  the  keys,  fig.  3,  and  passes  successively 
before  the  telegraphic  letters  or  signals  written  or  printed  on 
the  keys  of  fig.  2.  It  will  be  seen,  therefore,  that  whenever 
the  current  is  interrupted,  the  lever  I  detaches  the  armature, 
and  makes  it  descend  ;  the  hook-rod  LJ  £,  lowers  a  tooth,  makes 
the  indicator  advance  one  step,  and  brings  it  from  one  letter  to 
a  succeeding  letter.  The  most  essential  part  of  this  instru- 
ment has  been  called,  by  Messrs.  Seimens  and  Halskie,  the 


Fig.  2. 


Fig.  3. 


"  shuttle,"  because  it  is  similar  in  effect  to  a  weaver's  shuttle, 
moving  continually  from  right  to  left,  and  from  left  to  right, 
closing  and  opening  the  circuit,  and  giving  also  to  the  arma- 
ture a  continuous  movement.  The  shuttle  n  n\,  scarcely  per- 
ceptible in  the  drawing,  is  thus  composed ;  upon  the  support 
S3,  is  raised  a  little  brass  column,  bearing  on  its  upper  part  the 
little,  elongated,  rectangle  n  n\  of  copper,  furnished  with  two 
right-angled  appendages,  with  sockets  a  #T,  and  very  easily 
moved  ;  this  is  the  "  shuttle." 

At  each  of  the  extremities  of  the  appendages  a  a^  and  per- 
pendicular to  the  surface  of  the  shuttle,  is  fixed  a  little  piece  of 
copper,  pointed  upward,  and  represented  by  the  dotted  lines  on 
the  faces  n  n^.  Underneath  the  extremity  n^  is  a  little  foot, 
which  has  a  to-and-fro  movement,  with  the  shuttle  around  the 
centre  n\,  and  rests  at  the  bottom  upon  a  little  projecting 
metallic  band.  The  shuttle,  consequently,  oscillates  horizon- 


316 

tally  exactly  at  the  middle  of  the  lever-arm  L  La ;  its  foot  at  n: 
rubs,  in  the  least  degree  possible,  upon  the  band  which  sup- 
ports it ;  and,  in  order  that  the  shuttle  may  be  completely  insu- 
lated from  the  metallic  plate  PI?  this  foot  is  covered  at  its 
lower  extremity  with  an  agate  stone.  The  movement  of  the 
shuttle,  always  quite  circumscribed,  is  limited  by  the  screws 
e  €1,  and  these  screws  are  borne  by  two  uprights,  fixed  to  the 
plates  PI  p7,  and,  their  heads  being  rounded,  they  fit  into  the 
cavities  of  the  metallic  appendages  a  at ;  by  means  of  these 
screws,  the  movement  of  the  shuttle  n  n^  can  be  regulated. 
When  the  appendage  at  touches  the  screw  ely  the  appendage  a 
is  at  a  small  distance  from  the  screw  e,  and  reciprocally ;  a 
wire  spring,  slightly  stretched  at/a,  fixed  to  the  shuttle  itself, 
and  which  is  shown  by  the  dotted  lines  in  the  figure,  tends  to 
keep  the  appendage  #1  constantly  in  contact  with  el5  and  pre- 
vents the  little  jars  and  oscillations  of  the  shuttle  from  ever 
occasioning  a  momentary  separation  of  a^  and  elt  It  is  then 
the  appendage  a^  and  the  screw  ely  which  establishes  the 
metallic  contact  necessary  for  the  closing  of  the  circuit.  The 
only  function  of  a  and  e  is  to  circumscribe  the  movement  of 
the  shuttle.  The  nut  m  is  connected  in  the  movement  of  the 
lever  L  Ln  and  presses,  alternately,  sometimes  upon  a.  and 
sometimes  upon  a^ ;  but  as  it  is  a  trifle  shorter  than  the  dis- 
tance between  a  and  al9  it  cannot  move  between  a  and  a1  with- 
out taking  the  shuttle  with  it  in  its  movement.  In  the  figure, 
m  presses  against  a19  if  the  lever-arm  moves  from  the  side  of 
#!,  the  shuttle  will,  at  first,  remain  immoveable,  but  a  moment 
before  the  hook  tl  engages  above  the  following  tooth,  the  nut  m 
presses  against  #,  and  at  that  instant  it  displaces  the  shuttle ; 
there  is  then  no  longer  communication  between  aa  and  el ;  a  is 
then  in  non-metallic  contact  with  er  The  shuttle  remains  in 
this  position  until  the  armature,  dropping  down,  makes  the  nut 
m  press  against  !#,  and  re-establishes  the  metallic  contact  be- 
tween #j  and  e1?  by  separating  a  from  e  ;  it  will  be  seen  that 
the  extent  of  the  movement  of  the  lever-arm  L  LJ  is  much 
greater  than  that  of  the  shuttle,  and  that  it  is  only  at  the  mo- 
ment that  the  lever  has  arrived  at  its  maximum,  right  or  left 
point  of  separation,  that  the  shuttle  makes  a  very  small  move- 
ment, first  to  the  one  side  and  then  to  the  other. 

One  of  the  ends  bv  of  the  wire  of  the  electro  magnet  connects 
with  a  pressure  screw,  the  other  end  of  the  wire  traverses  the 
hole  TJ,  and  connects  at  fa  with  the  support  Si  of  the  shuttle ; 
another  wire  is  screwed  to  the  plate  pn  and  has  metallic  com- 
munication with  en  which  also  traverses  the  hole  T15  and  is 
fixed  to  a  pressure  screw.  If,  then,  bl  and  a\  are  united  to 


THE    TELEGRAPH    APPARATUS.  317 

the  two  poles  of  the  battery,  the  circuit  through  the  apparatus 
will  be  closed  as  long  as  #1  touches  e  ,  and  will  be  opened 
when  a  touches  e. 

In  the  position  represented  by  the  figure,  the  current  coming 
from  the  positive  pole  of  the  battery  to  bl9  traverses  the  wire  of 
the  electro-magnet,  comes  to  b.»  passes  from  £2  into  the  shuttle, 
comes  from  the  shuttle  at  a  to  a'i,  and  goes  to  the  negative 
pole  through  #V  The  armature  is  attracted,  the  hook  tl  is 
placed  above  the  next  tooth,  but  at  the  same  time  the 
nut  m  presses  a,  and  makes  the  shuttle  advance  toward  elt 
the  contact  no  lender  exists  between  #1  and  i  e,  the  circuit 
is  broken,  the  current  is  interrupted,  the  armature  separates 
from  the  electro-magnet,  the  hook  ti  descends,  taking  with  it 
a  tooth,  and  making  the  indicator  advance  a  step  upon  the  dial ; 
at  the  moment  when  this  return  movement  attains  its  limit, 
the  nut  m  presses  against  #1,  and  a\  against  e1?  the  current  is 
again  closed,  and  everything  recommences. 

In  order  to  prevent  the  shock  of  the  lever-arm  against  e 
from  cansing  two  teeth  to  pass,  instead  of  one,  or  causing  the 
hook  not  to  pass  over  a  single  tooth,  there  is  fixed : 

1st.  Upon  each  of  the  teeth  of  the  wheel  r\  a  steel  feather,  rat- 
chet, or  bevel  edge,  as  indicated  in  the  figure  by  the  white  rays. 

2d.  Upon  the  lever-arm  L  LI  is  a  little  vertical  steel  rod,  in- 
dicated by  ts  at  its  extremity,  and  it  is  bent  toward  the  bottom 
every  time  that  ti  engages  in  the  space  between  the  two  suc- 
ceeding teeth,  and  stops  the  wheel  r,  the  bent  extremity  t3 
abandons  the  ratchet  teeth,  which  are  directed  downward;  but 
every  time  the  lever-arm  redescends,  and  sets  the  wheel  r\  in 
motion,  t3  places  itself  between  two  consecutive  ratchets,  makes 
the  left  ratchet  pass,  opposing  the  passage  of  the  right-hand 
ratchet;  in  this  manner,  a  movement  of  the  lever-arm  L  LI 
toward  e\  can  never  let  two  teeth  pass,  and  the  needle  of  the 
indicator  must  always  pass  freely  from  the  centre  of  one  signal 
to  the  centre  of  the  following  signal.  One  of  the  principal 
characteristics  of  this  telegraph  is,  that  as  long  as  the  battery 
is  in  the  circuit,  the  mechanism  operates,  and  the  needle  of 
the  indicator  passes  constantly  over  the  dial  without  interven- 
tion of  any  clockwork. 

I  will  now  notice  the  means  by  which  the  movement  is 
stopped  to  indicate  any  letter.  A  circular  key-board,  fig.  2, 
forms  a  sort  of  a  gallery  around  the  apparatus,  each  key  bears 
a  letter,  or  signal,  and  is  prolonged  with  a  steel  point,  which, 
when  pressed  by  the  finger  on  the  key,  is  caused  to  penetrate 
into  the  apparatus.  The  axis  of  the  wheel  r,  which  bears  the 
indicator,  carries  with  it  a  second  needle  A2,  situated  under 


318 


SEIMENS  AND  HALSKIE's  GERMANIC  TELEGRAPH. 


the  plate  P!.  Each  key  pressed  down,  becomes  an  insurmount- 
able obstacle  to  the  rotation  of  the  needle,  the  wheel  stops, 
and  with  it  the  indicator  of  the  dial,  as  well  as  the  lever- 
arm  L  LI. 

It  will  be  seen,  by  the  preceding,  that,  at  the  moment  when 
the  letter  indicator  attains  the  middle  of  a  space,  the  lever-arm 
L  L  goes  toward  ely  the  hook  tl  places  itself  in  the  interval  of 
the  two  succeeding  teeth.  If,  then,  the  indicator  is  to  be 
placed  before  a  letter,  the  lever-arm  L  L!  must  be  stopped  in  its 
return  toward  e,  before  the  nut  m  arrives  in  contact  with  a\ 
and  also  before  the  indicator  has  reached  the  middle  of  the 
space  at  which  it  ought  to  stop.  For  that  purpose,  the  needle  AJ 
is  prolonged  and  inclined,  so  that  it  presses  against  the  rod, 
sunk  by  the  lowering  of  the  key,  before  the  nut  m  touches  a,, 
and  before  the  indicator  on  the  dial  has  reached  the  signal  at 
which  it  ought  to  stop.  If  the  finger  is  taken  off  the  key,  the 
rod  rises,  the  needle  A2  is  no  longer  stopped,  the  spring  detaches 
the  armature,  the  nut  m  presses  against  #1,  at  arrives  in  con- 
tact with  61,  the  current  circulates  again,  and  the  armature  re- 
commences its  oscillations. 

THE    ALARUM    BELL    APPARATUS. 

The  alarum  bell  is  represented,  in  part,  by  fig.  4.  It  is  com- 
posed of  a  new  electro-magnet,  as  seen  in  fig.  1,  EX  E'I,  having 
also  its  armature  in  the  form  of  an  cc  reversed.  A'  A'I,  move- 
able  around  an  axis ;  this  axis  bears  the  lever-arm  L',  which 

Fig,  4, 


partakes  of  the  to-and-fro  movement  of  the  armature.  A 
metallic  plate,  P3,  serves  as  a  support  to  a  little  foot,  upon 
which  a  shuttle  ri  n\  rests,  its  form  being  different  from  that  of 


THE    ELECTRIC    CIRCUITS    AND    MANIPULATION.  319 

the  telegraph  apparatus.  It  has  a  prong  of  a  fork,  moving 
within  very  narrow  limits,  "between  the  two  screw  heads  e'  ef\. 
Each  interior  jaw  of  the  shuttle  bears,  near  its  middle,  two 
little  insulating  bone  or  ivory  buttons,  against  which  the  lever 
arm  i/  strikes  in  its  oscillations,  making  the  shuttle  n1  n\  move 
in  its  turn,  sometimes  toward  e'  and  sometimes  toward  efl ;  the 
jaw  n\  bears  a  very  elastic  spring,  with  an  insulating  piece, 
and  which,  by  its  pressure,  prevents  the  oscillations  of  the 
shuttle  from  ever  separating  a\  from  ef\.  A  spiral  spring  FI, 
which  can  be  stretched  or  loosened  at  pleasure,  and  which 
draws  upon  the  lever-arm  l\  fixed  to  the  axis  of  the  arma- 
ture, tends  to  detach  the  armature  from  the  electro-magnet, 
and  even  to  detach  it  after  the  current  has  ceased  to  pass. 
This  same  axis  bears  a  long,  round-headed  bar,  which  strikes 
upon  the  bell  T  as  often  as  the  armature  is  attracted. 

The  screw-poles  e'  e'  (of  which  the  first  is  insulated  from  the 
support  s'j  while  61  is  in  constant  metallic  contact  with  the 
opposite)  must  be  adjusted  and  regulated  for  the  intensity  of 
the  current  and  the  tension  of  the  spring.  It  will  be  seen  that 
the  bell  apparatus  is  analogous  to  the  telegraph  apparatus.  The 
entire  mechanism  is  contained  in  a  round  brass  box,  fig.  3,  some 
twelve  inches  in  diameter,  and  upon  the  top  of  which  is  the 
circular  key-board,  the  letter- dial,  and  the  indicator.  Two 
square  screw  heads  are  seen  to  project  on  the  sides,  which  en- 
ables the  operator  to  regulate,  by  means  of  a  key,  and  without 
opening  the  box,  the  springs  of  EJ  E^  ;  another  screw-button,  B19 
serves  to  act  directly  on  the  escapement,  and  to  bring  the  in- 
dicator upon  such  letter  or  signal  as  we  desire.  The  letters  s  e 
and  n  are  written  twice  over,  on  account  of  their  very  frequent 
occurrence  in  the  Grerman  language.  Above  and  below  are 
two  vacant  spaces,  upon  which  the  indicator  is  brought  at  the 
end  of  each  word. 

THE    ELECTRIC    CIRCUITS    AND    MANIPULATION. 

Fig.  5  represents  the  circuits  of  the  two  apparatuses  of  two 
stations,  united  "by  the  line  wire  and  the  earth  wires.  This 
figure  is  simple,  and  explains  itself,  p  p7  are  the  two  batteries, 
of  which  c  c'  are  their  copper  poles,  and  z  z'  their  zinc  poles, 
united  by  wires  £o  the  pressure  screws,  indicated  by  the  same 
letters  in  station  2.  T  T;  F  F/  are  the  pressure  screws,  destined 
to  receive  the  wires  which  go  to  the  earth,  and  the  conducting 
wires  of  the  telegraph  line,  c  G/  are  two  commutators,  which 
communicate  metallically  sometimes  with  the  pressure  screws 
M  M',  when  it  is  desirable  to  transmit  dispatches,  sometimes 
with  the  pressure  screws  R  RX,  when  the  telegraphs  are  to  re- 


320 


SEIMENS  AND  HALSKIE5S    GERMANIC    TELEGRAPH. 


main  at  rest;  E  E  EX  E'  are  the  electro-magnets  of  the  indica- 
tors, and  of  the  bell  apparatus,  and  G  G/  are  two  electrome- 
ters, placed  in  the  circuit  in  the  drawing.  The  station  2,  at 

Fig.  5. 


the  left,  speaks  and  transmits  signals  to  the  station  1,  at  the 
right.  The  course  followed  by  the  current  is  indicated  by  the 
line  wires  and  the  station  connections. 

To  place  the  commutators  in  contact  with  M  M',  it  is  suffi- 
cient to  press  the  button  &,  fig.  5. 

The  needles  of  the  two  indicators  move  constantly  over  the 
dials ;  and  to  transmit  signals,  it  is  only  necessary  to  stop 


ELECTRIC    CIRCUITS    AND   MANIPULATION.  321 

simultaneously  the-  two  needles  upon  the  same  letter.  It  has 
sufficed  for  this,  to  prevent  the  circuit  from  being  closed  in  the 
apparatus  at  the  first  station,  1,  producing  the  same  results  in 
effect.  The  circuit  also  rests  open  in  the  apparatus  of  the 
second  station,  2 ;  and  neither  of  the  two  armatures  will  be 
attracted  until  the  mechanism  of  apparatus  1  is  permitted  to 
close  the  circuit. 

When  the  key  of  the  first  apparatus  is  pressed  upon,  the 
escapement  wheel  is  stopped  precisely  in  the  middle  of  the 
movement  which  it  was  about  to  make,  under  the  action  of  the 
spring,  and  the  circuit  cannot  be  again  closed,  until  the  oper- 
ator has  removed  the  obstacle  by  the  withdrawal  of  the  finger. 
During  this  time,  nothing  prevents  the  escapement  of  the  ap- 
paratus of  station  2,  by  its  mechanism,  from  closing  the  circuit  ; 
but,  inasmuch  as  the  circuit  is  open  at  station  1,  the  armature 
will  not  be  again  attracted,  and  the  indicator  of  the  apparatus, 
at  station  2,  will  stop  over  the  desired  letter,  after  the  key  is 
pressed  corresponding  to  the  same  letter  upon  the  apparatus 
at  station  1. 

In  time  of  repose,  when  it  is  not  desired  to  correspond,  the 
circuit  between  the  two  stations,  1  and  2,  is  formed  merely  by 
the  conducting  wire,  the  earth,  and  the  two  spools  or  coils  of 
the  alarum  bell.  When  .the  operator  of  station  1  wishes  to 
communicate  with  the  operator  of  station  2,  he  withdraws  his 
bell  apparatus  from  the  circuit,  and  replaces  it  by  a  battery  and 
his  apparatus  for  telegraphing.  Immediately,  the  bell  of  the 
station  2  gives  the  alarum,  but  the  telegraph  apparatus  of  that 
same  station  remains  motionless.  It  may  appear  somewhat 
surprising,  that  two  similar  apparatuses,  the  telegraph  and  that 
of  the  bell,  can  be  in  the  same  circuit,  the  one  operating  and 
the  other  not  operating.  This  effect  is  obtained  by  the  unequal 
tension  of  the  springs.  Suppose,  indeed,  two  apparatuses  to  be 
placed  in  the  same  circuit,  the  recoil  spring -of  the  one  A  is 
much  stronger,  or  more  tightly  stretched  than  the  apparatus 
B,  thus,  when  the  armature  of  Bjshall  have  been  attracted,  the 
electro-magnet  A  will  not  have  acquired  the  force  necessary  to 
counterbalance  the  action  of  the  spring.  This  result  is  owing 
to  the  difference  as  to  tension  in  the  recoil  springs,  the  one  be- 
ing more  susceptible  and  elastic  than  the  other.  The  armature 
of  A  will  remain  firm  and  motionless,  and  the^circuit  constantly 
closed  on  that  side.  The  apparatus  B  will  alone  move.  It  «will 
be  understood,  then,  that,  from  what  actually  takes  place,  the 
springs  of  the  bell  alarums  are  feebler  than  those  of  the  tele- 
graph. The  bells  will  be  sounded  at  each  station,  by  the  ac- 
tion of  the  battery  of  the  other  station,  while  the  telegraphs  will 

21 


322 

continue  to  remain  motionless.  To  completely  establish  the 
correspondence,  the  operator  of  station  2,  being  notified  by  the 
alarum,  withdraws  his  bell  apparatus  from  the  circuit,  and  puts 
in  its  place  the  telegraph  and  the  battery.  The  telegraph  ap- 
paratuses then  immediately  work  together.  This  simultaneous- 
ness  of  movement  will  not  take  place  if  the  operator  of  station 
1,  in  giving  the  alarum,  has  not  first  introduced  his  telegraph 
into  the  circuit,  and  if  his  telegraph  has  not  rested  motionless 
while  the  bell  of  the  other  station  is  sounded. 

If  the  operator  of  tlie  second  station  wishes,  in  his  turn,  to 
correspond,  or  express  some  doubt,  or  ask  some  explanation,  he 
'places  his  finger  upon  a  key,  the  needle  of  station  1  stops  upon 
the  signal  corresponding  to  that  key,  and  the  sender  of  the  dis- 
patch is  thereby  notified  that  the  operator  of  the  other  station 
wishes  to  speak.  The  interview  then  takes  place,  the  explana- 
tions are  exchanged,  and  the  transmission  of  the  signals  is  then 
resumed. 

The  normal  movement  of  this  telegraph  is  that  whenever 
the  needle  passes  over  a  demi- circumference  of  the  dial.  By 
this  system,  fifteen  signals  can  be  transmitted  in  a  second. 
This  rapidity  is  ordinarily  attained.  A  Daniel  battery,  of  five 
pairs,  is  sufficient  to  work  .a  line  of  from  one  to  two  hundred 
miles.  A  battery  of  twenty-five  pairs,  with  subterranean 
wires,  makes  the  apparatus  work  very  well  over  two  hundred 
and  fifty  miles. 

THE  TRANSMITTER  AND  ITS  APPLICATION. 

To  avoid  increasing  the  number  of  pairs,  an  apparatus,  has 
been  added  to  the  Germanic  telegraph,  by  the  inventors,  called 
a  "  transmitter,"  which  is  a  peculiar  relay  magnet.  When  the 
circuit  is  closed,  the  current  from  the  batteries  of  the  stations 
do  not  enter  at  first  into  the  two  spools  of  the  electro-magnets  of 
the  two  stations.  It  passes  first  into  the  spools  or  coils  of  the 
transmitter,  opposite  the  poles  of  which  the  armature  turns, 
similar  to  those  of  the  telegraph  and  of  the  bell  apparatus.  As 
soon  as  the  armatures  are  attracted,  they  close  an  aperture 
which  existed  between  the  conducting  stopper  and  the  lever 
fixed  to  the  armature,  and  when  the  armature  is  detached,  the 
interruption  is'made  to  re-exist.  The  establishment  and  rup- 
ture of  the  contact  is  the  only  work  performed  by  the  trans- 
mitter. There  can  be  given  to  their  springs  much  less  strength 
than  that  of  the  springs  of  the  bells,  and  a  very  feeble  current 
will  suffice  to  give  action  to  the  transmitter.  • 

When  the  transmitter  has  established  the  contact  as  above 


THE    TRANSMITTER    AND    ITS    APPLICATION.  323 

described,  the  current  of  the  battery  has  opened  before  it  a  de- 
rivating  circuit,  much  shorter  and  of  less  resistance,  being 
composed  of  equal  batteries  and  relay  coils  at  each  station. 

These  spools  will  then  be  traversed  by  a  current  much  less 
intense,  than  if  they  had  not  had  the  transmitter.  The  arma- 
ture of  the  telegraphs  are  attracted,  and  during  their  course, 
nothing  is  changed ;  but  as  soon  as  they  have  answered  at  the 
end  of  that  course,  the  armatures  interrupt  the  contact  in  the 
telegraphs.  The  current  which  animated  the  electro-magnets 
of  the  transmitters  ceases,  and  the  armatures  of  these  magnets 
are  detached  by  the  springs.  The  auxiliary  current,  which 
rendered  active  the  electro-magnets  of  the  telegraph,  ceases  in 
its  turn.  The  armatures  of  the  telegraph  are  drawn  back  by 
their  springs,  and  the  indicators  advance  one  step  upon  the 
dials,  &c.  The  manoeuvre  for  giving  the  alarum  call  is  the 
same  thing  either  with  or  without  the  transmitter.  Fig.  4 
will  give  an  idea  of  the  play  of  the  transmitter  or  electro-mag- 
net. It  serves  here  to  make  a  bell  ring.  E  EI  are  the  two  poles 
of  the  large  electro-magnet,  the  extremities  of  the  wire  which 
cover  it  go  by  the  wires  F  FI  to  the  two  poles  of  a  local  bat- 
tery. The  wires  of  the  transmitting  electro-magnet  terminate, 
one  with  the  earth,  and  the  other  with  the  wires  of  the  line. 
A  is  the  armature  of  the  small  electro-magnet ;  it  turns  around 
a  vertical  axis,  and  bears  the  lever  /,  terminated  by  a  ham- 
mer B,  which  strikes  upon  the  bell  at  each  attraction  of  the 
armature.  The  wire  F  goes  directly  to  one  of  the  poles  of  the 
local  battery.  The  wire  FI  is  at  first  attached  to  a  metallic 
piece  M  ;  to  this  same  piece,  but  insulated  from  it,  is  attached 
the  platina  wire,  which  makes  the  very  feeble  spring  r,  of 
which  the  extremity  is  very  near  to  the  little  platina  prolonga- 
tion of  ivj,  so  that  a  very  slight  movement  of  the  spring  r  serves 
to  bring  it  in  contact  with  M.  The  wire  F2  unites  the  spring  r 
with  the  second  pole  of  the  battery.  The  prolongation  of  the 
lever  /,  or  the  second  arm  #,  seen  below  the  armature  A,  bears 
at  its  extremity  two  little  pins,  between  which  is  engaged  a 
rod,  fixed  to  the  armature  of  the  electro-magnet  e  el ;  this  rod 
is  terminated  by  a  little  bead  or  button,  which  presses  when- 
ever the  armature  is  not  attracted  against  another  similar  but- 
ton, borne  by  a  second  platina  wire  spring  /v  The  armature  A 
and  the  armature  e  have  their  spiral  springs  R  RI,  which  tend 
to  separate  them  from  the  electro-magnets,  when  they  are  no 
longer  attracted.  This  being  so,  if  the  telegraphic  circuit  is 
strong  enough,  the  electro-magnet  e  ct  attracts  its  armature  e, 
and  this  armature  makes  the  spring  r  press  against  the  metal- 
lic piece  M,  thereby  the  circuit  of  the  local  battery  is  closed. 


824  SIEMENS  AND  HALSKffi's  GERMANIC  TELEGRAPH. 

The  current  circulates,  and  renders  active  the  apparatus  of  the 
bell.  The  hammer  strikes  one  blow,  but  at  the  same  time  its 
prolongation  /  detaches  from  the  electro-magnet  e  c1?  the  arma- 
ture of  the  relay.  The  spring  r  abandons  the  metallic  piece 
M,  and  the  circuit  of  the  local  battery  is  again  opened. 

I  have  said,  in  the  beginning  of  this  chapter,  that  this  de- 
scription of  the  ingenious  telegraph  apparatus  was  defective. 
It  is  the  best  that  I  have  been  able  to  get.  The  system  is 
worthy  of  a  more  extended  notice.  I  have  frequently  visited 
the  telegraph  manufacturing  establishment  of  Messrs.  Seimens 
and  Halskie,  in  Berlin,  Prussia,  and  I  found  it  to  be  the  most 
complete  and  extensive  in  the  world 


FRENCH  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH, 


CHAPTER    XXIV. 

The  Nature  and  Origin  of  the  System — The  Receiving  Apparatus — The  Ma- 
nipulating Apparatus — The  Process  of  Sending  Signals — The  Formation 
of  the  Alphabet. 

THE  NATURE  AND  ORIGIN  OF  THE  FRENCH  TELEGRAPH. 

THE  French  electric  signal  telegraph  is  of  the  needle  order, 
but  differs  from  that  system  in  its  index.  It  is  fashioned  af- 
ter the  semaphore  of  Chappe  ;  the  signals,  however,  are  pro- 
duced at  the  sending  and  destination  stations,  instead  of  at  the 
sending  station  only,  as  in  the  semaphore.  It  will  be  remem- 
bered that,  in  the  visual  system,  the  receiving  station  observed 
the  signals  made  at  the  sending  station  some  miles  distant 
therefrom.  Those  same  signals  are  produced  at  the  receiving 
station  on  an  electric  instrument  by  the  operator  at  the  send- 
ing station,  any  number  of  miles  distant.  A  description  of  this 
apparatus  I  will  embrace  in  this  chapter. 

It  has  generally  been  .believed  that  this  electric  signal 
system  for  telegraphing  has  been  preserved  by  the  French 
administration,  only  because  it  reproduced  the  same  character 
signals  as  the  Chappe  semaphore  telegraph,  and  because  it 
was  not  desirable  to  make  modifications  or  changes  of  any  kind 
in  the  vocabularies,  or  in  the  operative  department  of  the  tele- 
graph. I  notice  that  some  of  the  French  writers,  among  which 
Mr.  Blavier  may  be  named,  deny  the  correctness  of  this  im- 
pression. In  1854,  when,  by  authority  of  His  Majesty  the 
Emperor,  I  made  a  careful  and  minute  examination  of  the 
electric  telegraphs  of  France,  I  certainly  understood  that  the 
object  of  adopting  the  French  electric  system  was  to  avoid  the 
change  which  would  be  necessary  in  case  of  the  organization 
of  any  other  telegraph.  This,  however,  is  not  a  point  of  any 
consequence,  nor  does  it  lessen  the  merits  of  the  French  sys- 
tem. The  apparatus  was  simple  and  beautiful.  Hour  after 
hour  I  have  witnessed  its  operations  with  admiration,  and  I 

325 


326 


FRENCH    ELECTRIC    SIGNAL    TELEGRAPH. 


can  readily  appreciate  the  regret  experienced  by  the  French 
in  the  abandonment  of  their  national  telegraph  for  the  adop- 
tion of  the  Morse  system. 

For  some  years  circumstances  have  wonderfully  changed 
things  in  Europe,  and  in  fact  throughout  the  world  ;  but  in 
nothing  has  there  been  a  greater  change  than  in  the  means  of 
communication.  "  The  same  principle  which  justified  and 
demanded  the  transference  of  the  mail  on  many  chief  routes 
through  the  countries  of  the  different  nations,  from  the 
horse-drawn  coach  on  common  highways  to  steam-impelled 
vehicles  on  land  and  water,  was  equally  potent  in  warranting 
the  adoption  of  the  electric  telegraph — that  last  and  most  won- 
drous birth  of  this  wonder-teeming  age." 

Although  the  French  electric  signal  system  has  been  super- 
seded and  put  aside  for  the  recording  apparatus,  nevertheless 
it  will  remain  in  the  history  of  the  telegraph  as  one  of  the  most 
ingenious,  and  as  that  which,  at  its  commencement  and  during 
its  continuance,  rendered  the  most  important  services.  Such 
is  the  impression  of  the  Frenchman  Blavier,  with  whom  I  cor- 
dially concur  in  the  well-merited  encomium  expressed  in  his 
commendations. 

The  following  is  a  description  of  the  French  electric  signal 
telegraph.  It  will  be  seen  that  it  does  not  differ  from  the  dial- 
plate  apparatus,  except  in  the  number  of  teeth  in  the  escape- 
ment-wheel, which  number  instead  of  being  13  is  only  4.  The 
needle  in  turning,  instead  of  stopping  26  times,  stops  only  8 
times,  and  as  the  angles  themselves  suffice  to  determine  the 
signals,  it  is  useless  to  mark  them  on  the  dial  plate. 

Fig.  1. 


FRENCH    TELEGRAPH RECEIVING    INSTRUMENT. 


327 


THE    RECEIVING    INSTRUMENT. 

This  apparatus  comprises  almost  always  two  similar  sys- 
tems, so  as  to  be  able  to  operate  with  two  needles. 

D  G  E,  DX  cx  EX,  fig.  1,  are  the  two  indicating  needles, 
made  of  mica,  blackened  on  the  side  which  marks  the  signal. 
They  are  fixed  by  simple  friction  on  the  axis  c  and  cx.  G 
and  G'  are  squares  which  correspond  to  the  little  barrel,  and 
serve  to  wind  up  the  clockwork.  F  and  F/  the  axis  of  the 
pulleys,  which  are  turned  by  means  of  little  keys  H  and  H',  to 
tighten  the  recoil  spring. 

A  and  B,  BX  and  AX,  are  the  knobs  to  which  are  attached 
the  wires  by  which  the  current  enters  and  passes  off.  The 
internal  arrangement  of  this  instrument  will  be  seen  by  fig- 
ure 2. 

Fig.  2. 


The  electro-magnet  i,  instead  of  being  at  the  upper  part, 
as  in  a  dial-plate  apparatus,  rests  on  the  bottom  of  the  case, 
and  is  held  by  two  vertical  rods,  and  a  horizontal  bar  of  cop- 
per. The  soft  iron  of  the  electro-magnet  may  be  advanced  or 
drawn  back  by  means  of  the  screw  K.  The  armature  Q  M, 


328 


FRENCH    TELEGRAPH^RECEIVING    APPARATUS. 


is  movable  around  two  screws,  one  of  which  is  visible  at  M. 
The  rod  of  the  armature  N  P,  is  terminated  at  the  upper 
part  by  a  horizontal  point,  engaged  in  a  fork.  The  axis 
bearing  this  fork,  and  the  escapement  anchor,  are  retained  by 
the  screw  a — the  disposition  analogous  to  fig,  3. 

Fig.  3. 


The  clock-work  is  contained  between  two  copper  plates. 
The  axis  of  the  last  wheel  m  c,  bears  the  exterior  needle  D. 
c  E,  and  the  escapement- wheel  furnished  with  4  teeth,  con- 
cealed in  the  figure  by  a  rod  of  the  armature.  The  two 
screws  x  and  y  limit  the  extent  of  the  motion  of  the  rod  of  the 
pallet. 

The  recoil  spring  is  fixed  at  u  to  the  rod  N  P,  it  is  terminated 
by  a  wire  passing  in  the  hooks  v  and  s,  and  is  wound  upon  the 
little  pulley  T,  the  axis  of  which  is  prolonged  as  far  as  F. 

L,  figures  1  and  2,  is  a  rod  bent  at  L",  which  serves  to  give 
direct  motion  to  the  armature.  The  wires  of  the  electro-mag- 
nets terminate  at  two  little  buttons,  which,  by  means  of  me- 
tallic strips,  communicate  with  the  exterior  of  knobs  A  and  B. 

The  movement  of  the  apparatus  is  the  same  as  the  dial-plate 
apparatus. 

When  the  current  traverses  the  wire  of  the  electro-magnet, 
the  armature  is  attracted,  the  rods  set  in  motion  the  little  fork 
and  escapement  anchor,  which  suffers  a  single  tooth  of  the 
wheel  to  pass,  and  during  the  movement  the  needle  turns  through 
an  angle  45°.  When  the  current  ceases  to  pass,  the  armature 
returns  to  its  first  position,  and  the  needle  turns  again  45°. 

The  needle,  therefore,  produces  a  series  of  angles  of  45°  ; 
from  0°  up  to  360°. 


FRENCH    TELEGRAPH MANIPULATING    APPARATUS. 


329 


THE     MANIPULATING     APPARATUS. 

This  instrument  is  formed  of  a 
vertical  copper  column,  fig.  4,  A  B, 
terminated  by  a  horizontal  cylinder, 
c  D.  In  the  interior  of  this  cylin- 
der an  axis  turns,  which  is  fastened 
on  one  side  to  the  crank  E  F,  and 
on  the  other  side  to  the  quadrangu- 
lar grooved  wheel  G  H,  of  which 
the  angles  are  rounded,  i  K  is  a 
disk  or  divisor,  having  8  notches, 
into  which  the  crank  enters,  being 
pressed  by  an  internal  spring.  An 
elbow  lever,  L  M  N,  enters  into  the 
groove  at  N.  At  its  other  extremity 
is  fixed  to  the  rod  L  p,  at  the  upper 
part  of  which  is  a  little  spring  ham- 
mer which  strikes  alternately  against  two  points  of  contact,  x 
Y.  For  the  position  of  the  crank  marked  0,  2,  4,  and  6,  the 
hammer  is  upon  x.  For  the  other  four  positions,  the  hammer 
is  on  Y. 

The  two  metallic  pieces  forming  these  points  of  contact,  are 
insulated  by  means  of  an  ivory  plate,  and  they  have  little  holes 
into  which  the  wires  which  correspond  enter,  to  the  receiver 
for  x,  and  to  the  battery  for  Y.  The  wire  of  the  line  is  at- 
tached at  z  to  the  base  of  the  column. 

When  the  crank  is  in  one  of  the  four  positions,  0,  2,  4,  and 
6,  the  current  coming  from  line  at  z  passes  into  the  column  and 
over  the  rod  L  p,  and  over  the  spring  hammer,  over  the  point 
of  contact  x,  and  goes  to  the  receiver,  through  which  it  passes 
in  order  to  arrive  at  the  earth. 

In  the  other  four  positions  the  pole  of  the  battery  is  in  com- 
munication, by  means  of  the  point  of  contact  Y,  with  the  spring 
hammer,  the  rod,  and  the  column. 

THE  PROCESS  OF   SENDING  SIGNALS. 

The  crank  of  the  manipulator  of  one  of  the  posts  A,  and  the 
needle  of  the  receiver  of  the  other  post  B,  have  the  same  hori- 
zontal position.  Let  us  suppose  that  we  lower  the  crank  and 
place  it  in  front  of  the  notch  which  bears  number  1.  At  the 
same  moment  the  current  traverses  the  receiver  of  B,  the 
needle  turns  through  an  angle  of  45°,  and  remains  in  this  po- 
sition as  long  as  the  crank  A  does  not  change.  If  we  place 
the  crank  upon  the  notch  number  2,  the  current  ceases  to 
pass  over  the  line,  and  the  needle  of  B  again  advances  45°. 


330     FRENCH  TELEGRAPH MANIPULATING  APPARATUS. 

The  same  rotary  movement  takes  place  if  we  continue  to 
turn  the  crank,  and  the  angle  which  the  needle  forms  with 
its  primitive  position  is  always  the  same  as  that  of  the  crank. 

In  a  state  of  rest,  the  receiver  of  the  two  corresponding  posts 
ought  to  have  their  needles  horizontal,  the  indicators  conceal- 
ing the  hars  traced  on  the  dials.  The  cranks  have  the  same 
position. 

When  we  wish  to  send  a  signal  to  one  of  these,  we  turn  the 
crank  rapidly,  passing  first  the  upper  part  over  the  divi- 
sor, and  we  stop  the  crank  at  the  notch  corresponding  to 
the  angle  which  we  wish  to  transmit.  The  needle  of  the 
other  post  immediately  indicates  the  same  angle.  To  pro- 
duce a  second  signal,  we  continue  to  turn  the  crank  in  the 
same  direction,  as  far  as  to  the  notch  which  represents  the 
new  angles.  There  would,  evidently,  be  discord  between  the 
signals  transmitted  and  those  received,  if  we  did  not  turn  the 
crank  in  the  same  direction. 

All  the  explanations,  or  descriptions  of  the  dial-plate  ap'para- 
tus,  apply  also  to  the  signal  apparatus  ;  thus,  in  order  to  regu- 
late the  apparatus,  we  tighten  the  screws  x  and  y,  so  as  to  give 
a  suitable  play  to  the  rod  of  the  armature.  We  regulate  the 
apparatus  by  causing  to  turn  rapidly  the  crank  of  the  corre- 
sponding post,  and  by  tightening  or  loosening  the  recoil  spring, 
until  the  movement  of  the  needle  shall  become  sufficiently 
rapid. 

The  electro-magnet  can  be  advanced  or  drawn  back  when 
the  current  is  too  weak  or  too  strong ;  but  it  is  preferable  to 
keep  it  at  a  very  small  distance  from  the  armature. 

The  French  apparatus  operates  ordinarily  by  means  of  two 
distinct  wires.  Fig.  4  shows  the  most  simple  disposition  of  a 
station. 

The  two  column  manipulators  are  fixed  upon  the  table  by 
strong  screws,  to  correspond  to  the  two  wires  of  the  line,  and 
to  the  two  sides  of  the  receiver.  The  wires  of  the  battery  ar- 
rive at  a  communicator,  which  admits  of  the  increasing  or  dimin- 
ishing of  the  numbers  of  elements  employed.  A  single  wire 
extends  from  the  communicator  to  the  two  manipulators.  Al- 
though a  single  battery  serves  to  transmit  the  current,  either 
upon  a  single  wire  or  upon  the  two,  simultaneously,  the  inten- 
sity is  so  constant  there  is  no  perturbation  in  the  transmission. 

A  single  battery  current  has  been  found  sufficient  to  operate 
this  instrument  on  lines  diverging  in  five  or  six  directions. 

The  manipulation  is  performed  by  both  hands.  *  If  we  turn 
the  cranks  in  order  to  stop  at  any  two  notches  of  the  divisors, 


FORMATION    OF    THE    ALPHABET. 


331 


Fig.  5. 


the  two  positions  which  they  take  are  reproduced  identically  by 
the  needles  of  the  receiver  at  the  end  of  the  line. 

Small  tables  and  special  commu- 
tators are  made  for  the  apparatus. 
One  of  the  commutators  is  represent- 
ed by  fig.  5.  The  two  wires  of  the 
line  arrive  at  the  binding  screws  L 
and  i/.  The  current  traverses  a 
copper  plate,  furnished  with  points 
in  front  of  the  plate  T,  which  com- 
municates with  the  earth,  p  and 
px  are  lightning  rods ;  R  and  R'  are 
the  commutators  which  connect  the 
two  wires  of  the  line  with  any  one  of  the  wires  attached  at  c 
B  A,  and  c7  BX  AX.  At  A  and  A',  for  example,  we  place  the 
wires  which  correspond  with  the  two  manipulators  at  B  and 
BX,  wires  of  direct  communication  ;  at  c  and  c'  are  the  bell- 
wires. 

THE  FORMATION  OF  THE  ALPHABET. 

The  combination  of  the  angles  formed  by  the  two  needles 
furnishes  84  signals,  which  may  represent  the  24  letters,  the 
numerals,  the  principal  syllables,  and  several  regulation  signals. 

When  the  indicator  conceals  the  horizontal  number  of  the 
apparatus,  we  do  not  indicate  it  in  the  drafting  of  the  signal. 
When,  on  the  contrary,  it  is  on  the  prolonged  line  of  the  hori- 
zontal, we  mark  it  with  the  index  o.  The  regulation  position 
is  that  of  the  closed. 

The  call  is  made  by  the  return  of  the  crank,  to  which  the 
correspondent  answers  in  the  same  manner. 

Every  transmission  of  a  dispatch  commences  with  the  "  open." 
" Activity"  precedes  all  private  dispatches,  and  "urgency" 
precedes  every  official  dispatch ;  but*  of  this  full  explanations  are 
given  in  another  part  of  this  book.  The  end  of  the  word  is  in- 
dicated by  closing  the  indicators. 

When  the  signals  are  unintelligible,  the  receiving  operator 
interrupts  his  correspondent  or  the  sending  operator,  by  turning 
the  crank,  and  he  passes  the  last  word  understood.  On  both 
sides  the  normal  position  of  the  cranks  and  indicators  is  re- 
established, and  the  correspondence  goes  on  again,  commencing 
with  the  last  word  Understood,  as  common  to  all  modes  of  ma- 
nipulation. By  having  a  key,  or  a  pre-determined  signal  pre- 
ceding the  signals,  64  new  combinations  are  obtained,  by  means 
of  which  we  form  tables  of  conventional  phrases. 

The  transmission  takes  place  with  wonderful  rapidity.     The 


332  FRENCH    ELECTRIC    TELEGRAPH THE    ALPHABET. 

reading  is  also  rapid,  for  the  signals  are  drawn  by  the  angles 
which  they  make  without  the  necessity,  as  in  the  dial-plate 
apparatus,  of  following  the  needle  through  the  26  positions 
which  it  may  occupy,  or  of  mentally  counting  the  movements 
as  in  the  English  system. 

A  very  skillful  operator  can  pass  as  high  as  230  letters  a 
minute,  but  in  ordinary  circumstances  we  cannot  count  upon 
more  than  120  or  130  letters.  By  combining  the  signals  2 
and  2,  vocabularies  are  formed  containing  an  indefinite  number 
of  words  or  phrases,  and  so  complicated  that  it  is  impossible  to 
find  a  key  to  them.  As  these  signals  have  no  intelligible  sig- 
nification, the  signals  are  passed  by  ten  at  a  time,  and  each  ten 
of  the  closed  are  caused  to  follow  in  such  a  way  that  when  the 
crank  and  the  indicator  do  not  agree,  it  is  readily  seen.  In 
such  a  case  the  ten  seen  to  be  erroneous  are  repeated. 

The  vocabularies  can  be  taken,  either  by  signals  themselves, 
which  are  easily  written,  or  by  the  letters  and  figures  which 
they  represent,  according  to  the  alphabet  formed  by  the  angles 
on  the  receiver.  In  the  manipulation  frequently  the  signals' 
are  named  directly,  using  abstractly  the  letters  or  figures  which 
they  represent.  Instead  of  designating  them  by  their  absolute 
value,  the  angles  formed  by  the  needles,  or  applying  to  them 
the  simple  numbers  represented  in  the  alphabet  and  numeral 
code,  use  is  made  of  the  ancient  system  of  Chappe. 

Zero  is  called  the  position  of  the  needle  at  rest.  Five,  cor- 
responding to  an  angle  of  45°  ;  ten,  corresponding  to  an  angle 
of  90°  ;  fifteen,  corresponding  to  an  angle  of  135°.  To  which 
is  added  the  word  "  sky,"  to  words  formed  above  the  normal 
or  horizontal  position,  and  the  word  "earth"  to  angles  formed 
below  it.  Finally,  when  the  needle  is  on  the  prolongation  of 
the  line  of  the  centres,  it  is  indicated  by  the  term  "  great  zero." 
In  the  denomination  of  a  signal,  commencement  is  always  on 
the  left  side.  In  the  formation  of  angles  by  the  two  needles, 
a  single  expression  is  made. 

The  signals  formed  are  analogous  to  the  aerial  telegraph. 
Therefore  the  old  vocabularies  have  been  preserved  for  secret 
dispatches.  The  aerial  telegraph  can  exhibit  all  the  combina- 
tions of  this  system,  except  those  which  correspond  to  the  case 
when  the  needle  is  on  the  prolongation  of  the  dial ;  but  the 
Chappe  telegraph  can  furnish  the  same  signals  carried  verti- 
cally. 

In  order  to  indicate  the  horizontal  or  vertical  position  of  the 
signals,  before  the  signal  to  be  carried  vertically,  is  placed  the 
index  o. 

In  many  instances  the  transmission  takes  place  by  means  of 


FRENCH    ELECTRIC    TELEGRAPH THE    ALPHABET.  333 

a  single  wire,  whether  use  is  made  of  a  special  apparatus  hav- 
ing a  single  indicator,  or  whether  an  apparatus  is  employed  of 
two  indicators  of  which  only  one  operates.  This  must  necessa- 
rily take  place  when  the  lines  have  but  a  single  wire,  or  when 
the  different  wires  of  a  line  are  separated  in  order  to  correspond 
with  several  stations.  In  this  case,  the  same  alphabet  is  used 
as  on  the  instruments  constructed  for  two  wires ;  but  the  sig- 
nals are  divided  into  two  parts,  and  are  made  by  a  single  indi- 
cator. First,  form  the  angle  of  the  left,  and  then  make  the 
angle  of  the  right.  This  change,  which  at  first  seems  to  ren- 
der the  manipulation  complicated,  is  attended  with  no  diffi- 
culty in  practice,  and  a  few  days  are  sufficient  to  accustom 
the  operator  to  its  use. 

The  transmission  by  a  single  wire  is  slower  than  by  two 
wires ;  but  the  signals  thus  passed  are  not  reduced  to  one 
half.  From  80  to  90  letters  per  minute,  instead  of  130,  can 
be  sent  with  facility.  The  rapidity  of  transmission  is  claimed 
to  be  greater  than  that  obtained  by  a  dial-plate  apparatus,  al- 
though it  requires  two  stoppages  for  each  letter.  The  reason 
is  explained  thus :  for  two  turns  of  the  crank,  that  is  to  say, 
lor  eight  emissions  of  the  current,  are  produced  64  combina- 
tions— while  only  26  are  obtained  with  the  dial-plate  appara- 
tus, in  the  French  instrument,  and  the  current  passes  130 
times. 

"When  two  lines,  each  of  one  wire,  terminate  in  the  same  sta- 
tion, and  the  operator  is  required  to  transmit  in  the  two  direc- 
tions, these  two  wires  are  generally  placed  at  the  two  sides  of 
the  same  apparatus,  thus  occupying  a  middle  or  betwixt  posi- 
tion. Attempts  have  been  made  to  use  repeaters  in  connection 
with  the  French  system,  but  all  the  efforts  have  proved  unsuc- 
cessful. 

For  ordinary  purposes,  however,  it  will  be  sufficient  to  insu- 
late the  two  screws  x  and  y,  fig.  2,  by  means  of  strips  of  ivory, 
and  to  make  them,  as  well  as  the  pallet,  communicate  with  the 
exterior (binding  screws,  which  will  establish  the  following  com- 
munication : 

1st.  The  screw  x,  with  another  similar  receiver.  2d.  The 
pallet  with  one  of  the  lines  which  terminate  at  the  post ;  and 
3d.  The  screw  y  with  the  battery. 


THE  FRENCH  RAILWAY  ELECTRIC 
TELEGRAPH, 


CHAPTER    XXV. 

Principles  of  the  French  Railway  Telegraph — Description  of  the  Receiving 
Instrument — The  Manipulating  Apparatus — Process  of  Manipulation  be- 
tween Stations — Portable  Apparatus  for  Railway  Service — Breguet's 
Improvement. 

PRINCIPLES    OF    THE    FRENCH    RAILWAY    TELEGRAPH. 

THIS  apparatus  is  founded  upon  the  principle  of  the  move- 
ment  of  a  clockwork,  which  turns  an  exterior  needle,  fixed 
to  the  same  axis  with  an  escapement  wheel,  thq  rotation  of 

Fig.  i. 


334 


DESCRIPTION    OF    THE    RECEIVING   INSTRUMENT.  335 

which  is  stopped  by  an  anchor.  A  soft  iron  armature,  move- 
able  in  front  of  an  electro-magnet,  communicates  an  oscillatory 
movement  to  that  anchor,  which,  at  every  movement,  lets  a 
tooth  of  the  wheel  pass.  The  exterior  dial  bears  letters,  signs, 
or  figures,  and  the  needle  may  stop  before  any  one  of  them. 
The  whole  is  contained  in  a  case,  in  which  the  dial  alone  is 
exposed  to  view.  The  model  of  the  apparatus  illustrated  and 
explained  in  this  chapter,  is  the  same  as  that  used  in  the  tele- 
graphic bureaux  of  France.  The  same  system,  a  little  modified, 
I  noticed  on  the  Belgian  railways.  It  has  proved  to  be  of  the 
greatest  utility  in  the  service,  and  every  railway  has  in  perfect 
organization  this  system  of  telegraph,  having  an  office  or 
bureau  at  every  station. 

DESCRIPTION    OF    THE    RECEIVING    INSTRUMENT. 

The  receiver  of  this  telegraph  will  be  seen  in  fig.  1 ;  it  is  in- 
closed within  its  cover.  The  dial  has  26  divisions  ;  the  upper 
is  a  cross,  and  the  other  divisions  are  the  alphabet.  The  first 
25  numbers  are  placed  on  the  interior  of  the  dial-plate.  The 
needle,  H  H',  is  made  of  mica  or  steel,  nicely  balanced,  and 
fixed  frictionally  on  the  axis  of  an  escapement  wheel.  At  the 
upper  part,  on  the  right  hand,  is  a  little  dial,  of  which  the  axis 
a  acts  with  the  recoil  spring  of  the  armature.  The  two  screws 
or  binding  posts,  A  AX,  serve  to  fix  the  wires  by  whicn  the  cur- 
rent enters  and  leaves.  At  the  place  of  the  letter  M  in  the 
alphabet  is  a  square,  #,  by  means  of  which  the  clock-work  is 
wound  up.  When  the  current  is  not  passing,  the  needle  may 
be  advanced,  by  pressing  on  the  button  or  thumb-key  d,  situ- 
ated at  the  upper  part  of  the  case. 

In  fig.  2  is  represented  a  side  view  of  the  vertical  projection 
of  the  apparatus.  Fig.  3  is  a  horizontal  projection,  and  fig.  4 
is  a  perspective  view  of  the  armature,  the  anchor,  and  the 
escapement  wheel.  In  all  the  figures,  the  same  objects  are  rep- 
resented by  the  same  letters.  The  clock-work  movement  is  com- 
prised between  two  copper  plates,  B  c  and  D  E.  The  little  barrel, 
M,  contains  a  large  spring,  and  its  axis  corresponds  to  the  ex- 
terior square  represented  at  6,  in  fig.  1. 

The  axis  of  the  upper  wheel,  F  G  H,  bears  an  index  needle, 
H  HX,  and  the  escapement  wheel,  concealed  in  fig.  2  by  the 
armature-rod,  but  visible  at  L,  in  fig.  4.  The  electro  magnet 
N,  figs.  2  and  3,  is  placed  above  the  clock  movement,  on  a  cop- 
per plate,  D  DX.  It  is  held  by  two  vertical  posts,  and  a  copper 
strip,  w  wx.  The  two  soft  iron  rods  of  the  electro  magnet,  held 
together  by  a  third  rod,  K,  are  independent  of  the  spools,  and 
can  be  moved  by  means  of  the  screw-adjuster  L  i/.  In  order 


336 


THE    FRENCH    RAILWAY    ELECTRIC    TELEGRAPH. 


to  move  forward  or  draw  back  the  electro  magnet,  it  is  suffi- 
cient to  turn  the  screw  for  the  purposes  respectively.      The .  ex- 


Fig.  2. 


tremities  of  the  covered 
wire  spools  terminate 
at  two  screws,  or  bind- 
ing-posts, Q  QX,  which, 
by  means  of  two  metal 
strips,  communicate 
with  the  exterior  bind- 
ing-screws, A  AX. 

The  armature  R  e, 
placed  in  front  of  the 
electro  magnet,  is 
moveable  around  the 
two  screws,  R  and  RX. 
The  rod  T  T',  fig.  4, 
suspended  from  the 
middle,  carries  at  its 
lower  part  a  little 
horizontal  point  T  v, 
engaged  in  a  little 
fork,  which  is  attached 
to  the  axis  x  Y  ;  finally 
in  the  middle  of  this  rod,  at  z,  is  formed  two  little  slips,  m 
and  m',  situated  in  planes  differing  from  each  other,  and  below 
the  escapement  wheel  L,  which  has  13  teeth, 

Fig.  3. 


DESCRIPTION    OF    THE    RECEIVING    INSTRUMENT. 


337 


4 


By  means  of  the  clockwork,  the  escapement  wheel  is  caused 
to  turn  in  the  direction  indicated  by  the  arrow,  but  one  of  its 
teeth  is  stopped  by  the  point  m.  When  the  current  passes,  the 
armature  is  attracted  by  the  electro- 
magnet.  The  rod  causes  the  axis 
x  Y  to  turn  a  little.  The  slip  m 
withdraws,  and  permits  the  tooth 
to  pass,  which  strikes  against  the 
strip  m'.  It  rests  thus,  until  the 
moment  when  the  current  ceases 
to  pass,  when  the  armature  re- 
turns to  its  first  position.  The 
strip  m',  being  withdrawn,  permits 
a  tooth  of  the  wheel  to  pass,  and 
another  tooth  is  stopped  by  the 
strip  m. 

The  exterior  needle,  fixed  to  the 
same  axis,  turns  then  with  each 
complete  oscillation  of  the  armature 
through  -^g-  of  the  dial,  and  for  each 
half  oscillation  through  YV  of  the  dial. 
Thus,  when  the  current  traverses 
the  wire  of  the  electro-magnet,  the  needle  advances  through 
one  division  ;  if  it  is  over  the  cross,  it  comes  opposite  letter  A. 
When  the  current  is  interrupted,  the  needle  advances  again, 
and  places  itself  in  front  of  the  letter  B,  and  so  on.  In  order 
that  it  may  make  a  complete  circuit,  13  emissions  of  the 
current  are  necessary. 

The  two  little  screws,  n  and  n',  being  fixed  to  a  copper 
piece,  which  unites  the  plate  D  E,  limits  the  play  of  the  rod  T  T'. 
The  recoil  spring  is  a  little  spiral  spring  attached  at  q  to  the 
rod  of  the  armature  ;  it  is  terminated  by  a  wire,  r  r'  a',  which 
is  coiled  upon  a  little  pulley  at  a',  the  axis  of  which  is  pro- 
longed to  the  exterior  of  the  box  or  case  as  far  as  to  a'. 

At  the  upper  part  of  the  dial  is  a  little  rod  t  t^  which,  when 
pressed  down,  turns  around  an  axis,  and  gives  motion  to  the 
bent  strip  V  i",  and  this  strip  then  presses  the  armature  against 
the  electro  magnet,  and  produces  an  effect  similar  to  the  pas- 
sage of  the  current.  It  is  by  lowering  the  exterior  thumb- 
button  d,  fig.  1,  that  this  movement  is  produced. 

The  apparatus  is  put  in  an  operating  state  by  means  of  two 
little  screws,  n  and  n',  which  should  be  so  tightened  as  to  give 
to  the  rod  of  the  armature  the  least  possible  play,  allowing  it, 
nevertheless,  sufficient  play  to  permit  one  of  the  teeth  of  the 
escapement-  wheel  to  pass  at  each  movement.  It  then  remains 

22 


338  THE    FRENCH    RAILWAY    ELECTRIC    TELEGRAPH. 

to  regulate  the  motion  of  the  needle,  according  to  the  intensity 
of  the  current.  The  electro  magnet  may  be  advanced  or  with- 
drawn, and  the  recoil-spring  may  be  tightened  from  the  exterior 
by  means  of  the  little  key/,  fig.  1.  The  apparatus  is  known  to 
be  regulated,  when  the  needle  turns  regularly  under  the  action 
of  a  series  of  rapid  interruptions  of  the  current.  Sometimes 
the  strips  m  and  m',  fig.  4,  are  a  little  too  far  apart,  and  at  a 
single  movement  of  the  armature,  several  teeth  of  the  escape- 
ment wheel  pass ;  in  such  cases,  the  two  strips  must  be 
brought  nearer  together,  or  the  screws  n  and  n'  must  be  put 
farther  apart.  When  the  play  of  the  armature  is  too  much,  it 
may  happen  that  the  strips  m  and  mf  may  both  be,  at  a  given 
moment,  on  the  same  side  of  the  escapement  wheel ;  the  clock 
movement  being  no  longer  held,  the  wheels  turn  with  great  ra- 
pidity, until  the  spring  has  exhausted  its  action.  When  this 
part  of  the  apparatus  is  touched,  the  little  barrel  M  should  be 
held  by  the  hand,  to  prevent  a  rupture  of  the  great  spring 
and  of  the  needle. 

THE    MANIPULATING    APPARATUS. 

The  manipulator,  fig.  5,  is  formed  of  a  square  plate,  upon 
which  rests  a  brass  dial,  bearing  on  its  circumference,  in  front, 
notches,  the  same  as  the  letters  on  the  receiving  apparatus,  and 
disposed  in  the  same  order. 

A  crank,  A  B,  pointed  at  the  centre  of  the  plate,  gives  mo- 
tion to  a  spirally  grooved  wheel,  which  is  partly  shown  in  fig.  5. 
The  regular  sinuosities  of  this  wheel  are  equal  to  the  number 
of  characters  on  the  dial.  The  rotation  of  this  wheel  produces 
a  to-and-fro  movement  of  the  lever  i  o  F,  which  is  moveable 
around  the  point  o,  and  of  which  the  extremity  F  is  terminated 
by  a  little  spring  F  D,  which  touches  alternately  the  two  screws 
p,  and  PX,  which  are  fastened  to  c,  the  little  copper  pieces,  as 
shown  in  fig.  5.  Whenever  the  crank  is  over  an  even  num- 
ber, the  lever  presses  on  the  binding  screw  p/ ;  when  the  crank 
is  over  an  odd  number,  the  lever  presses  on  the  binding  screw  p. 
During  a  complete  revolution  of  the  crank,  the  lever  touches 
the  binding  screw  p  13  times  and  p/  13  times. 

N  v  and  NX  vx  are  two  springs  moveable  around  N  and  N',  and 
can  be  made  to  press  upon  any  of  the  strips,  L  K  H  and  i/  K'  H'. 
Metallic  communications  are  established  beneath  the  plate  be- 
tween the  different  binding  screws,  which  are  seen  on  the  ma- 
'  nipulator  :  p  communicates  with  c ;  p'  with  E  and  EX  ;  z  with 
T  G  G'  H  and  H'  ;  L  and  i/  with  the  axis  o  of  the  lever :  c  is 
made  to  communicate  with  the  copper  pole  of  the  battery,  z  with 
the  zinc  pole,  and  T  with  the  earth.  The  two  wires  of  the  re- 


THE    MANIPULATING    APPARATUS. 


339 


ceiving  apparatus  are  attached  at  G  and  E,  or  at  G/  and  EX,  and 
the  line  wire  is  attached  at  N  and  NX. 

At  H  K  and  HX  KX  are  fastened  the  bell  wires.  The  two  com- 
mutators N  v  and  NX  vx,  enable  the  operator  to  employ  a 
single  manipulator  in  two  different  directions.  When  it  is  de- 
sired to  correspond,  the  spring  N  v  is  placed  in  contact  with  L. 

In  the  position  of  fig.  5,  the  current  coming  from  the  line  x, 
follows  the  route  N  L  i/  o  F  px  v  E,  traverses  the  receiving  ap- 
paratus, and  returns  to  E,  when  it  goes  to  the  earth  by  the  wire 
G  T.  In  order  to  transmit,  the  crank,  A  B,  is  turned,  and  by 
placing  it  on  the  letter  A,  the  spring,  o  D,  comes  into  contact 
with  the  binding  screw,  p,  the  current  leaves  the  copper  pole 
of  the  battery,  follows  the  route  c  p  F  o  i/  L  N,  and  passes  to 
the  corresponding  station  in  the  direction  of  x.  It  produces  a^ 
attraction  of  the  armature  and  the  needle  of  the  receiving  ap- 
paratus, and  advances  over  the  letter  A.  On  placing  the  crank 
over  B,  the  lever,  o  B,  resumes  its  position,  the  current  is  in- 

Fig.  5. 


340 


THE  FRENCH  RAILWAY  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH. 


terrupted,  and  the  needle  at  the  station  in  communication  ad- 
'  vances  through  a  new  division  and  places  itself  above  B.  If 
the  needle  of  the  receiving  apparatus  and  the  crank  of  the 
manipulator  are  upon  the  cross,  and  if  the  crank  be  then 
turned  rapidly  and  stops  it  at  any  letter  desired,  the  needle  of 
the  receiving  apparatus  at  the  extremity  of  the  line,  will  indi- 
cate the  same  letter. 

When,  instead  of  turning  the  crank  according  to  alphabeti- 
cal order  of  the  letters,  it  is  turned  backward,  the  indicating 
needle  of  the  station  in  communication  continues  to  turn  in 
the  same  direction,  and  the  letters  received  do  not  agree  with 
those  sent.  To  re-establish  an  agreement  between  them  it  is 
necessary  to  bring  tho  crank  back  to  the  cross  on  the  one 
hand,  and  to  make  the  needle  advance  by  means  of  the  thumb 
^button,  d,  until  it  is  over  the  cross. 

Fig.  6. 


In  a  state  of  rest  the  spring,  N,  ought  to  press  upon  the 
contact,  K,  so  that  if  the  current  comes  over  the  line  it  may 
traverse  the  bell  apparatus,  and  thence  to  the  earth  by  the 
wire  H  G  T.  The  line  is  put  in  direct  communication  with  the 
earth  by  placing  the  spring,  N  v,  upon  the  contact,  H,  a  precau- 
tion taken  in  stormy  weather.  If  two  lines  terminate  at  N 
and  NX,  the  two  neighboring  stations  are  put  in  direct  com- 
munication by  placing  the  two  commutators  N  v  and  NX  vx 
upon  the  strip  marked  communication  direct  in  fig.  5. 

PROCESS    OF    MANIPULATION    BETWEEN    STATIONS. 

A  single  manipulator  and  a  single  receiving  apparatus  will 
suffice  for  corresponding  successively  with  two  different  sta- 
tions, provided  there  are  two  bell  apparatuses,  in  communica- 
tion with  the  buttons  H  and  K,  H'  and  K'.  Fig.  6  shows  the 
position  of  two  stations  in  communication  with  each  other,  x 


THE    PROCESS    OF    MANIPULATION.  341 

and  x',  of  which  x  is  the  first  station,  in  communication  with 
xx,  the  second  station,  and  x'  with  the  third  station  x/x ,  p  ^ 
are  the  batteries  ;  M  MX  the  manipulators  ;  R  RX  the  receivers  ; 
S  S'  S"  the  bell  apparatuses,  to  be  described  hereafter ;  B  BX 
B"  are  the  galvanometers,  which  are  constantly  in  the  circuit 
and  indicate  the  passage  of  the  current. 

In  the  normal  position,  the  commutators  or  circuit  connect- 
ors are  placed  on  the  contacts  which  communicate  with  the 
bell  apparatus  ;  the  needles  of  the  receivers,  and  the  cranks  of 
the  manipulators,  are  upon  the  cross.  . 

When  an  operator  of  a  station  wishes  to  send  a  dispatch,  he 
places  the  commutator  attached  to  the  wire  by  which  he  wishes 
to  transmit,  upon  the  contact  points  L  and  i/,  fig.  5,  and  sends 
the  current  by  turning  the  crank.  The  operator  of  the  station 
in  communication,  having  been  warned  by  the  movement  of  t 
his  bell,  places  his  commutator  in  the  same  way,  and  indicates, 
by  a  turn  of  the  crank,  that  he  is  ready  to  receive.  The  opera- 
tor of  the  other  station  sends  his  dispatch,  letter  by  letter, 
turning  the  crank  regularly,  and  stopping  for  a  moment  upon 
each  letter  he  wishes  to  send.  If  he  happens  to  pass  a  letter 
which  he  ought  to  have  sent,  he  must  be  careful  not  to  turn 
backward,  but  continue  turning  until  he  arrives  at  the  letter 
by  passing  the  cross.  To  avoid  confusion,  he  ought  to  stop  at 
the  cross  after  each  word.  When  the  transmission  is  com- 
pleted he  turns  the  crank  and  stops  it  at  the  letter  z,  and  then 
brings  it  back  to  the  cross.  The  signal  z  is  called  the  final. 

The  operator  of  the  receiving  station,  if  he  has  understood 
the  dispatch,  responds  immediately  by  giving  the  two  letters  c 
o.  At  both  stations  the  operators  then  place  their  commuta- 
tors back  upon  the  bell  apparatus. 

It  is  said  that  an  expert  operator  can  easily  send  from  60  to 
70  letters  per  minute.  If  the  dispatch  contains  numbers  ex- 
pressed in  figures,  indication  thereof  is  given  by  stopping  the 
crank  twice  over  the  cross,  indicating  that  the 'following  signals 
are  to  be  taken  from  the  figures.  When  in  the  course  of  the 
transmission,  the  signals  become  unintelligible,  the  receiving 
operator  makes  a  turn  of  the  crank,  to  inform  the  transmitting 
station  of  the  fact,  and  he  stops  a  moment  to 'make  the  needle 
of  his  receiver  come  back  to  the  cross,  an  operation  which 
takes  place  at  the  same  time  at  the  sending  station.  He  then 
passes  the  two  letters  R  z,  meaning  "  Repeat,"  which  letters 
are  placed  immediately  succeeding  the  last  word  understood. 
He  then  comes  back  to  the  cross  and  waits  for  the  continuation 
of  the  dispatch,  by  the  sending  operator. 

The  needle  of  the  apparatus  sometimes  does  not  turn  regu- 


342       THE  FRENCH  RAILWAY  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH. 

larly ;  the  transmission  is  then  imperfect,  and  the  apparatus 
must  be  properly  adjusted.  In  such  a  case,  one  of  the  opera- 
tors requests  the  other  to  turn  his  crank,  when  he  tightens  or 
loosens  the  recoil-spring,  by  means  of  the  little  key  used  for 
that  purpose,  until  the  needle  moves  regularly  ;  this  process 
completes  the  adjustment.  The  other  operator  then  corrects 
his  instrument  by  the  same  process,  the  adjusted  station  send- 
ing a  current  to  the  other,  by  the  turning  of  the  crank. 

In  order  to  transmit  to  a  more  distant  station,  call  is  made 
for  the  "  communication  direct,"  which  is  effected  by  turning  the 
crank,  following  it  by  the  name  of  the  station  wanted,  and  the 
number  of  minutes  desired  for  the  business  is  also  mentioned. 
The  station  notified  of  this  wish,  answers  E  o,  and  immediately 
places  the  two  commutators  or  circuit  connectors  upon  the 
metallic  strip,  if  " communication  direct" 
*  The  next  succeeding  station  is  notified  in  the  same  manner, 
which  also  makes  the  connection  direct.  In  the  same  manner 
the  successive  stations  are  notified. 

An  operator  ought  always  to  answer  to  the  call  which  is  made, 
immediately.  If  occupied  in  another  direction  he  passes  the 
two  letters  A  z,  which  means  "  wait."  When  he  is  ready  he 
should  notify  the  other  station. 

To  simplify  the  transmission,  conventional  tables  of  signals 
have  been  made  combining  figures  2  by  2,  indicating  certain 
phrases,  as  5.17,  "  the  train  is  starting."  Notice  is  sent  before- 
hand that  these  signals  will  be  sent. 

The  manipulator  may  have  several  commutators  similar  to 
N  v  and  N'  v'  and  may  serve  to  communicate  in  more  directions 
than  two,  provided  there  is  a  special  bell  apparatus  for  each  line. 
Nevertheless,  it  has  been  found  injurious  to  multiply  the  com- 
mutators, for  the  reason  that  they  are  not  readily  understood 
by  the  employes  of  the  railway,  who  take  part  in  the  tele- 
graphic service  as  a  secondary  affair. 

The  dial  plate  apparatus  leaves  no  record,  no  traces  of  what 
has  been  sent,  consequently  the  reading  of  the  signals  requires  the 
closest  attention.  Its  movements  are  quiet,  and  the  eye  must  be 
devoted  to  the  signals  and  nothing  else.  The  manipulation  is  so 
simple,  that  a  person  inexperienced  in  telegraphing  may,  at 
once,  comprehend  the  system,  at  least  be  able  to  send  dispatches. 
This  apparatus  will  always  be  very  useful  for  railways,  and  also 
where  the  telegraph  is  a  mere  auxiliary. 

PORTABLE  APPARATUS  FOR  THE  RAILWAY  SERVICE. 

Fig.  7,  represents  the  portable  apparatus  constructed  by  M. 
Breguet  for  the  French  railway  service.  It  is  very  small,  as 


PORTABLE  APPARATUS  FOR  RAILWAY  SERVICE. 


343 


will  be  seen  by  the  dimensions  marked  upon  the  figure.  This 
instrument  is  designed  to  be  carried  in  one  of  the  cars  of  a 
train,  and  it  is  so  arranged  that  it  can  be  readily  attached 
to  the  line  wires.  The  dial,  R,  is  the  same  as  represented  by 
fig.  1.  The  dial,  M,  is  the  key-board  and  crank  represented  by  fig. 
5.  The  upper  part,  c  c,  is  fastened  with  hinges,  and  can  be  let 
down  so  as  to  cover  the  apparatus  M  and  R,  forming  a  square 
box,  and  in  size  some  8  by  10  inches. 

Fig.  7. 


I  do  not  consider  it  necessary  to  explain  the  manner  of  opera- 
ting this  apparatus,  as  the  same  explanations  given  of  the  pre- 
cedinor  figures  apply  to  this  instrument.  It  is  smaller  than  the 


344 


THE    FRENCH    RAILWAY    ELECTRIC    TELEGRAPH. 


ordinary  office  apparatus,  but  in  its  construction  it  is  the  same. 
In  case  its  use  becomes  necessary,  by  a  train,  the  line  wire  is 
cut  and  connected  through  the  instrument,  and  thus,  means  of 
communication  is  speedily  formed  with  an  office  to  the  right  or  to 
the  left,  as  the  case  may  be.  The  arrangement  is  simple  and 
easy  to  be  operated.  The  contrivance  exhibits  much  inge- 
nuity, particularly  in  the  simplicity  of  its  manipulation. 

BREGUET'S  IMPROVEMENT.         / 

In  regard  to  the  clockwork  indicated  by  fig.  4,  Mr.  Breguet 
has  made  a  very  valuable  improvement,  as  will  be  seen  by 
fig.  8. 

Fig.  8.  In  the  description  given  of  fig.  1, 

it  was  stated  that  by  pressing  the 
button  d,  the  respective  instru- 
ments would  be  brought  in  unison 
of  action  by  making  some  13  revo- 
lutions and  stops.  Mr.  Breguet's 
plan  economizes  time,  and  more 
speedily  accomplishes  the  end  de- 
sired. 

By  pressing  lightly  on  the  button 
d)  the  needle  is  made  to  move  one 
single  notch,  by  pressing  it  strongly 
it  passes  instantly  to  the  cross,  or 
zero,  of  the  index  plate.  The  but- 
ton, placed  at  the  top  of  the  ap- 
paratus, instead  of  moving  a  little 
strip  pressing  on  the  armature,  as 
in  fig.  4,  it  is  placed  at  the  ex- 
tremity of  a  long  vertical  rod,  as  seen  in  fig.  8.  The  spiral 
spring  h  holds  up  the  axis,  x  Y  bears,  together  with  the  escape- 
ment anchor  z,  a  little  horizontal  strip  b  c,  which  presses 
against  the  extremity  of  the  rod  dab.  When  the  button  d  is 
pressed  upon  lightly,  the  strip  c  b,  as  they  make  the  axis  x  Y, 
and  the  escapement  anchor  z  to  turn  at  each  pressure,  a  tooth 
of  the  wheel  L  escapes,  and  the  indicating  needle  advances  one 
division.  If,  on  the  contrary,  the  strip  c  d  is  pressed  forcibly, 
it  is  lowered,  and  lets  the  tooth  m'  pass  beyond  the  escapement- 
wheel  L,  the  wheel  then  being  entirely  disengaged,  rapidly 
turns,  bearing  with  it  the  needle.  The  rotation  stops  promptly, 
because  the  axis  L  bears  a  point  v,  which  hits  against  a  projec- 
tion a  of  the  rod  d  b. 

At  the  moment  when  the  rod  d  b  is  raised  a  little,  the  pro- 


BREGUET'S  IMPROVEMENT.  345 

jection  a  disengages  the  stop  v,  but  the  slip  m'  of  the  escape- 
ment anchor  engages  again  with  the  teeth  of  the  wheel  L,  and, 
finally,  when  the  rod  rises  entirely,  the  tooth  m/  comes  in  its 
turn  to  stop  the  movement,  and  the  receiver  is  in  its  normal 
state. 

The  stop  of  the  wheel  L  always  takes  place  in  the  same  posi- 
tion as  occupied  by  the  needle,  and  if  it  corresponds  exactly, 
when  the  needle  is  in  front  of  z,  it  is  clear  that,  by  lowering 
the  rod  forcibly,  and  letting  it  spring  back  quickly,  the  needle 
is  brought  from  any  position  whatever  to  the  cross.  The 
needle  will  pass  over  the  z  during  the  very  short  time  that  the 
strip  m/  requires  to  come  back  in  front  of  the  wheel  i/. 

Experts  are  of  the  opinion  that  the  rod  of  the  armature  might 
be  a  little  modified,  so  that  the  little  fork  and  the  rod  may  in- 
cline with  the  anchor.  It  is  terminated  by  a  spring,  which 
does  not  prevent  it  from  causing  the  anchor  x  Y  to  oscillate. 
It  is  the  action  of  the  spring  which  brings  back  the  anchor  z 
to  its  ordinary  position,  when  the  rod  dab  ceases  to  press  upon 
the  strip  c  b. 


ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH  BELL 
APPARATUS, 


CHAPTEE    XXVI. 

The  French  Telegraph  Bell  Instruments — Vibratory  Bell  Apparatuses — Use  of 
Bells  in  Telegraph  Offices. 

THE    FRENCH    TELEGRAPH    BELL  INSTRUMENTS. 

THE  greater  part  of  the  telegraphic  stations  are  furnished 
with  bells,  which  enable  the  different  offices  to  call  each  other 
when  the  operator  desired  is  not  at  the  station,  or  to  awake  him 
in  the  night.  They  are  indispensable  at  the  railway  stations, 
as  the  employes  are  not  experts  in  telegraphing,  having  their 
services  divided  with  the  railway  and  the  telegraph. 

The  bells  are  formed  with  a  clockwork  movement,  by  which 
a  wheel,  stopped  by  the  armature  of  the  electro-magnet,  is  dis- 
engaged at  the  moment  when  the  current  is  sent  by  the  oper- 
ating or  sending  station.  The  rotation  takes  place  for  a  longer 
or  shorter  time,  and  causes  a  hammer  to  oscillate,  which  strikes 
upon  the  bell. 

The  apparatus  which  is  employed  in  the  state  telegraph 
office  in  France,  is  arranged  in  a  case  traversed  by  the  hammer 
and  the  bell-rod. 

Figs.  1,  2,  and  3,  gives  three  vertical  projections,  as  seen  in 
three  different  directions. 

The  clock  movement  is  comprised  between  two  vertical  cop- 
per plates,  A  B  and  c  D,  fig.  3.  The  barrel  F  contains  the  large 
spring,  which  is  wound  up  from  the  outside,  by  turning  the 
axis  /  with  a  key.  This  barrel  causes  the  two  axes,  G  and  h, 
in  fig  5,  to  turn,  of  which  the  first  connects  in  front  of  the  plate 
A  B,  fig.  1,  to  the  eccentric  G,  fig.  1,  formed  of  a  circle,  cut  by 
two  parallels,  and  the  second  connects  to  a  circle  A,  fig.  1, 
which  gives  motion  to  the  lever-arm  H  i,  and  also  a  to-and-fro 
movement  to  the  lower  part  i  of  a  hammer,  i  K  L,  moveable 

346 


THE  FRENCH    TELEGRAPH    BELL    INSTRUMENTS. 


347 


around  K.  Behind  the  other  plate,  c  D,  as  seen  in  fig.  2,  is 
the  electro- magnet  E  E,  of  which  the  wire  is  attached  to 
two  binding-posts,  in  connection  with  two  exterior  screw  or 
binding  posts. 

Fig.  1. 


One  of  the  screw  posts  connects  with  the  line,  by  which  the 
current  is  to  arrive,  and  the  other  with  the  earth.  The  arma- 
ture, M  m',  is  moveable  around  M'.  Its  rod,  w'  ri  m,  moves  be- 
tween two  screws,  limiting  its  course.  The  recoil-spring  is 
tightened  by  means  of  the  screw  n.  A  little  strip,  PI  o1  m, 
drawn  down  by  the  spring  o  o',  presses  upon  the  upper  part  of 
the  armature-rod,  and  descends  when  the  armature  is  attracted 
by  the  electro-magnet. 

The  axis  p,,  which  traverses  the  two  plates,  is  invariably  fixed 
to  the  rod  p,  o'  m,  and  to  the  quoin  PI?  fig.  1.  It  turns  when 
the  rod  p1  o'  m,  fig.  2,  descends.  One  of  the  sides  of  the  quoin 


348 


THE    FRENCH    TELEGRAPH    BELL    INSTRUMENTS. 


p7.  in  a  state  of  rest,  is  vertical,  and  presses  against  the  spring 

Q,  4  Q> 

The  circle  h,  fig.  1,  which  turns  with  the  eccentric  H,  bears 
a  little  rod,  which  it  moves  on  turning  in  the  direction  indica- 
ted by  the  arrow,  and  which  hits  against  the  portions  $  q  of 
the  spring  Q,  q  q',  which  is  wider  at  q/  q  than  Q  qf. 

Fig.  2. 


In  the  position  of  the  figures,  the  rod  r  being  stopped,  the  ro- 
tation of  the  axis  h  and  G,  in  fig.  3,  cannot  take  place.  When 
a  current  arrives  from  one  of  the  exterior  screw  or  binding-posts, 
in  traversing  the  wire  of  the  electro-magnet,  the  armature  M' 
M,  fig.  2,  is  attracted,  and  M'  n'  m  withdraws  a  little,  and  the 
strip  P,  o7  w,  descending  under  the  action  of  the  spring  o7  o,  fig. 
2,  causes  the  axis  P,  fig.  3,  to  turn  a  little.  The  quoin  px,  fig.  1, 
inclines  toward  the  left,  and  draws  back  the  spring  q  q'  Q.  The 
rod  r  is  not  stopped,  and  the  wheel  7i,  fig.  1,  turns  as  well  as  the 
eccentric  G,  fig.  1,  of  which  the  bent  part  engages  with  the  spring 


THE    FRENCH    TELEGRAPH    BELL    INSTRUMENTS. 


349 


0.  q'  q,  and  keeps  it  drawn  back  during  all  the  time  required  to 
make  a  half  revolution.  During  the  rotation,  the  eccentric  H 
puts  in  motion  the  lever-arm  H  i,  and  the  hammer,  which  strikes 
on  the  bell.  As  the  quoin  comes  back  to  its  vertical  position,  the 
spring,  after  it  has  ceased  to  be  passed  by  the  curvilinear 
part  of  G,  stops  the  rod  r  again,  and  interrupts  the  movement 
of  the  hammer. 

Fig.  3, 


It  remains  now  to  be  shown  how  the  quoin  comes  back  to 
the  vertical  position.  Its  axis,  p,  bears  a  rod  which  is  seen  in 
fig.  3,  between  the  copper  plate  c  D,  and  the  large  wheel,  the 
axis  of  which  is  G.  At  the  extremities  of  one  diameter  of  the 
wheel  are  fixed  two  points,  and  when  the  wheel  turns,  these 
points  press  upon  the  rod  and  turn  the  axis,  p,  which  raises 
the  strip,  pl  o/  m,  fig.  2,  and  the  quoin,  p7,  fig.  1. 

If  the  current  has  ceased  to  pass,  the  armature  is  brought 
back  o  its  position ;  the  strip,  PI  w,  presses  again  on  the  upper 


350  THE    FRENCH    TELEGRAPH    BELL    INSTRUMENTS. 

part  of  the  armature  MX  ri  m,  fig.  2,  and  the  movement  is  stop- 
ped. If,  on  the  contrary,  the  current  passes,  the  rod  is  lowered 
again,  and  the  play  of  the  bell  apparatus  continues.  Thus, 
when  a  single  emission  of  current  is  produced,  the  bell  appara- 
tus continues  to  go  while  the  wheel,  G,  is  making  a  half  revo- 
lution. 

There  are  frequently  several  bell  apparatuses  in  the  stations, 
as  the  employes  are  not  always  present  when  required,  and  it 
is  important  that  there  should  be  some  indication  by  which  the 
station  making  the  call  could  be  known  to  the  operator  when 
he  returns  to  the  service.  To  this  end,  a  disk  is  fixed,  upon 
which  is  written  the  word  answer.  The  part  of  the  disk  which 
bears  this  word,  is  inclined,  and  when  the  bell  rings,  it  raises 
itself  quickly  and  places  itself  in  front  of  a  little  window  cut 
in  the  case.  This  arrangement  is  thus  described :  This  disk 
is  fixed  on  an  axis,  v,  fig.  1,  to  the  middle  of  which  a  spiral 
spring,  v  y>  is  attached.  The  spring,  v  #,  tends  to  make  the 
di^k  turn  and  raise  up  the  writing  on  it.  The  movement  of 
this  axis  is  stopped  by  a  point,  u,  which  the  bent  spring  x  x, 
fig.  2,  holds.  The  axis  h  is  formed  with  a  little  arm  h"  £,  fig. 
2.  When  that  wheel  moves,  the  arm  draws  back  the  spring  x 
#,  which  releases  the  point  u  and  the  disk  rises  rapidly.  It  is 
lowered  on  the  outside  by  means  of  a  little  key. 

VIBRATORY    BELL    APPARATUS. 

The  preceding  bell  apparatus  is  expensive  and  quite  compli- 
cated. It  must  be  wound  up  whenever  the  spring  has  execu- 
ted its  action,  which  is  quite  an  inconvenience  when  it  is  to  be 
intrusted  to  the  care  of  inferior  agents  in  the  service  of  the 
railway  companies,  such  as  the  guards,  workmen,  &c. 

I  will  now  give  a  description  of  a  new  bell  system,  which 
offers  great  advantages  on  account  of  its  simplicity. 

Let  there  be  an  electro  mag-net,  A  B,  fig.  4,  and  an  armature, 
c  D,  with  its  lever  arm,  D  o,  moveable  on  the  point,  o.  The 
rod,  o  D,  touches  alternately  two  screws,  m  and  n.  The  rod,  o 
D,  is  in  communication  with  the  wire,  o  p  ;  the  point,  m,  with 
the  wire  of  the  electro-magnet,  of  which  the  other  extremity 
reaches  to  Q.  When  the  two  extremities,  p  and  Q,  are  placed 
in  an  electric  circuit,  the  current  traverses  the  wire  of  the 
electro-magnet  and  the  armature,  c  D,  is  attracted.  The  rod  at 
the  same  instant  is  withdrawn  from  the  screw,  m,  and  breaks 
the  circuit.  The  horseshoe  core  of  the  electro-magnet  ceases 
to  be  a  magnet,  and  the  armature  c  D,  yielding  to  the  action 
of  the  recoil  spring,  i  H,  returns  to  its  normal  position.  The 


VIBRATORY  BELL  APPARATUS. 


351 


circuit  is  again  closed,  and  the  movement  taking  place  again,  a 
series  of  vibrations  are  produced. 

Fig.  4. 


This  apparatus,  in  the  French  service,  is  called  a  trembler. 
The  width  of  the  vibration  is  extremely  small,  when  the  cur- 
rent passes  quickly  on  and  off  the  electro-magnet ;  but  if  there 
be  added  to  the  screw  m  a  small  spring,  which  may  press 
slightly  upon  the  armature,  at  the  moment  when  it  withdraws 
from  the  rod,  the  movement  becomes  much  stronger. 

The  bell  apparatus,  fig.  5,  is  contained  in  a  box,  the  outside 
casing  of  which  is  seen.  The  bell  T  is  placed  over  the  box ; 
the  armature  L  N  is  terminated  at  the  upper  part  by  a  little 
hammer  M  ;  it  is  moveable  around  the  point  K  by  means  of  a 
spring,  which  draws  it  from  the  electro-magnet  A  A',  and  serves 
in  the  place  of  a  recoil-spring. 

Another  spring,  i  D,  presses  upon  the  rod  for  a  moment,  when 
the  armature  is  attracted  by  the  electro-magnet.  The  fixed 
point  i  of  the  spring  i  D  is  connected  to  the  exterior  screw-post 
B  and  the  point  K,  by  means  of  the  wire  of  the  electro-magnet 
to  the  screw-post  c.  The  movement  of  the  bell  apparatus  is 
produced  as  has  been  above  shown.  All  the  time  the  current 
is, coming  over  the  line,  the  hammer  strikes  a  continuous  series 
of  blows  upon  the  bell ;  it  produces  a  sort  of  rolling  sound, 
which  lasts  as  long  as  the  screw-post  B  is  in  connection  with 


352 


THE    FRENCH    TELEGRAPH    BELL    INSTRUMENTS. 


the  battery.      Mr.  Blavier  thinks  this   bell   apparatus  a  use- 
ful appendage  to  the  Morse  Telegraph,  the  sound  of  which  can 


Fig.  5. 


be  distinguished,  when  given  in  adjusted  time,  to  indicate  the 
dots  and  dashes  of  the  alphabet.  The  force  of  the  hammer 
upon  the  bell  depends  upon  the  power  of  the  electro-magnet  in 
the  attraction  of  the  armature. 


USE    OF    BELLS    IN    TELEGRAPH    OFFICES. 

In  telegraph  stations,  where  many  lines  centre,  a  special  bell 
apparatus  for  each  line  is  very  common  in  Europe,  in  order  that 
the  operator  may  recognize  the  call  of  the  respective  stations  on 
his  line.  A  single  bell  apparatus  suffices,  if  there  is  placed 
upon  the  circuit  of  each  wire  a  relay,  similar  to  that  of  the 
Morse  apparatus.  All  these  relays  being  furnished  with  an 
appendage,  indicating  the  one  which  has  been  traversed  by  the 
current,  closes  the  circuit  of  a  local  battery,  and  sets  in  motion 
the  bell  apparatus.  This  relay,  fig.  6,  comprises  an  electro- 
magnet A,  and  an  armature,  which,  in  a  state  of  rest,  touches 
the  screw  N,  and  when  it  is  attracted,  it  touches  the  screw  M. 
This  screw  M  connects  with  one  pole  of  the  local  battery,  and  the 
armature  connects  with  the  other  pole,  by  means  of  the  electro- 
magnet. 


USE    OP    BELL    IN    TELEGRAPH    OFFICES. 


353 


"When  the  current  is  coming  over  the  line,  and  traversing  the 
electro-magnet  A,  the  armature  being  attracted,  makes  the  cur- 
rent of  the  local  battery  pass  into  the  bell  apparatus,  and  at  the 
same  instant  disengages  the  rod  a  b,  which  rises  under  the  ac- 
tion of  the  spring  d. 

Fig.  6. 


All  the  relays  may  be  arranged  in  a  single  box,  in  order  to 
save  room.  A  single  local  battery  being  necessary,  all  the 
screws,  such  as  M,  communicate  together,  as  well  as  all  the 
armatures.  Above  each  of  them  is  written  the  name  of  the  sta- 
tion with  which  it  is  in  connection.  For  these  bell  apparatuses, 
relays  must  be  employed,  because  they  require  a  very  consider- 
able development  of  magnetic  force,  in  order  to  produce  a  suf- 
ficient sound  to  be  distinguishable. 

In  America,  bells  are  wholly  unnecessary  on  the  Morse 
Electro-Magnetic  Telegraph  lines.  They  are  serviceable  on  the 
House,  Hughes,  Barnes,  and  other  printing  apparatuses.  On 
electro-chemical  telegraph  lines,  bells  are  indispensably  neces- 
sary. The  ordinary  relay  magnet  produces  a  sound,  which,  to 
the  expert,  is  intelligible.  On  the  German  lines,  sometimes 
bells  are  employed. 

23 


THE  ELECTRO-CHEMICAL  TELEGRAPH, 


CHAPTER    XXVII. 

Bain's  Electro-Chemical  Telegraph — Apparatus  and  Manipulation — Smith  and 
Bain's  Patented  Invention — Bain's  Description  and  Claims — Morse's  Electro- 
Chemical  Telegraph — Westbrook  and  Rogers'  Electro-Chemical  Telegraph. 

BAIN'S    ELECTRO-CHEMICAL    TELEGRAPH. 

THE  most  prominent  chemical  telegraph  is  that  of  Mr.  Alex- 
ander Bain,  of  England.  There  are  none  others  in  practical 
operation  at  the  present  time.  In  England,  this  telegraph  is 
worked  by  the  old  Electric  Telegraph  Company  to  a  limited 
extent.  In  the  United  States,  through  the  wonderful  energy 
of  Mr.  Henry  O'Reilly,  the  chemical  telegraph  invented  by  Mr. 
Bain  was  used  on  an  extensive  range  of  lines  about  1850.  The, 
Morse  companies  instituted  suits,  and  obtained  injunctions 
against  the  chemical  telegraph  lines,  which  produced  a  very 
great  change  in  the  use  of  t'hat  apparatus  in  America.  The  Fed- 
eral Court  for  the  District  of  Pennsylvania  held  a  very  thorough 
hearing  on  an  application  for  an  injunction,  and  a  decree  was 
awarded,  declaring  the  patent  which  had  been  granted  to  Mr. 
Bain  an  infringement  upon  the  original  patent  of  1840,  granted 
to  Mr.  Morse. 

After  this  injunction,  the  other  chemical  telegraph  lines  con- 
solidated with  the  Morse  companies.  At  the  present  time, 
there  is  but  one  electro-chemical  telegraph  line  in  America, 
and  that  one  extends  from  Boston  to  Montreal,  with  branches; 
the  whole  making  about  800  miles,  and  works  in  co-operation 
with  the  Morse  lines. 

( 

THE    APPARATUS    AND    MANIPULATION. 

Having  thus  briefly  referred  to  the  present  state  of  the 
chemical  telegraoh  lines  on  both  continents,  I  will,  in  the  next 

354 


THE    APPARATUS    AND    MANIPULATION. 


355 


place,  give  a  few  explanations  in  regard  to  the  practical  ma- 
nipulation of  the  apparatus. 

Fig.  1  represents  the  apparatus  placed  upon  a  table  ready 
for  operation.  The  table  is  about  four  feet  high  and  six  feet 
long.  The  line  wire  enters  the  station  upon  the  right,  traverses 

Fig.  1. 


a  small  relay  magnet,  sitting  on  the  right  of  the  table  ;  it  then 
passes  through  the  key,  and  thence  to  the  stylus,  which  rests 
upon  the  disk  ;  from  beneath  the  disk,  the  wire  is  conducted  to 
the  earth. 

The  relay  magnet  upon  the  right  has  attached  to  it  a  circular 
piece  of  glass,  which  serves  as  a  bell,  when  struck  by  a  rod 
attached  to  the  armature.  With  this,  the  call  is  made  and  the 
operator  is  thus  notified  when  and  by  whom  wanted.  The 
clockwork  on  tbe  centre  of  the  table  is  to  put  in  motion  the 
disk,  as  seen  upon  the  left.  Upon  the  disk  is  laid  the  chem- 
ically prepared  paper,  which  is  kept  damp.  It  lies  on,  or  connects 
with  the  metallic  disk.  The  stylus  lies  upon  the  moist  paper, 


356 


THE    ELECTRO-CHEMICAL    TELEGRAPH. 


and  the  revolving  of  the  disk,  when  communication  is  being 
made,  conducts  the  paper  from  under  the  stylus,  so  as  to  leave 
a  clear  space  for  the  marks  produced  by  the  current  of  elec- 
tricity. The  line  of  dots  on  the  disk  illustrates  the  peculiar 
action  of  the  marking  by  the  stylus. 

This  form  of  apparatus  was  not  universal.  The  clockwork 
seen  in  the  table  is  about  eighteen  inches  high,  and  is 
quite  weighty.  Some  of  the  instruments  are  constructed  as 
small  as  the  Morse  apparatus,  using  a  ribbon  paper,  passing 
over  rollers  plated  with  a  metal  that  will  not  be  acted  upon  by 
the  acids  used  to  moisten  the  paper.  The  ribbon  paper  was 
drawn  between  two  sponge  rollers,  which  moistened  it  with 
the  chemical  soluUon,  and  thence  it  was  drawn  under  the 
stylus.  The  operator  was  compelled  to  handle  the  paper,  and 
in  doing  so,  it  was  liable  to  break,  the  paper  being  very  wet. 
To  avoid  this,  the  disk  form  was  adopted.  A  dozen  layers  or 
sheets  of  paper  are  laid  upon  the  disk,  and  kept  moistened.* 
The  stylus  is  graduated  to  move  from  the  exterior  to  the  interior, 
so  that  the  whole  of  the  sheet  lying  upon  the  disk  can  be  writ- 
ten upon  before  it  has  to  be  removed,  and  then  it  is  merely 
torn  off,  leaving  the  next  sheet  clean  and  clear,  ready  for  the 

Fig.  2. 


stylus  to  form  the  connection  and  trace  the  marks  as  before. 
The  mark  produced  by  the  electric  current  does  not  extend 
farther  than  on  the  top  sheet.  The  current  passes  through  the 
other  sheets  leaving  no  mark.  The  coloring  is  confined  to  the 
place  of  contact  between  the  stylus  and  the  paper. 


BAIN'S    APPARATUS    AND    MANIPULATION.  357 

In  order  that  the  beauty  and  simplicity  of  this  apparatus 
may  be  the  better  understood,  I  present  a  diagram  of  the 
electric  current,  which  will  be  seen  in  fig.  2.  A  B  are  the  re- 
spective stations.  At  station  B,  I  introduce  only  the  send- 
ing apparatus,  and  at  station  A,  I  leave  off  the  sending 
mechanism,  and  insert  only  the  receiving  apparatus,  reduced 
to  the  most  simple  and  comprehensive  form.  I  will  first  de- 
scribe the  sending  station  B.  p  i  is  the  earth  plate  of  zinc  or 
copper,  to  which  is  attached  a  wire  leading  to  the  battery  z ; 
the  wire  k  connects  with  the  anvil  b  of  the  key  a  b  c;  to  c  is 
attached  the  lever  a;  c  is  a  non-conductor,  and  insulates  the 
brass  pieces  a  from  b  ;  to  a  is  attached  the  line  wire  L,  which 
connects  with  the  stylus  s  ;  w  is  a  metallic  roller,  over  which 
runs  the  chemically  moistened  ribbon  paper  from  the  reel  R  ; 
from  w  the  wire  extends  to  the  earth  plate  p  i  (station  B). 

The  clockwork,  as  seen  in  fig.  1,  is  attached  to  the  roller  w, 
which  puts  in  motion  the  paper,  and  causes  it  to  move  forward 
under  the  point  of  the  stylus  s. 

In  order  to  communicate,  it  is  only  necessary  to  press  upon 
the  lever  #,  which  forms  a  contact  with  the  anvil  b.  This 
then  will  complete  the  circuit  from  the  earth  plate  of  station  B 
to  the  earth  plate  of  station  A,  and  the  earth  completes  the 
circuit  between  the  two  plates.  When  the  circuit  is  thus 
closed  at  a  &,  the  electric  current  flows  over  the  line  wire,  as 
indicated  by  the  arrows,  descends  with  the  stylus,  traverses  the 
chemically  moistened  paper,  passes  through  the  roller  w,  and 
thence  to  the  earth.  In  the  passage  of  the  electric  cur- 
rent through  the  moistened  paper,  a  beautiful  dark  color  is  left 
upon  it,  either  in  the  form  of  a  dot  or  a  dash,  as  may  be  de- 
termined by  the  length  of  time  that  a  b  may  be  in  contact. 
The  manipulation  with  the  key  is  the  same  as  with  the  Morse 
system. 

The  color  produced  upon  the  moistened  paper  remains  for  an 
indefinite  time.  I  have  a  strip  of  the  paper  that  I  got  in  Lon- 
don five  years  ago,  and  on  reference  to  it  on  the  present -occa- 
sion, I  find  that  the  marks  aro  as  clear  as  they  were  when  I 
got  it. 

It  will  be  seen  that,  •  according  to  the  arrangement  of  the 
circuit  in  fig.  2,  there  is  no  electric  current  on  the  line,  unless 
a  station  is  communicating,  or,  in  other  words,  every  station 
transmits  a  message  with  a  current  generated  by  the  battery 
at  that  station.  There  will  be,  of  necessity,  a  battery  at  every 
station.  This  arrangement,  however,  is  not  indispensable  ;  for 
there  might  be  a  continuous  current  on  the  line,  if  desired. 
With  a  sounder  at  each  station,  there  can  be  no  impropriety 


358  THE  ELECTRO-CHEMICAL  TELEGRAPH. 

in  the  continuation  of  the  voltaic  current  on  the  wire,  as  is  the 
practice  with  the  Morse  apparatus  in  America.  Some  of  the 
Bain  chemical  telegraph  lines  did  not  use  the  sounder  for  fear 
of  an  infringement  on  the  Morse  patents.  Each  station  had  an 
allotted  time,  and  the  batteries  were  so  organized,  that  each 
station  brought  into  service  the  battery  of  that  station,  com- 
municating with  that  and  none  other. 

With  these  explanations,  I  will  now  proceed  to  give  Mr. 
Bain's  descriptions  and  claims,  in  relation  to  his  electro-chem- 
ical telegraph. 


Tn  the  patent  granted,  in  the  United  States  of  America,  to 
Messrs.  Robert  Smith  and  Alexander  Bain  of  England,  under 
date  of  October  30,  1849,  the  inventors  declare  that  their  im- 
provement in  electro-chemical  telegraphing  consists  of  the  fol- 
lowing, viz. : 

1st.  In  the  present  mode  of  arranging  the  several  parts 
herein  described  of  our  marking  instruments  of  Electro- Chemi- 
cal Telegraphs. 

2d.  In  a  mode  of  constructing  a  style  or  point-holder,  so  as 
to  afford  a  ready  and  convenient  mode  of  regulating  the  pressure 
of  the  style  or  point  on  the  surface  of  the  chemically  prepared 
paper,  or  other  suitable  fabric. 

3d.  In  a  mode  of  applying  a  weight  for  regulating  the  pres- 
sure of  an  upper  on  a  lower  revolving  wheel,  or  roller,  in  mo- 
tion, so  as  to  grasp  the  strip  of  chemically  prepared  paper  or 
other  suitable  fabric,  and  insure  it  being  drawn  continually 
forward. 

4th.  In  a  mode  of  arranging  the  marking  instruments,  keys, 
wires,  and  batteries,  in  a  single  circuit,  and  in  branch  circuits 
connected  therewith,  so  that  a  copy  of  a  message  sent  from  any 
station  may  be  marked  upon  the  chemically  prepared  paper  or 
other  fabric,  at  any  desired  number  of  stations  in  communica- 
tion therewith,  and  also,  if  required,  at  the  transmitting 
station. 

1  I  would  here  state,  that  the  paper,  linen,  or  other  suitable 
fabric,  may  be  prepared  by  being  equally  and  thoroughly  moist- 
ened by  the  following  chemical  compound,  viz. :  Ten  parts,  by 
measure,  of  a  saturated  solution  of  prussiate  of  potash,  which 
will  be  best  made  in  distilled  water,  and  we  prefer  to  use  the 
yellow  prussiate  for  this  purpose ;  two  parts  by  measure  of  nitric 
acid,  of  the  strength  of  about  forty  by  Baume's  scale ;  two 
parts  by  measure  of  muriatic  acid,  of  the  strength  of  about 
twenty  by  Baume's  scale. 


359 

To  keep  the  paper  or  other  fabric  in  a  sufficiently  moist 
state,  favorable  for  the  action  of  an  electric  current,  we  add 
about  one  part  by  measure  of  chloride  of  lime  ;  this  mixture  is 
to  be  kept  stirred  about  with  a  glass  rod,  until  the  chloride  of 
lime  is  in  complete  solution.  In  connection  with  this  com- 
pound, it  is  proper  to  observe  that  we  have  found  that  prussiate 
of  potash,  combined  with  almost  any  acids,  will  give  mark 
under  the  decomposing  action  of  an  electric  current,  but  no 
other  mixtures  act  so  quickly,  or  give  such  permanent  marks 
with  feeble  currents  of  electricity,  as  that  herein  described. 
The  principal  use  of  the  chloride  of  lime  is,  that  it  absorbs 
moisture  from  the  atmosphere,  and  thereby  keeps  the  prepared 
fabric  in  a  proper  state  to  be  acted  upon  by  an  electric  current 
in  all  states  of  the  weather. 

After  describing  the  apparatus  for  telegraphing,  the  follow- 
ing are  given  as  the  claims  of  the  inventors : 

1st.  The  modes  of  arranging  the  several  parts  of  our  mark- 
ing instruments  for  electro-chemical  telegraphs,  substantially, 
as  hereinbefore  described. 

2d.  We  claim  the  mode  of  adjusting  a  style  or  point-holder, 
as  hereinbefore  described  and  shown,  so  as  to  afford  a  ready 
and  convenient  mode  of  regulating  the  pressure  of  the  style  or 
point  upon  the  surface  of  the  chemically  prepared  fabric. 

3d.  We  claim  the  mode  of  applying  the  weight  Q,  for  the 
purpose  of  regulating  the  pressure,  as  herein  described  and 
shown. 

4th.  We  claim  the  mode  of  arranging  the  marking  and 
transmitting  instruments,  wires,  and  batteries,  in  a  single 
circuit,  and  in  branch  circuits  connected  therewith,  so  that  a 
copy  of  a  message  sent  from  any  one  station  may  be  marked 
upon  chemically  prepared  paper,  or  other  fabric,  at  one  or  any 
desired  number  of  stations  in  communication  therewith,  and 
also,  if  required,  at  the  transmitting  station,  without  requiring 
the  use  of  any  secondary  current. 

In  the  application  for  a  patent  in  the  United  States,  Mr. 
Bain  was  opposed  by  Prof.  Morse.  The  Commissioner  of  Pat- 
ents sustained  the  claims  of  the  latter  gentleman.  Mr.  Bain 
appealed  to  the  Federal  Court  for  the  District  of  Columbia. 
On  the  13th  of  March,  1849,  the  honorable  judge  reversed  the 
decision  of  the  Commissioner  of  Patents,  and  issued  the  follow- 
ing order,  viz. : 

"  And  I  do  further  decide  and  adjudge,  that  the  said  Samuel 
F.  B.  Morse  is  entitled,  under  the  7th  section  of  the  Act  of  1836, 
to  a  patent  for  the  combination  which  he  has  invented,  claimed, 
and  described  in  his  specification,  drawings,  and  model ;  and 


360  THE  ELECTRO-CHEMICAL  TELEGRAPH. 

that  the  said  Alexander  Bain  is  entitled,  under  the  same  sec- 
tion, to  a  patent  for  the  combination  which  he  has  invented, 
claimed,  and  described  in  his  specification,  drawings,  and  model ; 
provided  the  said  Morse  and  Bain  shall  have  respectively  com- 
plied with  all  the  requisites  of  the  law  to  entitle  them  to  their 
respective  patents." 

The  following  extracts  were  embraced  in  the  application  of 
Mr.  Bain,  which  will  be  sufficient  to  explain  the  details  of  his 
telegraph. 

BAIN'S    DESCRIPTION    AND    CLAIMS    OF    HIS    INVENTION. 

Know  ye,  that  I,  Alexander  Bain,  formerly  of  Edinburgh, 
now  of  the  city  of  London,  at  present  in  the  city  of  New- York, 
electric  telegraph  engineer,  a  subject  of  the  Q,ueen  of  Great 
Britain,  have  invented  and  made,  and  applied  to  use,  certain 
new  and  useful  improvements  in  the  construction  of  electric 
telegraphs,  for  which  original  invention  a  patent  was  granted 
to  me,  by  the  government  of  Great  Britain  and  Ireland,  dated, 
'  in  London,  the  12th  of  December,  1846,  for  which  said  original 
invention,  including  other  original  and  important  improvements 
thereon,  I  now  seek  letters  patent  of  the  United  States :  That 
the  said  improvements  differ  with  all  other  precedent  modes 
employed  in  electric  telegraphs ;  first,  by  using  electricity  in 
a  manner  independent  of  any  magnetic  action  ;  secondly,  in 
composing  a  message  or  communication  by  perforations  through 
paper,  in  sets  of  characters,  each  of  which  represents  a  letter 
of  the  alphabet,  or  numeral  figure,  or  other  needful  sign ; 
which  arrangement  of  perforated  signs  being  arbitrary,  may  be 
changed  at  pleasure,  so  as  to  transmit  secret  or  other  important 
communications,  by  signs  not  understood  by  those  not'  having 
the  key  or  index  of  the  secret  arrangement ;  thirdly,  by  an 
arrangement  of  mechanical  means,  through  which  the  non- 
conducting substance  of  the  paper  passing  through  the  elec- 
trically excited  parts  of  the  machinery  interrupts  the  circuit, 
except  when  the  perforated  parts  forming  the  signs  pass  between 
the  electrically  excited  parts  of  the  machinery,  and  place  these 
in  contact  in  a  manner  that  completes  the  circuit,  transmitting 
a  corresponding  electric  pulsation  to  the  receiving  apparatus  at 
the  distant  station  ;  fourthly,  in  recording  the  pulsation  so 
given,  by  the  intermittently  passed  electric  fluid,  on  chemically 
prepared  paper  in  such  a  manner  as  permanently  to  record  on 
the  chemically  prepared  substance  a  succession  of  signs  cor- 
responding to  the  perforations  in  the  paper  used  at  the  trans- 
mitting station  ;  and,  fifthly,  in  the  arrangement  of  mechanical 
means,  by  which  a  communication,  when  composed,  can  be 


361 

simultaneously  transmitted  through  one  machine  to  any 
plurality  of  distant  stations,  at,  or  nearly  at,  the  same  instant 
of  time ;  and,  as  will  be  shown  hereafter,  with  a  rapidity 
unknown  in  electro-telegraphic  apparatus  wherein  magnetic 
influences  are  admitted. 

Before  describing  the  means  of  making  the  perforations  to 
form  the  signs,  it  may  be  proper  to  describe  the  signs  hitherto 
found  most  available.  By  referring  to  description,  it  will  be 
seen  that  the  letter  A  is  formed  by  one  small  dot  and  a  line, 

thus, ;  the  letter  B  by  a  dot,  a  line  and  a  dot,  thus, ; 

and  so  on  of  the  rest ;  but  it  will  be  seen  that  all  the  letters  to 
N,  inclusive,  are  begun  with  a  dot  or  dots  to  the  left  of  the 
line ;  L  being  formed  by  four  dots,  i  by  two  dots,  and  E  by  one ; 
all  following  are  begun  with  a  line  to  the  left  of  the  dot  or  dots 
used ;  the  Y  and  z  with  the  abbreviation  &  being  represented 
by  lines  only.  The  numeral  signs  to  5,  inclusive,  also  com- 
mence with  a  dot  or  dots,  and  from  6  to  0,  inclusive,  these 
numerals  begin  with  lines ;  the  fractional  line  is  represented 
by ,  and  is  to  be  preceded  by  the  numerator,  and  fol- 
lowed by  the  denominator  of  the  given  fraction,  thus —  - 

— ---,  will  represent  |,  and  so  on  of  all  the  other 

signs.  It  has  been  before  noticed,  that  these  signs  are  arbi- 
trary and  changeable  ;  but  as  will  be  seen  hereafter,  the  means 
of  composing,  transmitting,  and  recording  signs  are  equally 
effective  for  any  other  system  of  signs  that  may  hereafter  be 
found  either  better  in  arrangement,  or  more  especially  appli- 
cable for  any  particular  object. 

The  entire  alphabet,  as  adopted  by  Mr.  Bain,  and  used  on 
the  American  lines,  was  the  following : 

ALPHABET    AND    NUMERALS. 

A-  —  N 

B 0  — 

C  ---  P 

D Q, 

E  -  R 

F S 

a T 

H U  — - 

I  ..  V 

J W 

K X 

L Y 

& 


362  THE    ELECTRO-CHEMICAL    TELEGRAPH. 

NUMERALS. 
J .  g    ' 

2 7 

3 8 

4 9 

5 0 

The  process  of  rapid  communication  contemplated  the  pre- 
vious preparation  of  the  ribbon  paper,  by  perforating  the  alpha- 
bet. This  arrangement  was  as  follows  : 

The  punch  is  cylindrical,  having  a  flat  end  and  a  sharp  edge, 
and  the  whole  of  the  parts  very  accurately  fitted  and  adjusted 
together,  without  any  lateral  shake  in  the  punch,  so  that  it 
enters  the  die  properly.  When  so  completed,  the  compositor 
passes  a  strip  of  paper  of  any  required  length  from  beneath 
through  the  right-hand  slot,  and  under  the  guide-block,  out 
and  downward  through  the  left-hand  slot,  when  the  compositor 
strikes  the  head  with  a  small  ball  of  wood,  covered  with  leather 
or  India-rubber,  in  his  right  hand,  which  forces  the  punch  point 
through  the  paper  into  the  die,  cutting  out  a  small  disk  that  falls 
through  the  die  and  holes  below ;  the  expansive  spring  throws  the 
punch  up,  while  the  compositor,  by  his  left  finger  and  thumb, 
draws  the  paper  on,  to  strike  successively  again  on  the  punch  head 
at  the  required  distance,  which,  for  a  second  or  next  successive 
single  perforation,  should  be  equal  to  the  diameter  of  one  dot, 
the  space  between  a  dot  and  the  commencement  of  a  line  the 
same  ;  to  form  a  line,  the  compositor  draws  the  paper  on  a 
little  less  than  the  diameter  of  a  dot,  successively,  until  he  has 
struck  the  punch  as  many  times  as  will  form  a  line  equal  to 
three  diameters  of  one  dot,  leaving  a  space  between  the  ends 
and  the  commencements  of  lines,  in  the  same  manner  equal  to 
the  diameter  of  one  dot ;  the  space  between  each  two  letters, 
equal  to  four  dots ;  and  the  space  between  each  two  successive 
words  equal  to  the  diameters  of  eight  dots.  This  process  forms 
groups  of  perforations  in  a  continuous  line,  each  of  which  groups 
complete  a  sign,  representing  a  letter  or  numeral,  and  the 
larger  spaces  show  the  ends  and  commencements  of  words,  that 
so  placed  are  formed  and  read  from  left  to  right  along  the  cen- 
tre of  the  paper,  in  the  same  manner  as  common  writing  or 
printing.  In  this  manner,  a  competent  compositor,  with  a 
thorough  knowledge  of  the  signs,  will  compose  a  communica- 
tion nearly  as  fast  as  it  can  be  set  up  in  type,  and  as  fast  as  the 
same  quantity  of  matter  can  be  marked  upon  paper,  by  mag- 
netism operating  through  mechanical  means.  When  all  the 
perforations  are  made,  the  paper  strip  is  to  be  wound  on  a 


BAIN'S  DESCRIPTION  AND  CLAIMS  OF  HIS  INVENTION.  363 

roller,  which  fits  into  the  transmitting  machine,  so  that  the 
communication  is  ready  to  be  passed  through  that  -machine. 

In  regard  to  the  preparation  of  this  paper  for  the  application 
of  the  apparatus,  the  following  will  serve  as  explanatory  : 

To  receive  a  communication,  the  wire  brush  is  to  be 
turned  back  to  the  right  by  means  of  the  pointer,  to  be  out 
of  contact  with  the  transmitting  roller  ;  then  take  a  piece  of 
fine,  good  smooth  paper,  the  width  of  which  should  be  equal  to 
the  length  of  the  cylinder,  and  long  enough  to  go  round  the 
cylinder,  with  the  ends  lapping  over  each  other  a  quarter  of  an 
inch ;  this  paper  is  to  be  previously  prepared  as  follows  :  It  is 
to  be  laid  on  any  clean  surface  that  acids  will  not  act  on,  the 
paper  is  then  to  be  covered  on  the  upper  surface  with  oil,  by  a 
very  clean  sponge ;  for  this  good  salad  oil  will  answer,  but 
other  oils  will  answer,  if  they  do  not  evaporate  too  quickly, 
because  the  use  of  the  oil  is  to  lessen  the  evaporation  of  the 
chemicals  next  noticed,  by  retaining  their  moisture ;  the  paper 
is  then  to  be  turned  over,  and  washed  with  a  clean  sponge  con- 
taining a  solution  of  nitric  acid,  prussiate  of  potash,  and  liquid 
ammonia,  in  the  following  proportions — the  ammonia  is  merely 
added  to  prevent  the  other  ingredients  from  rotting  the  paper : 
Two  parts,  by  measure,  of  pure  nitric  acid,  twenty  parts,  by 
measure,  of  a  saturated  solution  of  prussiate  of  potash,  in  dis- 
tilled water,  and  two  parts  of  pure  liquid  ammonia,  mixed 
together.  The  paper  so  prepared  is  to  be  laid,  with  the  oiled 
surface  upward,  on  and  around  the  cylinder,  and  the  lapping 
edges  fastened  with  a  little  gum  water ;  the  cylinder  is  then  to 
be  put  in  place,  and  the  steel  slide  is  to  be  turned  on  to  the 
paper ;  the  apparatus  is  then  ready  to  receive  a  transmitted 
communication.  The  machinery  is  then  to  be  worked  by  a 
man  at  the  wheel,  at  the  rate  of  one  revolution  of  the  wheel 
per  minute,  the  same  as  in  transmitting  a  communication,  and 
as  before  stated.  The  operator  at  any  one  distant  station 
transmits  the  electric  current  in-  pulsations,  regulated  by  the 
perforations  in  the  paper  he  is  using,  as  arready  explained,  and 
these  pulsations  are  received  by  the  wire,  as  before  mentioned, 
they  pass  by  the  screw  and  standards,  axle,  thence  to  the  stem, 
and  through  that  to  the  style,  and  through  the  chemically  pre- 
pared paper  to  the  cylinder,  leaving  a  dark  mark  on  the  paper, 
which,  though  less  in  size,  will  be  in  number  and  position  an 
exact  transcript  of  the  perforations  in  the  paper  used  at  the 
transmitting  station.  It  is  proper  to  notice,  that  steel  styles 
leave  a  dark  mark  approaching  black  or  blue  black  on  the  paper, 
but  copper  styles  will  leave  a  brown  mark  on  the  paper.  It  is 
not  intended  to  discuss  the  theory  of  the  causes  that  produce 


364         THE  ELECTRO-CHEMICAL  TELEGRAPH. 

these  effects  and  facts  ;  nor  is  it  intended  to  claim  the  use  of 
any  particular  chemical  solution,  either  separate  or  conjoined  ; 
because  the  paper  saturated  with  a  solution  of  nitric  acid  only 
will  receive  a  communication  that  will  not  become  visible,  until 
the  paper  is  washed  with  a  solution  of  prussiate  of  potash ; 
therefore  any  chemical  solutions  may  be  used  that  will  produce 
the  bes£  effects ;  and  I  have  stated  the  solutions  of  nitric  acid 
and  prussiate  of  potash  as  those  that  I  have  hitherto  found  most 
effective  in  practical  use. 

It  is  believed  to  be  sufficiently  plain,  without  much  explana- 
tion, that  as  the  perforations  composed  in  the  paper  successively 
pass  under  each  comb,  the  electric  circuit  will  be  completed, 
by  the  points  of  the  comb  coming  in  contact  with  the  roller 
through  such  perforation,  and  that  a  corresponding  period  of 
rapid  electric  pulsations  will  be  thus  communicated  simul- 
taneously to  the  marking  style  at  each  distant  station.  It  is 
proper  to  remark,  that  the  battery  in  connection  with  each 
transmitting  roller,  must  be  of  proportionate  strength  to  the  dis 
tance  the  current  has  to  travel ;  and  these  arrangements  admit 
of  so  graduating  the  strength  of  each  battery,  because  each 
separate  circuit  is  totally  and  entirely  independent  of  any  other 
circuit ;  and  each  circuit  is  completed  at  the  receiving  station, 
independent  of  any  other  station,  and  the  communication  trans- 
mitted is  received  and  recorded  at  each  receiving  station,  in  the 
same  manner,  and  with  the  same  effect,  as  if  made  with  the 
single  acting  machine  first  described. 

All  other  electric  telegraphs  hitherto  used  are  dependent  on 
the  motive  power  of  electro-magnetism  for  their  action,  and 
many  mechanical  means  have  been  sought  or  tried,  whereby 
to  adapt  this  power  for  use,  the  main  principle  remaining  the 
same  in  all ;  the  machines  are,  consequently,  all  designated 
"  Electro-Magnetic  Telegraphs." 

But  electricity  travels  with  a  velocity  capable  of  giving  sev- 
eral thousand  signals  per  minute  of  time ;  and  any  apparatus 
composed  more  or  less  of  ponderous  bodies,  having  also  to  give 
motion  to  other  and  similar  bodies,  cannot  act  with  more  than 
a  fraction  of  the  velocity  with  which  electricity  travels  ;  and 
another  and  greater  hinderance  is,  that,  however  skilful  an  oper- 
ator may  be,  he  can  only  open  and  close  the  electric  circuit,  in  a 
manner  which  again  reduces  the  numerical  velocity  of  its  pul- 
sations, and  no  other  mode  has  yet  effected  the  correct  trans- 
mission of  the  same  communication  to  a  plurality  of  distant 
receiving  stations. 

I  have,  therefore,  in  my  hereinbefore  described  invention,  re- 
'ected  magnetism  altogether  ;  and  caused  the  pulsations  of  the 


BAIN'S    DESCRIPTION  AND  CLAIMS  OF  HIS  INVENTION.  365 

electric  current  to  be  transmitted  through  groups  of  perfora- 
tions, forming  signs  which  are  recorded  at  the  receiving  station 
by  the  pulsations  of  the  electric  current,  acting  on  chemically 
prepared  paper,  in  the  manner  described  and  shown ;  so  that 
the  circuit  is  completed  and  interrupted  by  the  operation  of  the 
composed  communication  itself,  without  the  electric  current 
having  to  produce  any  mechanical  motion,  and  without  any 
manipulation  of  the  operator,  in  forming  the  intermittent  pul- 
sations of  the  electric  current,  thereby  effecting  the  transmis- 
sion of  a  communication  to  one  or  a  plurality  of  distant  receiving 
stations,  with  far  greater  rapidity  than  by  any  other  known  mode. 

It  is  not  deemed  requisite  to  describe  or  refer  to  the  voltaic, 
or  other  source  of  electricity,  nor  is  it  intended  to  claim  the 
application  of  that  or  any  other  electric  source  to  these  pur- 
poses ;  nor  is  it  intended  to  claim  any  of  the  parts  employed 
herein,  irrespective  of  the  uses  to  which  they  are  severally  put, 
as  herein  described. 

But  I  do  claim  as  new,  and  of  my  own  invention,  and  desire 
to  secure  by  letters  patent  of  the  United  States  : 

1st.  The  composing  of  electro-telegraphic  communications, 
by  making  groups  of  perforations  through  paper,  corresponding 
with  or  representing  the  signs  to  be  transmitted,  irrespective  of 
the  general  arrangement  of  the  collective  or  individual  signs^ 
and  irrespective  of  the  mechanical  means  employed  to  make 
the  perforations. 

2d.  The  application  of  paper  so  perforated  to  open  and  close  an 
electric  current,  or  several  successive  currents,  thereby  transmit- 
ting the  electric  current  or  currents  in  successive  pulsations,  that 
correspond  with  the  perforations  in  the  paper,  substantially  in 
the  manner  described  and  shown  ;  but  including  any  merely 
practical  or  convenient  variations  of  the  mechanical  means,  or 
materials,  or  fabrics  employed,  that  are  analogous  or  equivalent 
in  their  operations  and  effects. 

3d.  The  application  of  any  suitable  chemically  prepared 
paper,  without  regard  to  the  chemical  ingredients  used  for  such 
a  purpose,  to  receive  and  record  signs  forming  communications, 
such  signs  being  made  by  the  pulsations  of  the  electric  current 
or  currents  transmitted  from  a  distant  station,  said  current 
operating  directly,  and  without  the  intervention  of  any  second- 
ary current  or  mechanical  contrivance,  through  a  suitable 
metal  marking  style,  that  is  in  continuous  contact  with  the  re- 
ceiving paper,  thereby  making  marks  thereon,  which  marks 
correspond  with  the  groups  of  perforations  in  the  paper,  com- 
posing the  transmitted  communication,  or  may  be  given  by 
the  pulsations  from  the  spring  and  block,  so  that,  in  either 


366  THE  ELECTRO-CHEMICAL  TELEGRAPH. 

case,  these  form  the  received  communications,  substantially,  in 
the  manner  and  with  the  effects  described  and  shown,  includ- 
ing any  merely  practical  variations  in  the  means  employed  and 
the  effects  produced  thereby. 


In  order  that  the  chemical  telegraph  invented  by  Prof.  Morse 
may  be  understood,  I  have  taken  the  following  extracts  from 
his  patent.  This  chemical  telegraph  has  never  been  put  into 
operation.  The  right  is  held  by  the  companies  owning  the  other 
Morse  patents,  and,  whether  better  or  worse,  there  is  a  disin- 
clination to  change  the  systems. 

Whereas,  among  my  earliest  conceptions  of  the  telegraph,  in 
October  of  the  year  1832,  on  board  the  packet-ship,  Sully,  on 
her  voyage  from  France  to  New- York,  I  conceived  the  idea  of 
marking  the  telegraphic  signs  I  had  invented  (being  dots  and 
spaces  to  signify  numerals),  bv  electrical  decomposition  of  cer- 
tain salts  and  chemical  compounds ;  and  whereas,  the  applica- 
tion of  the  proper  means  for  producing  a  successful  result  of 
this  thought  was  soon  after  superseded  in  my  mind  by  another 
method,  at  the  same  time  conceived,  of  marking  the  said  signs, 
to  wit,  by  magnetism,  produced  by  electricity,  which  is  the 
successful  method  now  in  use,  and  having  recently  recurred  to 
my  original  thought  of  applying  decomposition  by  electricity 
through  a  single  circuit  of  conductors,  and  discovered  a  means 
of  successfully  applying  the  same,  as  then  conceived,  to  the 
marking  of  the  aforesaid  signs  for  numerals  and  letters,  and  of 
any  desired  characters,  I  will  here  describe  the  nature  of  my 
invention,  and  the  method  by  which  I  obtain  my  results. 

The  nature  of  my  invention  consists  :  1st.  In  the  application 
of  the  decomposing  effects  of  electricity  produced  from  any 
known  generator  of  electricity,  to  the  marking  of  the  signs  for 
numerals  or  letters,  or  words,  or  sentences,  invented  and  arrang- 
ed by  me,  and  secured  by  patent,  bearing  date  June  20th,  1840, 
reissued  January  15th,  1846,  and  again  reissued  June  13th, 
1848,  or  their  equivalents,  through  a  single  circuit  of  electrical 
conductors. 

2d.  In  the  mode  of  applying  this  decomposition,  and  the  ma- 
chinery for  that  purpose. 

3d.  In  the  application  of  the  bleaching  qualities  of  electricity 
to  the  printing  of  any  desired  characters. 

In  applying  the  decomposing  effects  of  electricity  upon  any 
known  salts  that  leave  a  mark,  as  the  result  of  the  said  de- 
composition, I  use 


MORSE'S  ELECTRO-CHEMICAL  TELEGRAPH.  367 

Class  A. — A  class  of  salts  that  produce  a  colored  mark  upon 
cloth,  paper,  thread,  or  other  material,  under  the  action  of  elec- 
tricity. 

1st.  Iodide  of  tin  in  solution. 

2d.  Extract  of  nutgalls,  and  sulphate  of  iron,  in  solution, 
making  an  ink  which  colors  white  cambric  cloth  of  a  uniform 
gray. 

3d.  Acetate  of  lead,  and  nitrate  of  potash  in  solution. 

4th.  Iodide  of  potassium  in  solution. 

Into  either  of  these  I  dip  a  strip  of  cloth  or  thread,  which  is 
kept  properly  moistened.  All  these  give  a  black  mark  upon 
the  cloth,  thread,  or  other  material  under  the  action  of  elec- 
tricity. 

Class  B. — A  class  of  salts  which  color  the  cloth,  paper, 
thread,  or  other  material,  and  are  bleached  by  the  action  of 
electricity. 

1st.  Iodide  of  tin  in  solution. 

2d.  Iodine  dissolved  in  alcohol. 

Into  either  of  these  I  dip  a  strip  of  cloth,  paper,  thread,  or 
other  material ;  and  if  in  solution  second,  I  also  dip  them  into 
a  solution  of  sulphate  of  soda,  the  cloth  or  other  material,  in 
these  cases,  becomes  of  a  purple  color  more  or  less  dark.  The 
electricity  in  these  cases,  when  a  metallic  point  or  type  is 
pressed  upon,  or  comes  in  contact  with  the  moist  cloth  or  other 
material,  bleaches  it,  and  leaves  the  point  or  the  type  impressed 
in  white  characters  upon  the  material. 

Class  C. — A  class  of  salts  that  produce  a  mark  upon  metal, 
through  the  intervening  cloth  or  other  material,  and  not  upon 
the  material,  under  the  action  of  electricity. 

1st.   Sulphate  of  copper  in  solution. 

2d.  Chloride  of  zinc  diluted  with  water. 

3d.  Sulphate  of  iron  in  solution. 

Into  either  of  these  solutions  I  dip  the  cloth,  thread,  or  other 
material,  and  if  into  the  third,  I  afterward  dip  it  into  muriate 
of  lime  in  solution.  The  electricity  in  these  cases  causes  a 
dark  mark  upon  a  bright  metal  plate  beneath  the  moistened 
material,  but  not  on  the  material  itself. 

The  mode  of  applying  this  decomposition  by  electricity,  is 
by  the  use  of  so  much  of  my  machinery  previously  described 
in  the  schedule  referred  to  in  the  letters  patent,  granted  to  me, 
and  bearing  date  June  13,  1848,  being  the  re-issue  of  the 
original  patent  of  April  12th,  1846,  as  is  employed  in  regula- 
ting the  motion  of  the  paper,  substituting,  however,  for  the  com- 
mon paper  therein  used,  the  cloth,  thread,  metal,  or  other  ma- 
terial, chemically  prepared,  and  which  machinery  is  therein 


368  THE  ELECTRO-CHEMICAL  TELEGRAPH. 

described  in  the  words  following,  to  wit :  "  The  register  con- 
sists of  a  series  of  wheels  and  pinions,  and  its  object  is  to  reg- 
ulate the  movement  of  paper,  or  other  material  upon  which  to 
imprint  telegraphic  characters.  A,  A,  &c.,  sheet  I.,  II.,  figs.  1 
and  3,  the  platform  of  wood  or  other  convenient  material  upon 
which  the  machinery  is  erected.  B  B,  &o.,  the  standards  for 
the  reel  of  paper,  and  c  the  reel  of  paper  upon  which  is  to  be 
printed  the  telegraphic  characters.  D  one  form  of  the  arrange- 
ment of  the  wheels,  and  pinions  of  the  register ;  a  e  rollers  for 
drawing  the  paper  in  contact  with  the  pen  or  marking  roller  2, 
seen  also  on  sheet  III.,  fig.  10.  *  *  *  *  *  *  The  frame  D  con- 
tains the  train  of  wheels,  whose  motion  is  caused  by  the  weight 
a,  or  its  equivalent.  *  *  *  *  *  *  The  paper  roller  d  e,  and  2, 
fig.  10,  sheet  III.,  are  so  connected  with  the  train  of  wheels, 
that  the  paper  drawn  from  the  reels  by  passing  between  a  and 
e,  is  made  to  be  in  contact  with  the  cylinder,  fig.  2.  The 
roller  e  is  kept  in  contact  with  a,  by  the  forked  spring  in  fig. 
10,  bearing  upon  the  ends  of  the  journals,  and  regulated  in  its 
strength  by  the  thumb-screws  8  and  9.  The  bearings  or  sock- 
ets for  the  ends  of  the  shafts  of  e,  are  not  circular,  but  are  slots 
to  allow  of  a  slight  movement  in  a  direction  with  and  against 
the  force  of  the  spring,  so  that  the  spring  shall  act  with  proper 
power,  tending  to  keep  the  cylinder  e  in  contact  with  c?." 

Instead  of  a  magnet,  however,  and  lever  and  pen,  I  dispense 
altogether  with  both  the  receiving  magnet  and  the  register 
magnet,  of  my  former  patents,  and  substitute  therefor  the  fol- 
lowing arrangement,  as  exhibited  in  the  accompanying  draw- 
ing and  description  : 

Description. — In  the  accompanying  drawing,  R  is  so  much 
of  the  register  of  my  original  patent  just  quoted,  as  is  used  in 
drawing  and  regulating  the  motion  of  the  paper,  and  is  simi- 
larly used  for  drawing  and  regulating  the  chemically  prepared 
material  for  marking  by  electricity. 

s  s  is  the  wooden  platform  for  mounting  the  machinery. 

a  is  a  metallic  cylinder  or  drum,  or  piece  of  metal  mounted 
upon  a  metal  standard  d,  screwed  into  the  platform,  b  is  the 
cloth  or  prepared  material  to  be  marked. 

c  is  a  thin-edged  wheel,  the  periphery  of  which  is  platinum, 
held  by  a  metal  spring  e,  also  mounted  on  a  metal  stand  and 
/",  screwed  into  the  platform. 

K  is  the  metal  key  of  my  previously  patented  telegraph  ma- 
chinery. One  form  of  it  consists  of  a  short  lever  of  metal,  hav- 
ing its  fulcrum  at  or  near  one  end.  At  the  other  end  is  a 
finger-knob,  the  better  to  press  it  down.  Between  the  fulcrum 
and  the  knob  may  be  a  protuberance  or  hammer,  as  at  z,  above 


369 

a  small  anvil,  as  at  A,  from  which  the  hammer  is  separated, 
when  not  pressed  down,  by  a  spring,     p  is  the  battery. 

From  the  standard  d,  a  conductor  proceeds  to  one  pole  of  the 
battery.  From  the  standard  /,  a  conductor  proceeds  connect- 
ing with  the  back  of  the  key  at  g,  which  is  screwed  into  the 
platform. 

h  is  the  metallic  anvil,  also  screwed  into  the  platform,  and 
insulated  from  the  rest  of  the  key. 

i  is  the  hammer  attached  to  the  upper  part  of  the  key. 

From  the  anvil  proceeds  a  conductor  to  the  other  pole  of  the 
battery. 

Operation. — While  the  hammer  i  is  separated  from  the  anvil 
A,  no  current  can  proceed  from  the  battery.  But  the  moment 
*  and  h  are  in  contact,  the  current  of  electricity  takes  the  direc- 
tion of  the  arrows,  and  passes  through  the  chemically  prepared 
material  at  a,  decomposing  the  salt  with  which  it  is  prepared, 
and  making  a  mark.  Thus  the  characters  of  my  conventional 
alphabet,  and  other  characters,  are  at  pleasure  made  upon  the 
prepared  material. 

I  consider  the  discoloring  process  better  than  the  bleaching 
process :  and  for  the  discoloring  process,  I  consider  the  iodide 
of  potassium  in  solution,  as  the  best  of  the  substances  I  have 
mentioned  "for  the  preparation  of  the  cloth,  paper,  or  other  ma- 
terial. I  wish  it  to  be  understood,  that  I  do  not  confine  myself 
to  the  use  of  the  substances  I  have  mentioned,  but  mean 
to  comprehend  the  use  of  any  known  substance  already  proved 
to  be  easily  decomposed  by  the  electric  current. 

Claims.* — What  I  claim  as  of  my  own  invention  and  im- 
provement, and  desire  to  secure  by  letters  patent : 

1st.  The  use  of  the  single  circuit  of  conductors  for  the  mark- 
ing of  my  telegraphic  signs  already  patented,  for  numerals, 
letters,  words,  or  sentences,  by  means  of  the  decomposing, 
coloring,  or  bleaching  effects  of  electricity,  acting  upon  any 
known  salts  that  leave  a  mark  as  the  result  of  the  said  de- 
composition, upon  paper,  cloth,  metal,  or  other  convenient  and 
known  markable  material. 

2d.  I  also  claim  the  combination  of  machinery  as  herein 
substantially  described,  by  which  any  two  metallic  points  or 
other  known  conducting  substances,  broken  parts  of  an  electric 
or  galvanic  circuit,  having  the  chemically  prepared  material  in 
contact  with  and  between  them,  may  be  used  for  the  purpose 
of  marking  my  telegraphic  characters  already  patented  in  let- 
ters patent,  dated  the  20th  June,  1840 ;  in  the  first  issue  25th 
January,  1846 ;  and  second  re-issue,  13th  June,  1848. 

24 


370  THE  ELECTRO-CHEMICAL  TELEGRAPH. 


Messrs.  Charles  Westbrook  and  Henry  J.  Rogers,  of  the  city 
of  Baltimore,  were'  extensively  engaged  in  the  chemical  tele- 
graph lines,  and  in  their  daily  labors,  they  invented  a  very  im- 
portant improvement.  The  stylus,  made  of  asbestus  or  other 
substances,  is  brought  into  contact  with  the  brass  disk,  as  seen 
in  fig.  1.  On  passing  the  current  through  the  stylus,  a  clear 
and  distinct  mark  is  made  upon  the  brass  plate.  This  mark 
can  be  removed  by  rubbing  the  face  of  the  disk.  They  also 
devised  the  plan  of  using  a  fountain  pen  and  other  modes,  to 
avoid  the  use  of  the  chemically  moistened  paper. 

As  a  practical  telegraph,  there  can  be  no  doubt  but  what 
the  invention  of  Messrs.  Westbrook  and  Rogers  would  prove 
eminently  useful,  and  subserve  completely  the  purposes  in- 
tended. The  dot  and  dash  alphabet  was  employed. 

In  order  that  the  reader  may  have-  a  fuller  description  of  this 
important  improvement  in  telegraphing,  I  extract  the  following 
from  the  letters  patent  granted  by  the  government  of  the  United 
States  to  Messrs.  "Westbrook  and  Rogers : 

The  nature  of  our  invention  consists  in  recording  telegraphic 
signs  on  a  metallic  surface,  connected  with  the  earth  by  a  wire 
conductor  at  one  end,  and  to  a  galvanic  battery  arid  the  earth 
at  the  other  end  of  the  circuit,  by  the  use  of  the  acidulated 
water  or  other  fluid  interposed  between  the  point  of  the  usual 
wire  conductor,  leading  from  the  operating  apparatus,  connect- 
ed with  a  galvanic  battery  of  the  ordinary  construction  and  the 
metallic  surface,  by  which  the  use  of  paper  is  dispensed  with  ; 
time  also  being  saved  in  not  having  to  moisten  the  chemically 
prepared  paper,  when  it  becomes  too  dry  for  use,  and  in  having 
the  telegraphic  signs  more  clear  and  distinct  on  the  metallic 
surface  than  on  the  paper,  and  in  avoiding  the  inconvenience 
arising  from  the  fumes  from  the  chemicals  employed  in  pre- 
paring the  paper,  and  evils  arising  from  the  corrosion  of  instru- 
ments, and  annoyance  to  the  operators  in  preparing  and  using 
chemical  paper,  and  other  inconveniences. 

The  metallic  recording  surface,  after  being  filled  and  trans- 
ferred, is  simply  cleaned,  by  the  application  of  a  sponge,  or 
other  soft  substance,  saturated  with  acidulated  water. 

Description. — A  is  the  pen,  made  tubular,  of  some  non-con- 
ducting substance,  such  as  glass  or  ivory,  open  at  both  ends, 
and  made  tapering  at  its  lower  end,  for  containing  a  piece  of 
sponge  or  other  porous  substance,  through  which  the  acidulated 
water,  or  other  fluid  passes  to  the  metallic  surface,  on  which  the 
telegraphic  signs  .are  to  be  made — the  bore  of  the  pen  being 


TELEGRAPH.  371 

sufficiently  large  to  contain  the  requisite  quantity  of  acidulated 
fluid.  By  reducing  the  outlet  at  the  tapered  end  of  the  pen, 
the  sponge  or  porous  valve  maybe  dispensed  with.  A  very  small 
barrel  valve  might  be  used  to  regulate  the  flow  of  the  fluid, 
instead  of  the  porous  substance. 

b  is  a  short  conducting  wire,  connected  with  the  metallic 
stand  c,  or  pen-holder  d,  and  leading  into  the  barrel  of  the  pen 
a,  and  brought  into  immediate  contact  with  the  acidulated 
fluid  in  the  pen — thus  continuing  the  conducting  line  to  the 
surface  of  the  metallic  cylinder  or  plate,  so  that  the  current 
from  the  galvanic  battery  can  be  made  to  pass  from  the  metallic 
conductor  through  the  acidulated  fluid  or  saline  solution,  to  the 
metallic  surface  of  the  plate  or  cylinder  upon  which  the  signs 
or  marks  are  to  be  made,  e  is  the  binding  screw  for  securing 
the  main  wire ;  /  is  the  main  wire  connecting  the  receiving 
and  transmitting  stations ;  g  is  the  fulcrum  of  the  manipulator ; 
h  is  the  manipulator ;  i  is  the  anvil  of  the  manipulator  ; — k 
platina  pole  of  a  galvanic  battery  ; — I  is  the  zinc  pole  of  the 
battery,  connected  by  a  wire  with  the  ground  plate  m  at  the 
transmitting  station  ; — n  is  also  a  ground  plate,  connected  with 
the  binding  screw  e,  at  the  receiving  station. 

g  is  a  horizontal  stationary  screw-shaft,  upon  which  the 
cylinder  moves  to  the  right,  by  means  of  a  chaser  (s),  fixed  to 
the  end  of  the  cylinder,  and  revolving  with  the  cylinder  in  con- 
tact with  the  spiral  thread  of  said  screw.  The  cylinder  may 
be  made  to  move  to  the  right  and  to  the  left,  over  the  shaft, 
simultaneously  with  its  rotary  motion,  by  forming  a  female 
screw  through  its  centre,  corresponding  with  the  screw  shaft. 
The  rotary  motion  of  the  cylinder  may  be  produced  by  ordinary 
clock  machinery,  or  by  a  coiled  spring,  pulley,  cord,  and  weight,' 
or  by  any  convenient  means.  The  cylinder  having  the  com- 
bined rotary  and  longitudinal  movement,  as  aforesaid,  will 
cause  the  telegraphic  signs  to  be  recorded  on  the  surface  of  the 
cylinder  or  plate,  in  a  continuous  spiral  line,  in  the  same  man- 
ner that  we  have  practised  for  some  time  past. 

Operation. — Bear  down  the  long  arm  of  the  key,  lever, 
or  manipulator  A,  so  that  the  point  comes  in  contact  with  the 
anvil  4,  the  current  will  instantly  pass  from  the  platina  pole  k 
of  the  battery,  through  the  conducting  wire  and  acidulated 
solution  contained  in  the  pen,  to  the  surface  of  the  cylinder  (c) 
or  plate  (p),  thence  to  the  ground  plates  m  and  n,  the  earth 
being  part  of  the  circuit,  and  by  the  wire  to  /,  the  zinc  pole  of 
the  battery,  leaving  a  black  mark  or  stain  on  the  cylinder  or 
plate,  according  to  the  length  of  time  the  circuit  is  closed,- 


372  THE    ELECTRO-CHEMICAL    TELEGRAPH. 

indicating  the  sign,  mark,  word,  or  sentence  required  to  be 
recorded. 

Having  thus described  the  nature  of  our  invention 

and  improvement  in  telegraphs, 

"What  we  claim  and  desire  to  have  secured  to  us  by  letters 
patent  is,  recording  telegraphic  signs  on  the  surface  of  a  re- 
volving metallic  cylinder  plate,  or  other  equivalent  surface,  by 
means  of  an  acidulated  liquid,  or  saline  solution,  of  water  held 
between  the  point  of  the  wire  conductor  and  the  metallic  re- 
cording surface,  by  means  of  a  non-conducting  porous  substance 
contained  in  a  glass,  or  other  non-conducting  reservoir,  in  which 
the  recording  fluid  is  contained,  to  which  the  electric  current  from 
a  battery  is  applied,  by  means  of  any  of  the  known  forms  of 
manipulators,  and  anvils  used  for  making  and  breaking  the 
circuit — the  recording  fluid  being  applied  to  the  metallic  re- 
cording surface,  substantially  in  the  manner  herein  fully  set 
forth,  by  which  the  use  of  every  description  of  paper  is  dispens- 
ed with,  thereby  saving  great  expense  in  telegraphing. 


FROMENT'S  ALPHABETICAL  AND 
WRITING  TELEGRAPHS, 


CHAPTER    XXVIII. 

Alphabetical  Apparatus  and  Manipulation. — The  Writing  Apparatus. 
THE  ALPHABETICAL  APPARATUS  AND  MANIPULATION. 

THE  alphabetical  telegraph  devised  by  M.  Froment  is  dis- 
tinguished for  simplicity  and  peculiar  construction  of  its  trans- 
mitter or  manipulating  combination. 

Fig.  1. 


374 


'ROMENT  S    ALPHABETICAL    AND    WRITING    TELEGRAPH. 


Figure  1  represents  the  instrument  as  seen  in  the  station 
ready  for  telegraphing.  It  is  an  elegant  piece  of  apparatus. 
In  external  form  it  resembles  a  small  pianoforte  without  the 
black  keys.  There  are  twenty-eight  keys :  twenty-six  of 
them  representing  letters,  the  twenty-seventh  a  cross,  and  the 
twenty-eighth  an  arrow  ;  by  pressing  down  any  key  its  corre- 
sponding letter  is  shown  on  the  dial,  and  at  the  same  time  on 
the  dial  of  a  similar  apparatus  at  the  distant  station.  Suppose, 
for  example,  the  apparatus  figured  in  the  text  to  be  at  Paris, 
the  current  from  the  battery  enters  the  apparatus  at  b  and 
leaves  it  at  b';  it  proceeds  thence  to  the  distant  station — say 
Rouen — where  it  traverses  and  works  a  precisely  similar 
apparatus. 

The  mechanism  of  the  internal  part  of  the  apparatus  will 
be  understood  from  a  slight  consideration  of  figs.  2  and  3. 


Fig.  2. 


Fig.  3. 


Fig.  2  is  the  manipulator,  or  the  instrument  for  giving  signals ; 
fig.  3  is  the  receiver.  The  current  from  the  battery  enters 
through  A,  fig.  2,  passes  up  the  brass  spring  N,  which  is  in 
contact  with  the  wheel  R,  and  from  this  through  the  second 
notched  spring  M,  out  by  the  wire  B,  and  on  along  the  line 
wire  to  the  telegraph  at  the  distant  station.  There  the  current 
traverses  the  coils  of  an  electro-magnet,  not  seen  in  fig.  2,  but 
exhibited  separately  in  fig.  4.  This  electro-magnet  is  fixed 
horizontally  at  one  extremity,  the  other  being  left  free  to 
operate  on  the  soft  iron  armature  a,  which  forms  part  of  a  bent 
lever,  moveable  round  the  pin  c  ;  the  lever  is  restored  to  a  verti- 
cal position  when  the  electro-magnet  is  no  longer  active  by  the 
action  of  the  spring  r. 

The  moment  the  electric  current  traverses  the  coils  of  the 
electro-magnet,  the  lever  at  c  is  attracted,  and  the  motion  is 


ALPHABETICAL    APPARATUS    AND    MANIPULATION.  375 

imparted  to  a  second  lever  c?,  through  the  Fig.  4. 

shank  i.  This  second  lever  is  fixed  on  a 
horizontal  axis,  and  is  united  to  the  fork 
F.  When  the  current  is  interrupted  the 
spring  pulls  back  the  lever,  and  thus  a 
step  by  step  movement  is  given  to  the 
fork,  which  it  transmits  to  the  wheel  G 
carrying  the  index. 

The  manner  in  which  the  battery 
current  is  interrupted  and  renewed  will 
be  understood  by  referring  to  fig.  2. 
The  wheel  R  carries  twenty-six  teeth ; 
on  turning  it  by  the  button  p  while1 
the  plate  N  is,  from  its  curved  form,  in  constant  contact  with  the 
teeth,  the  plate  M,  being  crooked,  has  its  contacts  broken  and 
renewed  every  time  it  passes  over  a  tooth  and  at  the  same 
time  the  battery  current  is  thrown  off  and  on.  Suppose  the 
pointer  F  is  advanced  four  letters,  then  the  current  between  N  and 
M  will  be  four  times  made  and  four  times  broken,  and  the  arma- 
ture of  the  electro-magnet  at  the  distant  station  will  be  four  times 
attracted  and  four  times  pulled  back  by  its  spring  ;  but  these  four 
attractions  will  give  four  movements  to  the  wheel  G,  and  the 
pointer  will  pass  over  the  same  number  of  letters  in  the  dial 
of  fig.  3,  the  receiver,  as  in  that  of  fig.  2,  the  manipulator. 
At  the  top  of  the  case  of  the  instrument  is  the  alarum  c,  which 
is  worked  by  a  special  electro-magnet.  Referring  now  to  fig  1, 
will  be  seen  in  front  of  the  apparatus  a  series  of  twenty-eight  ivory 
keys,  the  first  marked  with  a  cross,  the  last  with  an  arrow  ;  and 
the  intermediate  twenty-six  with  the  letters  of  the  alphabet,  the 
first  ten  letters  carrying  also  the  ten  numerals.  Immediately  in 
front  of  the  keys,  on  a  horizontal  platform  of  mahogany,  is  the  dial 
B  and  two  small  metal  pieces,  m  n,  which  are  moveable,  and 
which  by  means  of  a  handle  may  be  brought  into  contact,  m 
with  s  or  r,  and  n  with  q  or  p.  The  dial  B  is  the  verifier ;  its 
index  must  always  .point  to  the  same  letter  as  that  last  signalled ; 
if  it  does  not,  it  shows  that  the  apparatus  is  not  in  proper  work- 
ing order.  When  m  is  in  contact  with  s,  the  apparatus  is  in  a 
condition  to  send  signals  from  Paris  to  Rouen.  When  in  contact 
with  r,  it  is  in  a  condition  to  receive  a  signal  from  Rouen  to 
Paris.  In  like  manner  when  n  is  in  contact  with  #,  the  alarum 
may  be  sounded  at  Rouen ;  when  in  contact  with  jo,  the 
machinery  is  in  a  state  to  receive  a  notice  forwarded  from 
Rouen. 

As  this  apparatus  is  regarded  of  much  importance,  I  will  be 
more  specific  in  its  description  than  can  be  found  elsewhere. 


3T6 


FROMENT  S  ALPHABETICAL    AND    WRITING    TELEGRAPH. 


If  the  reader  will  carefully  study  the  following  descriptions 
and  diagrams,  he  will  not  fail  to  comprehend  the  construction 
and  manipulation  of  this  beautiful  system  of  telegraphing. 

Fig.  5. 


Fig.  5  represents  an  outline  view  of  the  front  of  the  appara- 
tus, as  more  fully  shown  by  fig.  1.  The  key-board  is  indicated 
by  T  T. 

Fig.  6. 


P   0 


Fig.  6  shows  a  full  view  of  the  key-board  T  T,  with  the  let- 
ters and  numerals  marked  on  the  keys  respectively.  The  key- 
boards, represented  by  figs.  5  and  6,  are  arranged  different 
from  the  key-board  of  fig.  1.  The  two  styles  of  instruments 
are  used.  Fig.  1  is  more  modern  ;  but  the  arrangement  shown 
in  figs.  5  and  6  are  also  in  operation.  Operators  exercise  their 
own  convenience  in  the  use  of  the  one  or  the  other. 


ALPHABETICAL    APPARATUS    AND    MANIPULATION. 

Fig.  7.  Fig.  8. 


377 


Fig.  9. 


TT 


Fig.  7  represents  an  end  view  of  fig.  1,  and  fig.  8  represents 
a  section  of  the  key-board  T  T,  and  the  arrangement  for  the 
action  of  the  keys.  B  is  an  elongated  bar,  and  R  is  a  wheel 
with  a  ratchet. 

Fig.  9  represents  a  section  of  the  key-board,  as  seen  from 
above.  T  T  are  the  keys ;  B  a  bar 
traversing  beneath  the  keys,  as  seen 
by  the  dotted  lines,  disengages  the 
ratchet  from  the  wheel  R,  and  the 
releasement  permits  the  arbor  A  to 
turn,  until  the  pin  answering  to  the 
key  pressed,  z  z  z  are  pins  upon 
the  arbor  A,  as  seen  in  the  figure, 
c  c  is  a  centre,  around  which  moves 
the  keys,  which  bear  at  their  middle 
a  stop  pallet  s,  the  use  of  which  will 
be  hereafter  explained. 

Fig.  10  is  an  end  view  of  fig.  9,  and  shows  the  pallet  s,  the 
keys  T  T,  the  centre  c,  the  pins  z  z,  the  bar  B,  and  the 
arbor  A. 

Fig.  11  is  another  end  view  of  fig.  9,  having  thereon  the 
wheel  R,  and  the  ratchet  attached  to  the  arbor  A.  The  arbor 
A,  which  is  a  horizontal  bar,  capable  of  being  moved  downward 
parallel  to  itself,  is  stopped  in  its  movement  by  the  ratchet, 
which  engages  in  the  wheel  R.  Whenever  a  key  is  touched, 
the  bar  A  is  lowered,  and  it  rises  when  the  finger  is  withdrawn. 
It  is  made  to  turn  by  means  of  a  clock  movement. 

Another  key  may  be  pressed  down,  and  there  will  be  pro- 
duced a  similar  effect,  and  the  arbor  A  is  permitted  to  turn 


378       FROMENT'S  ALPHABETICAL  AND  WRITING  TELEGRAPH. 

Fig.  10. 


through  an  angle  proportional  to  the  length  of  the  helix  com- 
prised between  the  two  keys,  which  have  successively  stopped 
the  movement. 

Fig.  11, 


In  this,  way,  if  the  arbor  A  bears  an  electric  interrupter,  or 
circuit-breaker,  which  opens  and  closes  the  circuit  every  time 
that  a  tooth  of  the  ratchet-wheel  passes,  the  effect  produced  by 
this  mechanism  upon  an  electrical  current,  will  be  identical  to 
that  produced  by  the  rotation  of  a  telegraphic  dial,  having  as 
many  signals  as  there  are  keys  in  this  apparatus,  but  with  very 
perceptible  advantages. 

The  rotations  of  the  arbor  A  being  uniform,  are  regulated  ac- 
cording to  the  greatest  velocity  that  the  receiving  apparatus  is 
capable  of  executing.  When  a  uniformity  is  once  established, 
between  the  transmitting  and  the  receiving  apparatus,  it  will 
continue  indefinitely  to  exist,  independent  of  any  irregularity 
in  touching  the  keys ;  provided,  of  course,  that  the  needle  is 
allowed  time  to  pass  over  the  divisions  of  the  dial,  and  this  time 


WRITING    TELEGRAPH    APPARATUS. 


379 


is  extremely  short,  as  the  uniformity  of  movement  permits  of 
regularity  for  the  greatest  mean  velocity  of  the  receiving  ap- 
paratus. 

From  these  facts,  it  will  be  seen  that  any  one  knowing  how 
to  read,  can  transmit  at  first  sight  with  this  instrument  a  dis- 
patch without  an  error  resulting  from  the  apparatus. 

The  clockwork  of  this  instrument  is  wound  up  from  time  to 
time  in  the  usual  manner  ;  but  in  addition  to  the  care  necessary 
to  be  observed  in  winding,  the  following  mechanism  has  been 
attached.  A  fine-toothed  ratchet  wheel,  fitted  to  the  clock 
movement,  and  moved  by  a  ratchet  set  in  motion  every  time 
that  the  bar  B  is  lowered,  gradually  winds  up  the  spring  of  the 
clockwork,  at  a  rate  which  has  been  found  to  be  a  little  more 
rapid  than  the  unwinding  process  of  the  clock  movement. 
When  the  spring  is  wound  up  entirely,  the  ratchet  ceases  to  act, 
because  it  is  turned  aside  by  a  lever  arranged  for  that  purpose. 

WRITING  TELEGRAPH  APPARATUS. 

Mr.  Froment  also  devised  a  printing  telegraph,  not  employing 
the  ordinary  Roman  letter,  but  signal  letters.  These  letters 
were  made  by  means  of  a  pencil  adjusted  in  mechanism,  so  that 

Fig.  12. 


as  the  apparatus  was  put  in  motion  by  a  clockwork,  the  pencil 
was  sharpened  and  pressed  upon  the  paper  band,  so  as  to  make 
a  clear  and  distinct  mark.  It  was  arranged  at  the  end  of  the 
rod,  fastened  to  the  armature,  as  seen  in  figs.  12  and  13.  In 
the  three  figures,  12,  13,  and  14,  the  same  letters  indicate  the 
same  parts  of  the  apparatus,  and  the  reader  may  refer  to  ea  ch 
and  to  all  for  an  understanding  of  the  description  herein  given. 


380       FROMENT'S  ALPHABETICAL  AND  WRITING  TELEGRAPH. 


Fig.  13. 


E  E  is  an  electro-magnet,  and  L  is  a  rod  attached  to  the  arma- 
ture, elongated  to  sustain  the  pencil  c.     F  is  the  armature  of 

soft  iron.  Immediately  under 
the  extremities  of  the  armature 
F  are  the  cores  or  the  electro- 
magnets surrounded  by  the 
coils  E  E.  c  is  the  pencil  writ- 
ing on  the  ribbon  paper  B  ;  R  is 
a  ratchet- wheel,  which  turns  the 
pencil  on  its  axis  ;  c'  is  the  cyl- 
inder upon  which  the  ribbon 
paper  B  is  rolled,  and  c/x  c/x/  are 
cylinders  regulating  the  move- 
ment of  the  ribbon  paper  B. 

The   apparatus   is    made   to 
move  by  clockwork. 

The  practical  operation  of  this 
apparatus  is  as  follows :  When  the  current  is  on  the  line,  the 
electro-magnet  attracts  the  armature,  which  causes  the  pencil 
to  make  a  mark  across  the  ribbon  paper  B  ;  and  as  the  paper 

Fig.  14. 


is  in  motion,  the  mark  will  be  made  at  an  angle  in  proportion 
to  the  speed  of  the  paper  passing  over  the  cylinder  c'.  When 
the  circuit  is  broken,  the  pencil  will  make  a  mark  back  to  its 
normal  position,  regulated  by  a  spring.  A  movement  forward 
and  another  backward  will  make  the  letter  V.  If  the  manipula- 
tion is  continued,  by  opening  and  closing  the  electric  circuit, 
or  by  transmission  or  non-transmission  of  the  voltaic  current, 
the  writing  executed  by  the  pencil  will  be  as  follows,  viz. : 


WRITING    TELEGRAPH    APPARATUS. 


381 


215  36  2  5  8 

These  points  may  indicate  letters  or  numerals  to  be  com- 
pounded and  explained  by  a  vocabulary.  Thus,  215 — 36 — 2 
— 58,  may  mean, 

215  36  2  58. 

Froment's         Practical         Printing         Telegraph. 

The  writing  thus  produced  is  clear,  and  easily  to  be  read. 
The  apparatus  is  simple,  and  not  liable  to  get  out  of  order. 
Fig.  15  gives  a  perspective  view  of  the  same.  A  is  the  frame 
Upon  which  the  parts  are  fastened  ;  B  is  the  bell  apparatus  and 

Fig.  15. 


c  is  the  bell ;  h  is  the  clockwork,  a  b  is  the  armature  and  pen 
lever,  and  c  is  the  roller,  upon  which  is  fixed  the  paper.  The 
current  passes  through  the  electro-magnet,  attracts  the  arma- 
ture, and  thus  motion  is  given  to  the  pen  point,  which,  being 
on  the  paper,  the  marks  are  produced. 


VAIL'S  PRINTING  TELEGRAPH. 


CHAPTER   XXIX. 

Description  of  the  Telegraph  Apparatus — Manipulation  and  Celerity  of  Com. 
municating — Arrangement  of  the  Alphabet. 

DESCRIPTION    OF    THE    TELEGRAPH    APPARATUS. 

IN  September,  1837,  Mr.  Alfred  Yail,  of  the  United  States, 
invented  a  printing  telegraph.  The  following  is  his  description 
of  the  apparatus : 

Fig.  1  represents  a  front  and  side  view  of  the  instrument ; 
fig.  4  is  a  top  view  ;  fig.  5  is  a  back  view.  The  same  parts  are 
represented  by  the  same  letters  in  the  three  views.  In  fig.  1, 
Q  Q  is  the  platform  upon  which  the  whole  instrument  is  placed. 
M  and  M  are  wooden  blocks  supporting  parts  of  the  instrument. 
K  is  the  helix,  the  soft  iron  bar  H  passing  through  its  centre, 
and  there  is  another. coil  and.  bar  directly  behind  this ;  the  two 
making  the  electro-magnet.  G  is  its  armature  fastened  to  the 
lever  F  F,  which  has  its  axis  at  i,  seen  in  fig.  4,  at  x  x.  R  is  a 
brass  standard  for  supporting  the  lever  F  upon  its  axis,  by  means 
of  two  pivot-screws ;  a  and  a  are  two  screws  passing  vertically 
through  the  standard  R,  for  limiting  the  motion  of  the  lever  F  F 
j  is  a  spiral  spring,  at  its  upper  end,  fastened  to  the  lever  F, 
and  at  its  lower  end  passes  through  the  screw  L,  by  which  it  is 
adjusted  so  as  to  draw  the  armature  from  the  magnet,  after  it 
has  ceased  to  attract,  and  for  other  purposes,  hereafter  to  be 
explained.  N  o  is  a  brass  frame,  containing  the  type- wheel 
&  and  the  pulley  E  u.  p  and  p  represent  the  edge  of  a  nar- 
row strip  of  paper,  passing  between  the  type-weel  and  pulley  E. 
j>  is  the  printer,  which,  at  the  bottom,  forms  a  joint  with  the  end 
of  the  lever  F  and  r.  B  represents  twenty-four  metallic  pins,  or 
springs,  projecting  at  right  angles  from  the  side  of  the  type- wheel ; 
each  pin  corresponding  in  its  distance  from  the  centre  of  the 
type- wheel  to  its  respective  hole,  represented  by  dots  upon  the 
index  c  ;  so  that,  if  the  pin  is  put  in  any  one  of  the  holes,  the 

382 


THE    TELEGRAPH   APPARATUS. 


383 


type- wheel,  in  its  revolution,  will  bring  its  corresponding  pin 
in  contact  with  it. 

There  are  24  holes,  corresponding  to  the  following  letters  of 
the  alphabet :  ABCDEFGHIKLMNOPQRSTUVWX,  and 

Fig.  1. 


the  types  are  lettered  accordingly.  The  cog-wheels,  T  and  s, 
are  a  part  of  the  train  of  the  clock.  The  lever  F  F  has  two  mo- 
tions, one  up  and  another  down,  and  both  are  employed  by  an 
attachment  at  the  end  of  the  lever  r,  and  in  the  following  man- 
ner :  figs.  2  and  3  represent  a  front  and  end  view  of  the  roller 
E  and  printer  D,  enlarged.  D  is  the  printer,  fig.  2,  of  the  form 
shown  by  D,  fig.  3.  E  is  the  roller  over  which  the  paper 


384 


VAII/S    PRINTING    TELEGRAPH. 


p  is  carried.  A  is  the  front  of  the  type,  having  ears,  h  h,  pro- 
jecting from  each  side.  Through  the  sides  of  the  printer  i>  D,  a 
rod,  u,  passes,  in  order  to  give  more  firmness  to  the  frame. 
The  rod  projects  a  little  on  each  side  of  the  frame  at  j  j.  These 
projections  slide  in  a  long  groove  in  the  frames  N  and  o,  fig.  1, 
by  which  the  printer  is  kept  in  its  position,  and  allowed  freely 
to  move  up  and  down.  It  will  be  observed  that  the  upper  parts 
of  the  frame  D  D  extends  over  the  top  of  the  roller  E,  and  nearly 
touch  each  other,  but  are  so  far  separated,  as  to  let  the  type  A, 


Fig.  2. 


Fig.  3. 


of  the  type-wheel,  in  its  revolution,  freely  pass  between  them  ; 
d'  df  are  the  sides  of  the  joint,  which  are  connected  with  the 
lever  F,  fig.  1.  From  the  construction  of  this  part,  it  will  appear 
that,  if  the  printer  D  is  brought  down  by  the  action  of  the  mag- 
net upon  the  lever,  the  two  projections,  k  &,  will  come  in  con- 
tact with  the  ears  h  h,  and  bring  the  type  in  contact  with  the 
paper  upon  the  roller  E,  and  produce  an  impression.  In  fig.  3 
is  shown  a  ratchet-wheel  *,  on  the  end  of  the  roller  E,  a  catch  e, 
and  spring  c7,  adapted  to  the  rachet.  Upon  the  release  of  the 
lever  F,  fig.  1,  the  spring  j  will  carry  down  the  lever  on  that 
side  of  its  axis,  and  up  at  r,  which  will  cause  the  roller  E  to 
turn,  and  consequently  the  paper  p  to  advance  so  much  by  the 
action  of  the  catch  e  upon  the  ratchet-wheel,  as  will  be  suffi- 
cient for  printing  the  next  letter. 

Fig.  4  represents  a  top  view  of  the  machine  :  s  is  the  barrel 
upon  which  is  wound  a  cord,  sustaining  a  weight  which  drives 
the  clock-train,  and  upon  the  same  shaft  with  it  is  a  cog-wheel 
driving  the  pinion  m  on  the  shaft  T  ;  and  on  the  same  shaft  T 
is  another  cog-wheel,  driving  the  pinion  n  of  the  type-wheel 
shaft  ix.  K  and  K  are  the  helices  of  the  large  magnet,  of  which 
H  and  H  are  the  soft  iron  arms.  M  M  M  M  are  the  blocks  which 
support  the  instrument.  F  F  is  the  lever,  a  and  a  its  ad- 


THE    TELEGRAPH    APPARATUS, 


'385 


justing  screws ;  x/  and  x'  its  axis ;  k  and  k  are  the  two  upper 
coils  of  the  two  electro-magnets  at  the  back  part  of  the  instru- 
ment for  purposes  hereafter  to  be  described;  x  is  the  wire 
soldered  to  the  plate  buried  in  the  ground ;  p  is  the  wire  pro- 
ceeding to  the  battery ;  c  is  the  connecting  wire  of  the  two 

Fig.  4. 


electro-magnets,  k  k  ;  w  is  the  support  of  the  pendulum  ;  v  is 
the  escapement- wheel ;  A  is  the  type- wheel ;  D  D  is  the  printer, 
and  B  the  roller  over  which  the  paper  p  is  carried. 

Fig.  5  represents  a  back  view  of  the  instrument ;  k  k  and  k  k 
are  the  coils  of  two  electro-magnets,  surrounding  the  soft  iron 
bars  d  d  and  d  d  ;  b  and  b  are  the  flat  bars  through  which  d  d 
and  d  d  pass,  and  are  fastened  together  by  the  screw  nuts  c  c 
and  c  c.  The  right  hand  electro-maguet  is  fastened  to  the  blocks 

25 


386 


VAII/S    PRINTING    TELEGRAPH. 


M  and  M,  by  the  support  /and/,  from  which  proceeds  a  bolt  pass- 
ing between  the  coils  k  and  k,  and  the  block  h,  with  a  thumb- 
nut  upon  it,  by  which  the  whole  is  permanently  secured.  In 
the  same  manner  the  left-hand  magnet  is  secured  to  the  block 

Fig.  5. 


M.  RX  is  the  outside  portion  of  the  brass  frame  containing  the 
clockwork,  w  is  a  standard  fastened  to  R',  for  supporting  the 
pendulum  Y.  xv  and  I  are  parts  common  to  a  chronometer 
for  measuring  the  time,  viz.,  the  escapement  and  pendulum. 
The  escapement- wheel  has  24  teeth,  corresponding  in  number 
with  the  type  on  the  wheel,  and  such  is  the  arrangement  of  the 
parts,  that  when  the  pendulum  is  upon  the  point  of  return, 


THE    TELEGRAPH    APPARATUS.  387 

either  on  the  right  or  left  hand,  a  type  is  directly  over  the  paper, 
and  the  armature  g  is  near  the  face  of  one  or  the  other  of  the 
magnets  ;  so  that,  if  an  impression  is  to  be  made  with  the  type 
thus  brought  to  the  paper,  the  pendulum  y  is  ready  to  be  held 
by  the  magnet  at  the  same  time  from  making  another  swing, 
until  the  type  has  performed  its  office,  which  will  be  hereafter 
explained . 

A  shows  the  type  as  they  are  arranged  on  the  wheel.  The 
types  are  square,  and  move  freely  in  a  groove  cut  out  of  the 
brass  type-wheel.  At  1  and  2  are  seen  flat  brass  rings,  which 
are  screwed  to  the  wheel,  and  over  the  types,  confining  them 
to  their  proper  places,  z  is  a  spiral  spring,  of  which  there  is 
one  to  each  type,  by  means  of  which  the  type  is  brought  back 
to  its  former  position,  after  it  is  released  by  the  printer. 
Through  each  type  there  is  a  pin,  against  which  the  inner  end 
of  the  spiral  spring  rests.  The  outer  end  of  the  spring  rests 
against  the  circular  plate,  w  represents  the  wire  from  the 
'  upper  helix,  soldered  to  the  metallic  frame  R'.  The  two  helices 
of  the  left-hand  magnet  are  joined  together,  and  from  the  bottom 
helix  the  wire  proceeds  to  the  lower  coil  of  the  right-hand 
magnet.  •  These  two  helices  are  likewise  connected,  and  the  wire 
leaves  the  upper  coil  at  x.  Thus  the  wire  is  continuous  from 
w  to  x.  From  x  the  wire  is  continued  to  a  copper  plate  buried 
in  the  earth.  The  frame  R',  being  brass,  the  arbor  of  the  type- 
wheel  and  the  wheel  itself,  and  each  being  in  metallic  contact, 
they  answer  as  a  continuous  conductor  with  tho  wire  w,  for  the 
galvanic  fluid. 

The  index  c,  fig  1,  is  insulated  from  the  frame  N,  being  made 
of  ivory.  There  is  inserted  in  the  ivory  a  metal  plate,  contain- 
ing the  holes,  to  which  is  soldered  a  wire  #,  connected  with  the 
back  coil  K.  The  two  helices  being  connected,  the  wire  of  the 
front  helix  comes  off  at  p,  and  thence  is  connected  with 
one  pole  of  the  battery ;  from  the  other  pole  it  is  extended  to 
the  distant  station,  and  is  there  connected  with  a  similar  in- 
strument. It  will  be  observed  that  the  circuit  is  continuous, 
except  between  the  type-wheel  and  the  metal  plate  in  the  ivory. 
When  neither  station  is  at  work,  the  batteries  of  both  are 
thrown  out,  and  their  circuits,  retaining  in  them  the  magnets 
of  both  stations,  are  closed.  For  this  purpose,  there  is  an  in- 
strument at  each  station,  resembling  in  some  respects  a  pole- 
changer.  If  one  of  the  stations  wish  to  transmit  by  reversing 
his  circuit  instruments,  the  battery  is  instantly  brought  into 
the  circuit.  Through  the  agency  of  the  clock-work  and  weight, 
and  the  pendulum,  both  instruments  are  vibrating  together,  and 
their  type-wheels  are  so  adjusted,  that  when  a  type  of  one  sta- 


388  VAIL'S  PRINTING  TELEGRAPH. 

tion  is  vertical,  the  A  type  of  the  other  station  is  also  vertical. 
Now,  suppose  one  station  wishes  to  transmit  to  the  other,  the 
word  Boston,  for  example;  he  first  brings  his  battery  in  the 
circuit,  then  places  a  metallic  pin  in  the  hole  of  his  index,  c, 
marked  for  the  letter  B.  When  the  type-wheel  shall  have 
brought  round  the  pin  corresponding  to  the  type  B  on  the  wheel, 
its  pin  will  come  in  contact  with  the  inserted  pin  of  the  index, 
and  instantly  the  circuit  is  established.  The  fluid,  passing 
through  the  coils  of  the  magnets,  on  each  side  of  the  pendulum, 
will  hold  it,  and  also  passing  through  the  coils  K,  will  bring 
down  the  lever  p  F,  and  with  it  the  printer  D,  which,  as  here- 
tofore described  in  figs.  2  and  3,  will  bring  the  type  with  con- 
siderable force  against  the  paper.  The  instant  the  two  pins  have 
come  in  contact  with  the  moving-pin,  it  is  taken  out  and  put 
in  the  hole  o,  when  the  same  operation  is  performed,  and  in  like 
manner  for  the  remaining  letters  of  the  word.  The  pin  can  be 
so  arranged,  as  to  be  thrown  out  the  instant  a  complete  contact 
is  made. 

MANIPULATION    AND    CELERITY    OF    COMMUNICATING. 

The  rapidity  of  this  printing  process  would  be  as  follows : 
Suppose  the  pendulum  makes  two  vibrations  in  a  second,  that 
is,  it  goes  from  right  to  left  in  half  a  second,  and  returns  in  half 
a  second.  Since,  then,  a  single  letter  is  brought  to  the  vertical 
position,  ready  to  be  used  if  needed,  at  the  end  of  each  vibra- 
tion, it  is  clear  that  the  two  letters  are  brought  to  the  vertical 
position  every  second,  or  120  every  minute.  This  is  not,  how- 
ever, the  actual  rate  of  printing ;  for,  in  the  word  Boston,  the 
type- wheel,  after  B  is  printed  upon  the  paper,  must  make  so 
much  of  a  revolution  as  will  bring  the  letter  o  to  the  paper. 
This  will  require  12  vibrations  of  the  pendulum  ;  s  \7ill  require 
4 ;  T  1,  o  18,  and  N  22 ;  equal  to  57,  to  which  add  6,  the  time 
required  to  print  each  letter,  will  make  it  63.  This,  divided  by 
2,  gives  31^  seconds,  the  time  necessary  to  print  6  letters.  If 
we  now  take  an  ordinary  sentence,  and  estimate  in  the  same 
manner  the  time  required  to  print  it  at  the  distant  station,  we 
shall  be  able  to  find  what  number  of  letters  it  can  print  per 
minute.  As  an  example,  viz.  : 

"  There  will  be  a  declaration  of  war  in  a  few  days,  by  this 
government,  against  the  United  States.  Orders  have  just  been 
received  to  have  all  the  public  archives  removed  to  Jalapa. 
which  is  60  miles  in  the  interior,  for  safekeeping." 

Here  are  184  letters,  and  would  require  2,266  vibrations,  to 
which  add  184,  the  number  of  letters,  would  give  2,450  half 
seconds,  equal  to  1,225  seconds,  the  time  required  for  printing 


ARRANGEMENT    OF    THE    ALPHABET.  389 

the  message  ;  or  over  20  minutes  ;  the  rate  Being  six  and  two 
thirds  seconds  for  each  letter. 

If,  however,  a  vocabulary  is  used,  with  the  words  numbered, 
and  instead  of  using  the  26  letters  of  the  alphabet  on  the  type- 
wheel,  we  substitute  the  10  numerals,  in  their  place,  we 
reduce  the  time  required  for  a  revolution  of  the  wheel,  and  it 
is  clear  that  this  same  message  may  be  transmitted  in  much 
less  time. 

The  following  numbers  represent  the  words  of  the  same  mes- 
sage, in  the  numbered  vocabulary:  48687,  54717,4165,  1, 
12185,  34162,  54078,  25393,  1,  18952,  11934,  6177,  48766, 
21950,  1106,  48652,  51779, 46532,  34475, 22991,  28536,  4321, 
40254,  49085, 22991, 1391,  48652,  39087,  3845, 41278,  49085, 
28536,  54536,  28668,  45008,  31634,  25393,  48652,  27326, 
19865,  42813,  28592.  Here  are  42  numbers  and  196  fig- 
ures. To  196  add  42,  the  spaces  required,  and  we  have  238 
impressions  to  make,  to  write  the  sentence  thus  represented. 
By  calculation,  we  find  there  is  required,  in  order  to  bring  each 
numeral  and  space  in  its  proper  succession  to  the  vertical  posi- 
tion, 1627  vibrations  of  the  pendulum,  which,  at  the  rate  of  two 
to  the  second,  gives  the  time  required  to  transmit  the  message 
at  812  seconds,  or  nearly  13  minutes,  being  at  the  rate  of  18^- 
letters  per  minute. 

If,  however,  the  vibrations  of  the  pendulum  are  increased  at 
the  rate  of  4  in  a  second,  then  the  time  required  for  the  trans- 
mission of  the  message  would  be  almost  7  minutes,  and  at  the 
rate  of  36f  letters  per  minute.  If  it  be  increased  to  6  vibrations 
per  second,  then  the  time  would  be  4-^  minutes,  and  at  the  rate 
of  55  impressions  per  minute. 

ARRANGEMENT    OF    THE    ALPHABET. 

The  modes  of  using  the  English  letter  for  recording  telegraphic 
messages  are  various.  Among  them  are  those  using  26  types, 
one  for  each  of  the  letters  of  the  alphabet,  and  13  extended 
wires,  from  station  to  station,  with  more  or  less  battery.  These 
types  are  arranged  in  a  row,  directly  over  the  paper  which  re- 
ceives the  impression,  and  consequently  require  a  strip  of  paper 
some  4  or  o  inches  broad.  Each  type  is  furnish  with  an  electro- 
magnet and  lever,  answering  as  a  hammer  to  bring  down  the 
types  upon  the  paper.  As  the  types  are  arranged  in  a  straight 
line,  they  present  the  order  given  on  the  next  page.  In  this  ex- 
ample, we  have  the  style  of  this  kind  of  printing.  By  spelling 
the  letters  on  the  first  line,  then  on  the  second,  and  so  on,  the 
words  "  Printing  Telegraph"  will  be  made  out.  Those  letters 
which  follow  each  other  in  the  word,  and  also  follow  each  other 


390  VAIL'S  PRINTING  TELEGRAPH. 

in  the  alphabet,  are  placed  upon  the  same  line,  but  when  a  letter 
occurs  preceding  the  last,  a  new  line  must  be  taken,  otherwise 
the  word  cannot  be  read,  It  will  appear  that  in  this  mode, 
sometimes  two,  or  three  or  four  letters,  may  be  printed  at  one 
and  the  same  instant,  when  they  succeed  each  other  in  alpha- 
betical order.  This  plan  is  extremely  rapid  for  one  instrument, 
but  extremely  slow  for  thirteen  wires. 

ABCDEFaHIJKLMNOPQ,RSTUVWXYZ 
----        --ill*- 

-      -  -  I        -      N     -      -     T 

.       .    .   I      ;-X  ~"-jf  'V  '  >•'"'.    ' 

-    a  -  -     -    T 

E      -  -  L 

EG-  ,     R 

A  -  •'•-.     P 

H 

Let  it  be  assumed,  in  order  to  make  equal  comparison  through- 
out, that  the  number  of  successive  motions  of  the  type-lever, 
in  these  various  plans  about  to  be  given,  are  4  to  a  second. 
But  as  this  instrument  may  make,  with  two  or  more  of  its 
levers,  two  or  more  impressions  per  minute,  let  it  be  8  instead 
of  4  per  second.  It  will  then  be  capable  of  transmitting  480 
letters  per  minute.  With  all  this  there  are  many  disadvan- 
tages, which  will  be  developed  as  we  proceed. 

Under  the  same  class  there  is  another  plan,  using  the  26 
types  upon  the  ends  of  as  many  levers,  each  lever  employing 
the  electro-magnet,  and  the  line  consisting  of  13  wires.  In  this 
arrangement  the  types  are  made  to  strike  in  any  succession 
required  by  the  message,  at  the  same  point  upon  the  paper, 
falling  back  and  resuming  their  first  position,  after  having 
printed  their  letter,  in  order  to  allow  the  next  type  to  occupy 
the  same  point  previously  occupied  by  the  other.  The  printing 
of  this  plan  will  appear  on  paper  as  ordinary  printing.  Thus, 
PRINTING  TELEGRAPH.  If  we  suppose  that  4  hammers,  carrying 
type,  can  strike  the  same  point  in  a  second,  and  each  resume 
its  original  position  in  succession,  thus  passing  each  other 
without  collision,  it  may  print  at  the  rate  of  240  letters  per 
minute.  The  instrument  would  be  a  complicated  one,  and  sub- 
ject to  derangement. 


THE  HOUSE   PRINTING  TELEGKAPH. 


CHAPTER    XXX. 

Early  History  of  the  House  Telegraph — The  Composing  and  Printing  Appa- 
ratuses— The  Axial  Magnet — The  Air  Valve  and  Piston — The  Manipulation 
—The  Patented  Claim. 

EARLY    HISTORY    OF    THE    HOUSE    TELEGRAPH. 

THE  printing  telegraph  t  invented  and  patented  by  Royal 
E.  House  is  one  of  the  most  remarkable  blendings  of  the  arts 
and  sciences  accomplished  by  the  genius  of  man. 

In  the  perfection  and  introduction  of  his  telegraph,  Mr. 
House  had  to  contend  with  the  most  extraordinary  difficulties. 
Before  him  were  the  earlier  patented  systems,  and  it  required 
wonderful  powers  to  devise  mechanical  contrivances  to  act 
conjunctive  with  the  known  discoveries  in  the  sciences.  He 
obtained  a  patent  from  the  United  States  government  in  1848, 
dated  from  April  18th,  1846.  This  patent,  however,  was 
defective  in  the  protection  of  a  complete  system.  Early  in 
1847,  Mr.  Henry  O'Reilly,  the  indomitable  pioneer  in  tele- 
graphing, became  interested  in  the  House  Printing  Telegraph, 
and  he  rendered  invaluable  aid  in  the  perfection  of  the  appa- 
ratus. This  energetic  and  sterling  telegrapher  furnished  the 
necessary  means  for  new  instruments,  and  had  them  applied 
to  his  line  between  Cincinnati  and  Louisville,  in  the  fall  of 
1847.  The  first  dispatch  ever  transmitted  over  a  telegraph 
line  with  a  printing  system  was  by  Mr.  O'Reilly,  from  Cin- 
cinnati to  JefFersonville,  opposite  Louisville,  150  miles. 

For  a  long  time  the  friends  of  the  House  telegraph  struggled 
against  competing  interests.  Finally,  in  March,  1849,  the 
first  line  using  the  House  system  was  put  in  operation,  from 
Philadelphia  to  New  York.  Under  the  able  and  enterprising 
administration  of  Messrs.  Hiram  Sibly,  Francis  A.  Morris, 
R.  "W.  Russell,  and  others,  the  House  telegraph  was  rapidly 
and  successfully  extended  to  different  parts  of  the  country. 

The  mechanism  of  the  apparatus  operated  with  the  most 

391 


392 


THE  HOUSE  PRINTING  TELEGRAPH. 


perfect  accuracy,  and  many  of  the  instruments  have  operated 
foi  years  with  but  little  repair.  I  have  recently  seen  one  of 
them  that  had  been  used  to  so  great  an  extent,  that  the 
fingers  of  the  operator  had  worn  away  the  ivory  on  the  keys. 

The  main  constituents  of  his  telegraph  are,  the  composing 
machine,  the  printing  machine,  a  compound  axial  magnet,  a 
manual  power  which  sets  the  two  machines  in  motion,  and  a 
letter- wheel  or  tell-tale,  from  which  messages  can  be  read, 
should  the  printing  machine  get  out  of  order. 


THE    COMPOSING    AND    PRINTING    APPARATUS. 

A  composing  and  printing  machine  are  both  required  at 
every  station  ;  the  printing  apparatus  is  entirely  distinct  from 
the  circuit,  but  all  the  composing  machines  are  included  in 
and  form  part  of  it:  the  circuit  commences  in  the  voltaic 

Fig.  1. 


battery  of  one  station,  passes  along  the  conductor  to  another 
station,  through  the  coil  of  the  axial  magnet  to  an  insulated 
iron  frame  of  the  composing  machine,  thence  to  a  circuit 
wheel  revolving  in  this  frame ;  it  then  enters  a  spring  that 
rubs  on  the  edge  of  this  circuit  wheel,  and  has  a  connection 


THE  COMPOSING  AND  PRINTING  APPARATUS 


393 


Fig.  2. 


with  the  return  wire,  along  which  the  electricity  goes 
through  another  battery  back  to  the  station  from  which  it 
started,  to  pursue  the  same  course  through  the  composing 
machine  and  magnet  there,  and  all  others  upon  the  line  ;  thus 
the  circuit  is  confined  to  the  composing  machines,  axial  mag- 
nets, conducting  wires,  and  batteries. 

The  composing  machine,  fig.  1,  is  arranged  within  a 
mahogany  frame  H,  three  feet  in  length,  two  in  width,  and 
six  or  ten  inches  deep;  the  various  parts  of  the  printing 
machine  are  seen  on  the  top  of  the  same  case ;  both  are  pro- 
pelled by  the  same  manual  power,  which  is  distinct  from  the 
electric  current ;  it  is  simply 
a  crank,  with  a  pulley  carry- 
ing a  band  to  drive  the  ma- 
chine, and  a  balance-wheel  to 
give  stable  motion;  one  of 
the  spokes  of  the  balance- 
wheel  has  fixed  to  it  an  axis 
for  the  end  of  a  vertical  shaft 
to  revolve  on,  that  moves  the 
piston  of  an  air  condenser  G, 
fastened  to  the  floor ;  the  air 
is  compressed  in  the  chamber 
i,  fourteen  inches  long,  and 
six  in  diameter,  lying  beneath 
the  mahogany  case  H  ;  it  is 
furnished  with  a  safety-valve, 
to  permit  the  escape  of  redun- 
dant air  not  needed  in  the 
economy  of  the  machine. 

The  composing  system  has  an  insulated  iron  frame,  A, 
fig.  3,  placed  immediately  below  the  keys,  parallel  with  the 
long  diameter  of  the  case  ;  this  has  within  it  a  revolving  shaft 

Fig.  3. 


c  ;  the  shaft  is  enclosed  for  the  greater  part  of  its  length  by 
the  iron  cylinder  B  ;  it  is  made  to  revolve  by  a  band  playing 
over  the  pulley  D,  fixed  to  the  left  extremity  of  it.  The 
cylinder  B,  fig.  3,  is  detached  from  the  shaft,  but  made  to 


394  THE  HOUSE  PRINTING  TELEGRAPH. 

revolve  with  it  by  a  friction  contrivance,  consisting  of  a  brass 
flange  fastened  permanently  to  the  revolving  shaft ;  the  face 
of  the  flange  and  the  inner  face  of  the  circuit  wheel  are  in 
contact  with  a  piece  of  cloth  or  leather  interposed,  moistened 
with  oil ;  the  friction  is  regulated  by  a  spring  pressing  against 
the  end  of  the  revolving  shaft  c. 

The  object  of  this  friction  apparatus  is  to  allow  the  shaft  to 
revolve  while  the  cylinder  can  be  arrested. 

On  the  right  end  of  the  cylinder  is  fixed  the  brass  wheel  E, 
fig.  3,  four  or  five  inches  in  diameter,  called  the  circuit  wheel, 
or  break ;  the  outer  edge  of  it  is  divided  into  28  equal  spaces, 
each  alternate  space  being  cut  away  to  the  depth  of  one  fourth 
of  an  inch,  leaving  fourteen  teeth  or  segments,  and  fourteen 
spaces,  Fig.  3,  E  ;  the  revolving  shaft  and  cylinder  form  part 
of  the  electric  circuit ;  one  point  of  the  connection  being  where 
the  shaft  rests  on  the  frame,  the  other  through  a  spring  F, 
having  connection  with  the  other  end  of  the  circuit,  pressing 
on  the  periphery  of  the  break -wheel  E,  fig.  3 ;  G,  the  other 
part  of  the  circuit,  coming  from  the  axial  magnet  to  the 
frame  A  ;  when  the  shaft,  cylinder,  and  circuit  wheel  revolve, 
the  spring  will  alternately  strike  a  tooth  and  pass  into  an 
open  space ;  in  the  former  case,  the  circuit  is  closed,  in  the 
latter  it  is  broken. 

For  the  purpose  of  arresting  the  motion  of  the  circuit  wheel 
and  cylinder,  the  latter  has  two  spiral  lines  of  teeth  H,  fig.  3, 
extending  along  its  opposite  sides,  having  fourteen  in  each  line, 
making  28,  one  for  each  tooth,  and  one  for  each  space  on  the 
circuit  wheel ;  the  cylinder  extends  the  whole  width  of  the 
key-board  above  it ;  the  latter  is  like  that  of  a  pianoforte,  con- 
taining twenty-eight  keys  that  correspond  with  the  twenty- 
eight  projections  on  the  cylinder,  and  have  marked  on  them  in 
order,  the  alphabet,  a  dot,  and  dash,  fig.  1  ;  they  are  kept  in 
a  horizontal  position  by  springs ;  there  is  a  cam  or  stop  fixed 
to  the  under  surface  of  each  key ;  directly  over  one  of  the 
projections  on  the  cylinder ;  these  stops  do  not  meet  the  teeth 
unless  the  key  is  pressed  down,  which  being  done  the  motion 
of  the  cylinder  is  stopped  by  their  contact ;  by  making  the 
circuit  wheel  revolve,  the  circuit  is  rapidly  broken  and  closed, 
which  continues  until  a  key  is  depressed ;  that  key  being 
released,  the  revolution  continues  until  the  depression  of 
another  key,  and  so  on ;  the  depression  of  a  key  either  keeps 
the  circuit  broken  or  closed ;  as  it  may  happen  to  be  at  the 
time,  so  that  the  operator  does  not  break  and  close  the  circuit, 
but  merely  keeps  it  stationary  for  a  moment ;  from  one  to 
twenty-eight  openings  and  closings  of  the  circuit  take  place 


THE    AXIAL  MAGNET. 


395 


between  the  depression  of  two  different  keys  or  the  repetition 
of  the  depression  of  the  same  one  ;  the  object  of  the  composing 
machine  is  to  rapidly  'break  and  close  the  circuit  as  many 
times  as  there  are  spaces  from  any  given  letter  to  the  next 
one  which  it  is  desired  to  transmit,  counting  in  alphabetical 
order. 

THE    AXIAL    MAGNET. 

The  rapid  electrical  pulsations  are  transmitted  by  the  circuit 
of  conductors  to  the  magnet  and  printing  machine  at  another 
station,  through  the  wire  j,  fig.  1.  The  helix  of  this  magnet 
is  an  intensity  coil  contained  in  the  steel  cylinder  A,  fig.  1, 
on  the  upper  surface  of  the  mahogany  case  ;  its  axis  is 
vertical. 

A,  fig.  4,  is  a  brass  tube,  eight  or  ten  inches  long,  placed 
within  the  helix,  and 

fastened    at   the   bottom  Fig- 4- 

by  the  screw  D.  To  the 
inner  surface  of  this  tube 
are  soldered  six  or  eight 
soft  iron  tubes,  separated 
from  each  other  at  regu- 
lar intervals.  Above  the 
iron  cylinder  is  an  ellip- 
tical ring  F,  through  the 
axis  of  which  is  ex- 
tended an  elastic  wire,  G  ; 
two  screws  are  attached 
to  the  wire,  by  which  it 
is  made  lax  or  tense,  to 
suit  the  intensity  of  the 
electric  current.  From 
this  is  suspended  the 
brass  rod  c,  that  passes 
down  within  the  small 
iron  tubes  before  men- 
tioned, and  has  strung 
on  it  six  or  eight  small 
iron  tubes  L;  these  are 
fastened  at  equal  inter- 
vals, and  have  their  lower 
extremity  expanded  into 
a  bell-like  flanch ;  the 
surrounding  fixed  ones 
have  their  upper  ends 


396  THE  HOUSE  PRINTING  TELEGRAPH. 

enlarged  inwardly  in  the  same  manner.  The  tubes  L,  and 
the  wire  to  which  they  are  fastened,  are  movable,  so  as  to 
come  in  contact  with  the  small  exterior  iron  tubes  K,  fig.  4, 
but  are  kept  separate  by  the  elastic  spring  above.  At  E,  is 
the  brass  covering.  On  the  transmission  of  an  electric  current 
through  the  helix,  the  tubes  become  magnetic.  Such  is  the 
arrangement  of  their  polarities,  that  they  act  by  attraction  and 
repulsion,  overcome  the  elasticity  of  the  spring,  and  bring  the 
movable  magnets  down  to  the  fixed  ones — the  current  being 
broken,  the  spring  separates  them.  The  two  flanches  do  not 
come  in  direct  contact,  though  the  movable  one  acts  responsive 
to  magnetic  influence.  Most  of  the  magnetism  exists  at  the 
flanches,  and  the  order  is  such  that  the  lower  end  of  the  inner 
tube  has  south  polarity,  the  surrounding  one  above,  the  same, 
which  repels  it,  while  the  top  of  the  surrounding  one  below 
has  north  polarity,  and  attracts  it ;  this  movement  Is  through 
a  space  of  only  one  sixty-fourth  part  of  an  inch. 

THE    AIR    VALVE    AND    PISTON. 

On  the  same  rod,  above  the  movable  magnets,  is  fixed  a 
hollow  cylindrical  valve,  having  on  its  outer  circumference  the 
grooves  1,  2,  3,  fig.  4.  The  plate  represents  a  longitudinal 
half  section  of  the  valve,  magnets,  and  helix.  The  valve 
slides  in  an  air  chamber  H,  which  has  two  grooves,  1,2,  on 
its  inner  surface.  Air  is  admitted  through  the  orifice  1,  by 
means  of  a  pipe  from  the  air  chamber  beneath  the  case  into 
the  middle  groove  of  the  valve.  The  grooves  of  the  chamber 
open  into  the  side  passages  J  and  M,  which  connect  at  right 
angles  with  a  second  chamber,  in  which  a  piston  moves.  The 
movement  of  the  magnets  changes  the  apposition  of  the 
grooves  in  the  first  chamber,  by  which  air  enters  from  the 
supply  pipe,  through  one  of  the  side  passages,  into  the  second 
chamber,  at  the  same  time  that  air  on  the  other  side  of  the 
piston  in  the  second  chamber  escapes  back  into  the  grooves 
1  and  2  of  the  valve,  through  the  other  side  passage,  and  from 
them  into  the  atmosphere.  This  causes  the  piston  to  slide 
backward  and  forward  with  every  upward  and  downward 
motion  of  the  valve. 

This  piston  moves  horizontally,  and  is  connected  with  the 
lever  8,  fig.  5,  of  an  escapement,  the  pallets  of  which  alter- 
nately rest  on  the  teeth  of  an  escapement  wheel  of  the  printing 
machine  A,  fig.  5.  This  part  of  the  apparatus  is  arranged  on 
a  circular  iron  plate,  twelve  or  fourteen  inches  in  diameter, 
supported  by  standards  on  th  mahogany  frame  H,  fig.  1. 
The  escapement  wheel  revolves  on  a  vertical  shaft  that  passes 


THE  AIR-VALVE  AND  PISTON. 


397 


through  the  iron  plate,  and  has  fixed  on  it  there   a  hollow 
pulley.     This  pulley  contains  within  it  a  friction  apparatus, 

Fig.  5. 


Fig.  6. 


consisting  of  an  ordinary  spiral  clock  spring — the  inner  end 
of  which  is  fastened  to  the  shaft,  and  the  outer  pressing 
against  the  inner  side  of  the  case.  Thus  the 
spring  is  always  about  the  same  strength,  and 
acts  upon  the  escapement  wheel,  causing  it  to 
revolve  uniformly  when  released  by  the  escape- 
ment. The  pulley  revolves  constantly,  while  the 
shaft  and  escapement  wheel  may  be  stopped. 
The  escapement  wheel  has  fourteen  teeth,  each 
one  of  which  causes  two  motions  of  the  escapement,  which 
will  make  twenty-eight  for  a  single  revolution  of  the  wheel, 
which  is  shown  in  fig.  7. 

When  in  operation,  the  piston  to  which  the  escapement  arm 
8,  fig,  5,  is  attached,  is  subjected,  on  one  side  or  the  other,  to 
a  pressure  of  condensed  air ;  therefore 
the  piston  and  escapement  will  only  be 
moved  by  the  escapement  wheel  when 
the  air  is  removed  from  one  side  or  the 
other  of  the  piston.  The  position  of  the 
valve,  fig.  4,  attached  to  the  magnet, 
regulates  the  pressure  of  air  on  either 
side  of  the  piston,  by  opening  one  or  the  other  of  the  side 
passages  into  the  second  chamber.  By  breaking  and  closing 
the  circuit,  therefore,  the  piston  and  escapement  move  back- 
ward and  forward  ;  thus  a  single  revolution  of  the"  circuit 
wheel  at  one  station  opens  and  closes  the  circuit  twenty-eight 
times,  causing  an  equal  number  of  movements  of  the  magnets 
in  another  station  ;  they  carry  the  valve  which  alternately 
changes  the  air  on  either  side  of  the  piston.  This  permits  the 


Fig.  7. 


398  THE  HOUSE  PRINTING  TELEGRAPH. 

escapement  wheel  to  move  the  escapement  and  piston  twenty- 
eight  times,  and  allows  one  revolution  of  the  escapement  wheel 
for  one  of  the  circuit  wheel  at  the  transmitting  station. 

A  steel  type  wheel,  fig.  5,  A,  B,  c,  D,  two  inches  in 
diameter,  is  fixed  above  and  revolves  on  the  same  shaft  with 
the  escapement  wheel ;  it  has  on  its  circumference  twenty- 
eight  equi-distant  projections,  on  which  are  engraved  in  order 
the  alphabet,  a  dot,  and  a  dash.  The  fourteen  notches  of  the 
escapement  wheel  cause  twenty-eight  vibrations  of  the  escape- 
ment in  a  revolution,  that  correspond  to  the  characters  on  the 
type  wheel.  Every  vibration  of  the  escapement,  therefore, 
makes  the  type  wheel  advance  one  letter  ;  these  letters  corre- 
spond to  those  on  the  keys  of  the  composing  machine.  If  any 
desired  letter  on  the  type  wheel  is  placed  in  a  certain  position, 
and  a  corresponding  key  in  the  composing  machine  is  depressed, 
by  raising  that  key,  and  again  depressing  it,  the  circuit  wheel 
at  one  station,  and  the  escapement  and  type  wheels  at  the 
other  station,  all  make  a  single  revolution,  which  brings  that 
letter  to  its  former  position.  Any  other  letter  is  brought  to 
this  position  by  pressing  down  its  key  in  the  composing 
machine,  the  circuit  being  broken  and  closed  as  many  times 
as  there  are  letters  from  the  last  one  taken  to  the  letter 
desired. 

THE    MANIPULATION. 

To  form  the  letters  into  words,  it  is  necessary  that  the 
printing  and  composing  machines  should  correspond,  and  for 
this  purpose  a  small  break  and  thumb  screw,  9  and  10,  fig.  5, 
can  be  made  to  stop  the  type  wheel  at  any  letter.  In  sending 
messages,  they  usually  commence  at  the  dash  or  space ;  if, 
by  accident,  the  type  wheel  ceases  to  coincide  with  the 
distant  composing  machine,  the  printing  becomes  confused, 
the  operator  stops  the  type  wheel,  sets  it  at  the  dash,  and  the 
printing  goes  on  as  before. 

Above  the  type  wheel,  on  the  same  shaft,  is  the  letter  wheel 
E,  fig.  5,  on  the  circumference  of  which  the  letters  are  painted 
in  the  same  order  with  those  on  the  type  wheel  below.  It  is 
incased  in  a  steel  hood,  having  an  aperture  in  it  directly  over 
where  the  letters  are  printed,  so  that  when  the  type  wheel 
stops  to  print  a  letter,  the  same  letter  is  made  stationary  for 
a  moment  at  the  aperture,  and  is  readily  distinguished ;  hence 
messages  can  be  read,  thus  making  it  a  visual  telegraph. 

The  type  wheel  has  twenty-eight  teeth  arranged  on  the 
outer  edge  of  its  upper  surface ;  near  it,  on  the  opposite  side 
from  where  the  printing  is  done,  is  the  shaft  T,  fig.  5, 


THE    MANIPULATION.  399 

revolving  in  an  opposite  direction.  A  steel  cap  x,  fig.  5,  two 
inches  in  diameter,  is  so  attached  to  the  top  of  this  shaft  that 
friction  carries  it  along  with  it,  but  it  can  be  moved  in  the 
opposite  direction ;  it  has  a  small  steel  arm,  three  fourths  of 
an  inch  long,  projecting  from  its  side,  and  playing  against  the 
teeth  on  the  type  wheel;  while  the  latter  is  revolving,  its 
teeth  strike  this  arm,  and  give  the  cap  a  contrary  motion  to  its 
shaft.  There  is  a  pulley  on  this  shaft,  below  the  plate,  con- 
nected by  a  band  to  M,  fig,  1 ;  its  speed  is  less  than  that  of 
the  type  wheel.  When  the  type  wheel  comes  to  rest,  the  arm 
falls  between  the  teeth,  but  it  has  not  time  to  do  so  when 
they  are  in  motion.  On  the  opposite  side  of  Hhe  cap  to  where 
the  arm  is  attached  are  two  raised  edges,  called  detent  pins, 
against  which  the  detent  arm  u,  fig.  5,  alternately  rests,  as 
the  position  of  the  cap  is  altered  by  the  small  arm  that  plays 
on  the  teeth  of  the  type  wheel. 

Between  the  type  wheel  and  cap  is  a  small  lever  and  thumb- 
screw, 9,  fig.  5,  which  acts  as  a  break  on  the  cap ;  its  motion 
can  be  stopped  by  it,  while  the  type  wheel  revolves  ;  it  is  used 
merely  to  arrest  the  printing,  though  the  message  may  be  read 
from  the  letter  wheel. 

The  detent  arm  revolves  in  a  horizontal  direction  about  the 
vertical  shaft,  which  is  also  driven  by  a  pulley  beneath  the 
steel  plate ;  when  the  type  wheel  is  at  rest,  the  detent  arm 
rests  on  one  of  the  detent  pins,  but  when  it  moves,  the  teeth 
on  its  upper  surface  give  the  arm  and  cap  a  reverse  direction 
to  its  shaft,  which  alters  the  position  of  the  detent  points,  so 
that  the  detent  arm  is  liberated  from  this  first  pin,  and  falls 
upon  the  second,  where  it  remains  until  the  escapement  and 
type  wheels  again  come  to  rest ;  when  this  happens,  the  arm 
falls  between  two  of  the  teeth,  the  cap  resumes  its  first  position, 
the  detent  is  let  loose,  makes  a  revolution,  and  stops  again  on 
the  first  pin. 

The  shaft  that  carries  the  detent  arm  has  an  eccentric  wheel, 
R,  fig.  o,  on  it,  above  the  arm  ;  an  eccentric  wheel  is  one  that 
has  its  axis  of  motion  nearer  one  side  than  the  other,  and, 
while  revolving,  operates  like  a  crank ;  from  this  eccentric  is 
a  connecting  rod,  s,  which  draws  a  toothed  wheel  against  the 
type ;  this  toothed  wheel  is  supported  in  an  elastic  steel  arm 
(shut  out  of  view  by  the  coloring  band),  on  the  opposite  side  of 
the  type  wheel  from  that  of  the  eccentric,  and  revolves  in  a 
vertical  direction ;  the  band  E,  fig.  1,  carrying  the  coloring 
matter  to  print  with,  passes  between  this  and  the  type ;  the 
dots  seen  represent  small  teeth  that  catch  the  paper  and  draw 
it  along,  as  the  wheel  revolves,  between  itself  and  a  steel  clasp, 


400  THE  HOUSE  PRINTING  TELEGRAPH. 

operated  by  a  spring  that  presses  the  paper  against  the  teeth 
and  keeps  it  smooth  ;  the  clasp  is  perforated  in  such  a  manner 
that  the  type  print  through  it ;  there  are  two  rows  of  teeth,  one 
above,  the  other  below  the  orifice. 

The  vertical  wheel,  fig.  5,  is  embraced  in  a  ring  by  the 
connecting  shaft  s,  and  a  rotary  motion  is  imparted  to  it  by  a 
ratchet  fixed  to  its  lower  surface,  moving  with  it,  and  catching 
against  two  poles  fastened  to  the  steel  plate  below  it ;  the 
poles  are  pressed  against  the  ratchet  by  springs,  as  shown  in 
Fig  8.  ^'  ®  »  ^e  wneel  ig  octagonal,  and  every 

revolution  of  the  eccentric  turns  it  through 
one  eighth  of  a  revolution,  and  therefore  pre- 
sents a  firm,  flat  surface  to  push  the  paper 
against  the  type,  and  advances  sufficient 
for  every  letter,  one  being  printed  each 
time  the  detent  arm  revolves. 
When  the  type  wheel  stops,  the  detent  arm  revolves,  that 
carries  with  it  the  eccentric,  which,  through  the  connecting 
rod,  draws  the  toothed  wheel  having  the  paper  and  coloring 
band  before  it  against  the  type,  and  an  impression  is  made  on 
the  paper  ;  a  letter  is  printed  if  the  circuit  remains  broken  or 
closed  longer  than  one  tenth  of  a  second  ;  three  hundred 
letters,  in  the  form  of  Roman  capitals,  can  be  accurately 
printed  per  minute ;  the  roll  of  paper  L,  fig.  5,  is  supported 
on  a  loose  revolving  wire  framework ;  on  the  same  standard  is 
a  small  pulley  w,  around  which  one  end  of  the  coloring  band 
runs. 

In  transmitting  a  message,  the  machine  is  set  in  motion,  a 
signal  is  given  (which  is  simply  the  movement  of  the  magnet), 
and  then  with  the  communication  before  him,  the  operator 
commences  to  play  like  a  pianist  on  his  key-board,  touching, 
in  rapid  succession,  those  keys  which  are  marked  with  the 
consecutive  letters  of  the  information  to  be  transmitted ;  on 
hearing  the  signal,  the  operator  at  the  receiving  station  sets 
his  machine  in  motion  ;  then  setting  his  type  at  the  dash, 
sends  back  signal  that  he  is  ready,  and  the  communication  is 
transmitted ;  he  can  leave  his  machine,  and  it  will  print  in  his 
absence ;  when  the  printing  is  finished,  he  tears  off  the  strip 
which  contains  it,  folds  it  in  an  envelope  ready  to  send  to  any 
place  desired. 

The  function  of  the  electric  current  in  this  machine,  together 
with  the  condensed  air,  is  to  preserve  equal  time  in  the 
printing  and  composing  machine,  that  the  letters  in  one  may 
correspond  with  the  other.  The  electrical  pulsations  determine 
the  number  of  spaces  or  letters  which  the  type  wheel  is  per- 


THE  PATENTED    CLAIM.  401 

mitted  to  advance  ;  they  must  be  at  least  twenty-five  per 
second  to  prevent  the  printing  machine  from  acting ;  the 
intervals  of  time  the  electric  currents  are  allowed  to  flow  un- 
"broken  are  equal,  and  the  number  of  magnetic  pulsations 
necessary  to  indicate  a  different  succession  of  letters  are 
exceedingly  unequal ;  from  A  to  B  will  require  one  twenty- 
eighth  of  a  revolution  of  the  type  wheel,  and  one  magnetic 
pulsation ;  from  A  to  A  will  require  an  entire  revolution  of  the 
type  wheel  and  twenty -eight  magnetic  pulsations. 

THE    PATENTED    CLAIM. 

On  the  28th  December,  1852,  Royal  E.  House  obtained  the 
following  patent  for  various  improvements  on  the  original 
machine :  "I  claim,  First.  The  employment  of  electro- 
magnetic force,  in  combination  with  the  force  of  a  current  of 
air,  or  other  fluid,  so  that  the  action  of  the  former  governs  or 
controls  the  action  of  the  latter,  for  the  purpose  described. 
Second.  I  claim  the  construction  of  the  electro-magnet,  as 
described ;  that  is  to  say,  a  series  of  fixed  magnets,  in  combi- 
nation with  a  series  of  moveable  magnets,  arranged  upon  a 
central  axis,  which  axis  plays  between  or  through .  the  line  of 
fixed  magnets,  so  as  to  effect  a  vibratory  movement  of  said  axis 
by  a  force  multiplied  by  the  number  of  magnets  of  both  kinds. 
Third.  I  claim  the  combination  of  the  electro-magnet  with 
the  valve,  for  regulating  and  directing  the  force  of  a  current  of 
air,  or  other  fluid,  acting  as  a  motive  power  upon  the  piston, 
or  other  analogous  device  for  producing  a  vibratory  motion,  as 
described.  Fourth.  I  claim  the  endless  band,  in  combination 
with  the  cylinder,  as  an  inking  machine,  for  conveying  and 
applying  the  coloring  matter  to  the  paper,  at  the  moment  of 
receiving  the  impression  from  the  types,  as  described.  Fifth. 
I  claim  the  combination  of  the  regulating  bar  with  the  type 
wheel,  for  the  purpose  of  regulating  the  proper  position  said 
wheel  should  have,  in  connection  with  a  given  position  of  the 
key  shaft,  at  the  moment  of  printing  any  letters  or  char- 
acters." 

26 


HISTORY    OF   THE    AMERICAN   ELECTRO- 
MAGNETIC    TELEGRAPH. 


CHAPTER    XXXI. 

Invention  of  the  Telegraph — The  first  Model  of  the  Apparatus — Specimen  of 
the  Telegraph  "Writing — The  Combined  Circuits  invented — Favorable  Ee- 
port  of  the  Committee  on  Commerce  in  Congress — Construction  of  the 
Experimental  Line — Invention  of  the  Local  Circuit — Improvements  of  the 
Apparatus — Administration  of  the  Patents  by  Hon.  F.  0.  J.  Smith  and 
Hon.  Amos  Kendall — Extensions  of  the  Lines  in  America. 

INVENTION  OF  THE  TELEGRAPH. 

THE  patented  American  electro-magnetic  telegraph  was  in- 
vented by  Samuel  Findley  Breese  Morse.  It  is  not  my  purpose 
to  discuss  the  questionable  claims  of  others,  in  regard  to  their 
participation  as  auxiliaries  in  the  perfection  of  the  telegraph 
bearing  the  above  name.  It  is  my  purpose  to  give  the  facts 
with  but  little  comment.  The  reader  can  exercise  his  own  judg- 
ment in  the  premises. 

Mr.  Morse  was  an  historical  painter,  and  much  of  his  early 
life  was  spent  in  Europe  in  the  perfection  of  his  profession. 
In  reference  to  the  invention  of  the  telegraph,  Mr.  Morse  has 
deposed,  in  a  case  before  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United 
States,  as  follows,  viz. : 

"  Shortly  after  the  commencement  of  my  return  voyage  from 
Europe,  in  the  autumn  of  1832,  before  referred  to,  the  then 
recent  experiments  and  discoveries  in  relation  to  electro-mag- 
netism, and  the  affinity  of  electricity  to  magnetism,  or  their 
probable  identity,  became  the  subject  of  conversation. 

The  special  subject  of  conversation  was  the  obtaining  the 
electric  spark  from  the  magnet.  In  the  course  of  the  discus- 
sion, it  occurred  to  me  that  by  means  of  electricity,  signs  rep- 
resenting figures,  letters,  or  words,  might  be  legibly  written 
down  at  anv  distance. 


INVENTION    OF  THE  TELEGRAPH.  403 

At  this  time  the  idea  of  telegraphing  in  any  way  by  elec- 
tricity was  new  to  me,  and  so  far  as  I  could  judge,  to  every 
one  on  board  the  ship.  So  far  as  my  knowledge  then  extended, 
I  was  ignorant  that  any  one  had  previously  entertained  even  the 
idea  of  an  electric  telegraph.  Subsequent  investigation  has, 
however,  shown  me  that  the  first  idea  of  telegraphing  by  elec- 
tricity does  not  belong  to  me,  and  I  therefore  disclaim  it ;  but 
in  the  modes  proposed  by  me  I  do  claim  to  have  invented  an 
entirely  novel  and  useful  mode  and  art  of  telegraphing. 

All  previously  known  modes  of  telegraphing  were  by  evan- 
escent, signs.  Had  my  invention  rested  merely  in  the  idea,  it 
would  have  been  comparatively  valueless  ;  but  at  the  same  time 
I  conceived  a  practical  mode  of  carrying  into  effect  my  original 
idea.  I  claim  then  to  have  invented  a  new  art :  the  art  of 
imprinting  characters  at  a  distance  for  telegraphing  purposes, 
and  the  mode  and  means  of  performing  the  same  are  set  forth 
in  my  several  letters  patent.  And  I  also  claim  the  use  of 
sounds  for  telegraphing  as  are  set  forth  in  my  letters  patent. 

The  idea  thus  conceived  of  an  electric  telegraph  took  full 
possession  of  my  mind,  and  during  the  residue  of  the  voyage, 
I  occupied  myself,  in  a  great  measure,  by  devising  means  of 
giving  it  practical  effect.  Before  I  landed  in  the  United  States, 
I  had  conceived  and  drawn  out  in  my  sketch  book  the  form  of 
an  instrument  for  an  electro-magnetic  telegraph,  and  had  ar- 
ranged and  noted  down  a  system  of  signs,  composed  of  a  com- 
bination of  dots  and  spaces,  which  were  to  represent  figures  or 
numerals,  and  these  were  to  indicate  words,  to  which  they 
were  to  be  prefixed  in  a  telegraphic  dictionary,  where  each 
word  was  to  have  its  own  number.  I  had  also  conceived  and 
drawn  out  a  mode  of  applying  the  electric  or  galvanic  current, 
so  as  to  make  these  signs  by  its  chemical  effects  in  the  decom- 
position of  salts ;  and  so  also  to  mak  e  sounds  for  telegraphing. 
Immediately  after  my  landing  in  the  United  States,  I  commu- 
nicated my  invention  to  a  number  of  my  friends,  and  employed 
myself  in  preparations  to  prove  its  practicability  and  value  by 
actual  experiments. 

To  that  end,  before  the  commencement  of  the  year  1833, 
being  at  the  house  of  my  brother,  in  New- York,  I  made  a 
mould  and  cast  a  set  of  type  representing  dots  and  spaces, 
intended  to  be  used  for  the  purpose  of  closing  and  breaking  the 
circuit  in  my  contemplated  experiments." 

The  type  referred  to  in  the  above  Were  precisely  as  those 
represented  in  fig.  1.  The  application  of  the  type  will  be 
explained  hereinafter.  Their  value  is  indicated  by  the  top,  thus, 
A  is  a  dot  and  a  dash,  B  a  dash  and  three  dots,  &c. 


404 


HISTORY  OF  THE  AMERICAN  TELEGRAPH. 


THE  FIRST  MODEL  OF  THE  APPARATUS. 

Morse's  first  instrument  was  made  of  an  old  picture  frame, 
F  A  c  F,  fastened  to  a  small  table,  as  in  fig.  2.  The  wheels 
of  an  old  clock  D  were  arranged  to  carry  the  paper  forward,  by 
the  endless  band  connecting  D  with  the  cylinder  axle  c.  The 


FIRST  MODEL  OF  THE  APPARATUS. 


405 


weight  E  put  in  motion  the  clock-work.  A  is  a  cylinder  on 
which  rolls  the  ribbon  paper,  and  B  is  an  auxiliary  drnm  in 
the  movement  of  the  paper.  The  paper  unrolls  from  c,  passes 
over  the  drum  B,  and  winds  around  A.  The  movement  of  A  is 
regulated  by  the  weight  attached  to  it.  The  pen  lever  is  sus- 

Fig.  2. 


ponded  from  F.  It  is  composed  of  two  diverging  rods  connected 
by  two  cross  pieces  at  G,  and  at  H  is  a  steel  bar  to  serve  as  an 
armature  to  the  electro-magnet  at  H,  the  ends  of  which  face  the 
armature  represented  by  the  dotted  bar.  The  wire  runs  from 
the  battery  cup  i  to  the  magnet  coils,  thence  to  K,  and  from  j 


406  HISTORY  OF  THE  AMERICAN  TELEGRAPH. 

back  to  the  battery.  When  the  battery  is  in  electrical  action, 
the  magnet  H  attracts  the  armature,  which  draws  the  pen  lever 
F  H  e.  When  the  circuit  is  opened,  a  spring  draws  the  pen 
lever  from  the  magnet.  The  dotted  lines  from  G,  run  to  the 
pencil  adjusted  in  the  base  of  the  lever.  When  the  magnets 
attract  the  lever,  the  pencil  makes  a  mark  on  the  paper,  and 
if  the  paper  is  in  motion  the  mark  will  be  oblique  across,  form* 
ing  the  half  of  the  letter  v.  When  the  current  is  no  longer 
in  the  magnet  spools,  the  spring  draws  the  lever  back  again, 
which  forms  the  other  half  of  the  letter  v.  Mr.  Morse  formed 
his  alphabet  by  a  combination  of  the  angles,  as  will  be  pres- 
ently shown.  I  have  in  the  above  explained  this  primitive 
apparatus — the  clock-work,  magnet,  paper  rollers,  pen  lever, 
pencil,  and  the  wire  circuit.  I  will  now  describe  the  manner 
of  opening  and  closing  the  voltaic  circuit,  which  is  consu- 
mated  at  j  K  by  a  simple  mechanical  arrangement.  L  L  are 
the  two  cylinders  or  drums  upon  which  is  an  endless  band, 
moveable  by  a  crank  as  seen  to  the  right  in  the  figure,  o  o  is 
the  circuit  lever,  N  is  its  fulcrum  and  p  a  small  weight  to  bear 
down  that  end  of  the  lever  so  as  to  elevate  the  fork  seen  at 
the  other  end.  j  K  are  two  small  cups  filled  with  mercury, 
into  which  is  immersed  at  intervals  the  line  wire.  When  the 
fork  is  made  to  descend  into  the  mercury  cup  it  closes  the 
metallic  circuit,  and  the  electricity  flows  through  the  wires,  the 
magnet  spools,  and  then  to  the  battery.  M  is  a  port-rule  or  a 
grooved  piece  of  wood  or  metal.  It  is  filled  with  the  type 
represented  in  fig.  1.  These  type  are  moveable,  but  they  fit 
solid  in  the  port  rule.  When  the  crank  is  turned,  the  projection 
of  the  type  presses  under  the  subtending  piece  seen  attached  to 
the  lever  o  o,  which  raises  the  lever  at  that  end  and  depresses 
the  other  end,  so  that  the  forked  ends  enter  the  mercury  in 
the  cups  j  K.  After  the  first  type  has  passed  the  hanging  pro- 
jection o,  the  lever  is  elevated  from  the  mercury  cups.  The 
crank  then  carries  on  the  port-rule  and  another  type  passes, 
elevating  the  lever,  closing  the  circuit  at  j  K,  which  magnetizes 
the  cores  of  the  magnet  H,  attracting  the  armature  of  the  pen 
lever  F  H  G,  and  then  the  pencil  makes  its  mark  upon  the  paper. 

In  order  that  the  port-rule  may  be  the  better  understood,  I 
will  present  the  following  as  given  by  Mr.  Alfred  Yail : 

"These  type  were  set  up  in  a  cavity,  made  by  putting  two 
pieces  of  long  rules  of  brass  plate  together,  side  by  side,  with 
a  strip  of  half  their  width  between  them ;  so  as  to  make  the 
cavity  sufficiently  large  to  receive  the  type.  This  was  denomi- 
nated the  port  rule,  and  is  represented  in  fig.  3  by  A.  Parts 
of  the  type  are  seen  rising  above  the  edge  of  the  rule,  and 


FIRST  MODEL  OF  THE  APPARATUS. 


407 


below  it  are  seen  the  cogs,  "by  which  with  the  wheel  v,  the  pin- 
ion L,  and  the  crank  o,  the  port  rule,  with  its  type,  were  car- 
ried along  at  a  uniform  rate,  in  a  groove  of  the  frame,  K  R, 
under  the  short  lever  c,  which  has  a  tooth  or  cam  at  its  ex 
tremity.  j  is  a  support,  one  on  each  side  of  the  frame,  for  the 
axis  of  the  lever  B  and  c,  at  its  axis  i ;  a  and  i  are  two  brass 

Fig.  3. 


cr  copper  mercury  cups,  fastened  to  the  frame.  Those  cups 
have  the  negative  and  positive  wires  soldered  to  them,  N  and  p. 
D  and  H  are  the  ends  of  one  copper  wire,  bent  at  right  angles 
at  that  .portion  of  it  fastened  to  the  lever  B.  The  ends  of  the 
copper  wire  were  amalgamated,  and  so  adjusted  that  when  the 
lever  is  raised  at  c,  by  the  action  of  its  cam  passing  over  the 
teeth  of  the  type,  the  lever  B  is  depressed,  and  the  wires  D  and 
H  dip  into  the  mercury  cups,  and  thus  complete  the  connection. 
This  plan  worked  well,  but  was  too  inconvenient  and  unwieldy. 

The  second  method  was  upon  the  same  principle,  with  a 
more  compact  arrangement.  The  type  being  put  into  a  hopper 
and  carried  one  by  one  upon  the  periphery  of  a  wheel,  the  teeth 
acting  upon  a  lever  in  the  same  manner  as  in  the  figure  pre- 
ceding. The  wheel  being  horizontal. 

The  third  plan  differed  only  in  one  respect,  instead  of  the 
types  moving  in  a  circle  they  were  made  to  move  in  a  straight 
line.  Fig.  4  represents  that  instrument.  The  type  were  all 
made  with  small  holes  through  their  sides,  so  as  to  correspond 
with  the  teeth  of  the  wheel  A  driven  by  the  clock-work  and 
weight.  K  is  the  side  of  the  frame  containing  the  clock-work. 
B  is  the  hopper  containing  the  types,  with  their  teeth  outward. 
The  hopper  is  inclined  at  an  angle,  so  that  the  type  may  slide 
down  as  fast  as  one  is  carried  through  the  cavity  a  and  b.  c  is 
a  brass  block  to  keep  the  type  upright,  and  sliding  down  with 
them.  E  and  F  are  two  small  rollers,  with  springs  (not  shown) 
to  sustain  the  type  after  the  wheel  A  has  carried  them  beyond 
its  reach.  G  is  a  lever  for  the  same  purpose  as  c  in  fig.  3.  D 


408 


HISTORY  OF  THE  AMERICAN  TELEGRAPH. 


its  support,  through  which  its  axis  passes.  At  i  is  the  long  lever 
o  of  the  right-side  figure,  to  the  end  of  which  is  the  bent  wire 
in  the  mercury  cups  H  and  s,  and  to  which  are  soldered  the 
wires  P  and  N.  T  is  the  spring  to  carry  back  the  lever  o.  F/  is 
one  of  the  small  rollers,  and  G/  the  short  lever.  At  R  may  be 
seen  a  part  of  one  of  the  type  passing,  the  tooth  haying  the 
short  lever  upon  its  point,  thereby  connecting  the  circuit  at  the 
mercury  cups  H  and  s,  by  the  depression  of  the  long  lever  o. 
The  hopper  B  may  be  of  considerable  length,  and  at  a  less  angle, 
when  a  communication  is  to  be  sent,  it  is  set  up  in  type  and 
put  in  the  hopper.  The  clock  work  is  then  put  in  motion,  and 
the  wheel  A  will  carry  them  down  one  by  one. 


SPECIMEN  OF  TELEGRAPHIC  WRITING.  409 

SPECIMEN  OF  THE  TELEGRAPH  WRITING. 

The  writing  upon  the  paper  with  the  pencil  or  fountain  pen 
was  rapid  and  intelligible  and  practically  effective,  though  far 
less  so  than  the  more  modern  organizations  of  the  alphabet. 
The  following  are  specimens  of  the  writing  done  by  this  plain 
and  simple  arrangement,  at  a  public  exhibition  in  the  New- 
York  City  University,  at  a  distance  of  one  third  of  a  mile. 

Successful  experiment       with  telegraph. 

•     215  36  2  58 


21536  2  5  8 

November  4th  1835. 

112  04  01835. 

vi  vv~ujww~T/unA/wwr  wwww 

112  04  01  8  35 


The  words  in  the  diagram  were  the  intelligence  transmitted. 

The  numbers  (in  this  instance  arbitrary)  are  the  number  of 
the  words  in  a  telegraphic  dictionary. 

The  points  are  the  markings  of  the  register,  each  point 
being  marked  every  time  the  electric  fluid  passes. 

The  register  marks  but  one  kind  of  mark,  to  wit,  (V).  This 
can  be  varied  two  ways.  By  intervals,  thus,  (V  VV  WV,) 
signifying  one,  two,  three,  &o.,  and  by  reversing,  thus,  (^). 
Examples  of  both  these  varieties  are  seen  in  the  diagram. 

The  single  numbers  are  separated  by  short  and  the  whole 
numbers  by  long  intervals. 

To  illustrate  by  the  diagram:  the  word  "successful"  is  first 
found  in  the  dictionary,  and  its  telegraphic  number,  2 15,  is  set 
up  in  a  species  of  type  prepared  for  the  purpose,  and  so  of  the 
other  words.  The  type  then  operate  upon  the  machinery,  and 
serve  to  regulate  the  times  and  intervals  of  the  passage  of  elec- 
tricity. Each  passage  of  the  fluid  causes  a  pencil  at  the  ex- 
tremity of  the  wire  to  mark  the  points  as  in  the  diagram. 

To  read  the  marks,  count  the  points  at  the  bottom  of  each 
line.  It  will  be  perceived  that  two  points  come  first,  separated 
by  a  short  .interval  from  the  next  point.  Set  2  beneath  it. 
Then  comes  one  point,  likewise  separated  by  a  short  interval. 
Set  one  beneath  it.  Then  comes  five  points.  Set  5  beneath 


410  HISTORY  OF  THE  AMERICAN  TELEGRAPH. 

them  But  the  interval  in  this  case  is  a  long  interval ;  conse- 
quently the  three  numbers  comprise  the  whole  number,  215. 

So  proceed  with  the  rest  until  the  numbers  are  all  set  down. 
Then,  by  referring  to  the  telegraphic  dictionary,  the  words  cor- 
responding to  the  numbers  are  found,  and  the  communication 
read.  Thus  it  will  be  seen  that,  by  means  of  the  changes 
upon  ten  characters,  all  words  can  be  transmitted,  But  there 
are  two  points  reversed  in  the  lower  line.  These  are  the  eleventh 
character,  placed  before  a  number  to  signify  that  it  is  to  be  read 
as  a  number,  and  not  as  the  representative  of  a  word^- 

The  telegraph  apparatus  above  described  was  worked  by  Pro- 
fessor Morse,  November,  1835,  in  the  New- York  City  University, 
in  the  presence  of  Leonard  D.  Grale,  D.  Huntington,  0.  Loomis, 
Robert  Rankin,  and  others.  The  facts  are,  fully  substantiated  by 
the  evidence  given  in  various  telegraph  suits,  and  particularly 
in  the  case,  Morse  vs.  O'Rielly,  adjudicated  upon  by  the  Su- 
preme Court  of  the  United  States.  The  apparatus  above  de- 
scribed is  precisely  in  accordance  with  the  idea  held  by  Morse 
on  the  ship  Sully  in  1832.  In  substantiation  of  this  fact,  Cap- 
tain Pell,  the  master  of  the  ship,  and  others  have  testified,  as 
will  be  found  in  the  records  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the 
United  States,  and  the  Federal  Courts  of  Kentucky,  Pennsyl- 
vania and  Massachusetts. 

Captain  Pell  deposed  as  follows : 

"  His  plan  of  communicating  intelligence  at  a  distance  was 
by  imprinting  signs  at  a  distance.  While  on  board  the  ship, 
he  described  his  use  of  a  galvanic  trough,  the  circuit  from 
which  was  to  be  broken  and  closed  by  means  of  a  lever,  acted 
upon  by  the  tooth  types,  which  were  to  be  moved  by  a  crank. 

At  the  other  extremity  of  the  circuit  was  an  artificial  horse- 
shoe magnet,  with  a  moveable  armature,  holding  a  pencil  or 
pen,  and  carrying  it  by  the  movement  communicated  by  the 
closing  and  breaking  of  the  circuit,  over  a  papered  cylinder, 
on  which  it  traced  a  succession  of  toothed  marks.  This  was 
in  the  month  of  October,  1832.  On  that  passage,  Prof.  Morse 
also  showed  me  a  sketch-book,  in  which  were  contained  draw- 
ings of  some  of  said  telegraphic  apparatus. 

The  said  sketch-book  was  shown  to  me  last  spring,  and  I 
recognized  it  as  the  same  sketch  book  shown  to  me  in  Ihe  pos- 
session of  said  Morse  during  said  voyage  of  1832.  When  it 
was  so  shown  to  me  last  spring,  I  wrote  my  name  upon  it  and 
the  date  of  my  said  signature. 

I  distinctly  recollect  that  the  said  sketch-book,  at  the  time 
that  T  saw  it  on  board  the  packet-ship  Sully,  had  in  it  certain 
drawings  which  I  recognized  when  I  wrote  my  name  upon 


COMBINED  CIRCUITS    INVENTED.  411 

said  leaf,  as. before  stated;  and  also  on  another  page,  other 
drawings  of  the  part  of  the  apparatus  and  machines  described 
by  Professor  Morse  for  his  telegraph,  which  I  also  recollected 
having  seen  in  said  book  during  the  voyage  aforesaid,  and  1 
recognized  them  when  so  shown  to  me  last  spring,  and  then 
wrote  my  name  upon  the  page  containing  them. 

When  said  Morse  showed  me  an  apparatus  and  machine  in 
operation  at  the  University,  in  the  city  of  New- York,  I  recog- 
nized the  instrument  the  moment  I  saw  it  as  being  constructed 
upon  the  same  general  principles  of  the  telegraphic  instrument 
described  by  Professor  Morse  on  board  the  ship  Sully,  on  his 
passage  from  Havre,  in  1832." 

Such  was  the  telegraphic  apparatus  devised  by  Morse  on  the 
ship  Sully  in  1832,  and  exhibited  to  his  friends  in  1835.  In 
the  year  1836  he  had  the  same  telegraph  on  public  exhibition 
in  the  city  of  New- York. 

THE  COMBINED  CIRCUITS  INVENTED. 

The  combination  above  described  satisfied  every  one  of  its 
practicability  on  short  voltaic  circuits,  and  it  became  a  ques- 
tion how  far  the  current  could  be  transmitted  over  a  wire  to 
produce  magnetism  in  a  piece  of  soft  iron. 

The  following  extracts  are  taken  from  the  deposition  of  Prof. 
Morse,  filed  in  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States : 

"  Early  in  1836,  I  procured  forty  feet  of  wire,  and  putting 
it  in  the  circuit  I  found  that  my  battery  of  one  cup  was  not 
sufficient  to  work  my  instrument.  This  result  suggested  to 
me  the  probability  that  the  magnetism  to  be  obtained  from  the 
electric  current  would  dimmish  in  proportion  as  the  circuit 
was  lengthened,  so  as  to  be  insufficient  for  any  practical  pur- 
poses at  great  distances ;  and  to  remove  that  probable  obstacle 
to  my  success,  I  conceived  the  idea  of  combining  two  or  more 
circuits  together  in  the  manner  described  in  my  first  patent, 
each  with  an  independent  battery,  making  use  of  the  magnet- 
ism of  the  current  on  the  first  to  .close  and  break  the  second  ; 
the  second,  the  third  ;  and  so* on." 

Fig.  5. 


20  MILES 


This  arrangement  is  represented  by  fig.  5,  in  which  three 
electro   magnets,  B,  are  shown.     Numerals  1  and  2  are  two 


412  HISTORY  OF  THE  AMERICAN  TELEGRAPH. 

stations  twenty  miles  apart.  At  station  1  are  two  mercurv 
cups,  N  o,  into  which  the  forked  wire  at  c  descends  and  closer 
the  circuit.  The  battery  current  of  station  1  follows  the  wire 
to  N,  through  the  forked  wire  c  to  o,  thence  to  the  magnet  B, 
and  after  passing  around  the  soft  iron,  it  returns  to  the  battery 
at  1.  When  the  current  passes  around  B,  the  magnet  attracts 
the  armature  of  the  right  angle  lever  D,  which  causes  the  forked 
wire  to  descend  into  the  mercury  cups  of  the  station  2,  which 
puts  in  action  the  battery  of  2.  The  second  twenty-mile  cir- 
cuit is  then  charged  and  the  magnet  at  E  attracts  the  armature, 
and  thus  another  circuit  is  put  in  motion.  The  three  equilateral 
triangular  pieces  attached  to  the  right-angled  levers  are  weights 
to  draw  from  the  mercury  cups  the  forked  wires  when  the 
magnets  cease  to  attract  the  subtending  part  of  the  armature 
lever.  The  levers  D  are  fixed  to  pivots  as  fulcrums  at  their 
angles.  This  arrangement  was  termed  the  "combined  cir- 
cuits," and  was  publicly  exhibited  at  the  University  in  March, 
1837.  The  plan  represented  could  telegraph  only  in  one  direc- 
tion. To  communicate  back  another  combination  of  circuits 
would  have  to  be  organized  upon  the  reverse  order.  At  that 
time  there  was  no  evidence  on  record  demonstrating  that  a  cir- 
cuit as  great  as  twenty  miles  could  be  operated.  The  appa- 
ratus, therefore,  was  based  upon  theory,  but  that  problem  has 
long  since  been  solved  by  the  practical  extension  of  the  circuit 
several  hundred  miles  for  telegraphic  purposes. 

.Prof.  Morse  further  deposed  that,  "In  1836  and  the  early 
part  of  1837,  I  directed  my  experiments  mainly  to  modifica- 
tions of  the  marking  apparatus,  contrivances  for  using  fountain 
pens,  marking  with  a  hard  point  through  pentagraphic  or 
blackened  paper,  varying  in  the  modes  of  using  and  moving 
the  paper ;  at  one  time  on  a  revolving  disk  spirally  from  the 
centre,  at  another  on  a  cylinder,  by  which  means  a  large  ordi- 
nary sheet  of  paper  might  be  so  written  upon  that  it  could  be 
read  as  a  commonplace  book,  and  bound  for  reference  in  vol- 
umes, and  devising  modes  of  marking  upon  chemically  pre- 
pared paper.  As  my  means  and*  the  duties  of  my  profession 
would  admit,  the  spring  and  autumn  of  1837  were  employed 
in  improving  the  instrument,  varying  the  mode  of  writing, 
experimenting  with  plumbago  and  various  kinds  of  ink  or 
coloring  matter,  substituting  a  pen  for  a  pencil,  and  devising 
a  mode  of  writing  on  a  whole  sheet  of  paper  instead  of  upon 
a  strip  or  ribbon  ;  and  in  the  latter  part  of  August  or  the 
beginning  of  September  of  that  year,  the  instrument  was 
shown  in  the  cabinet  of  the  University  to  numerous  visitors, 
operating  through  a  circuit  of  one  thousand  seven  hundred 
feet  of  wire  running  back  and  forth  in  that  room." 


REPORT  OF  COMMITTEE  OF  CONGRESS.  413 

In  the  perfection  of  the  apparatus  and  the  scientific  appli- 
ances. Prof.  Morse  had  the  invaluable  aid  of  Prof.  Leonard  D. 
Grale  and  Messrs.  Greorge  and  Alfred  Vail.  These  gentlemen 
became  interested  in  the  patents  subsequently  obtained. 

In  September,  1837,  the  government  of  the  United  States 
issued  a  circular,  in  conformity  to  a  resolution  that  passed  Con- 
gress in  February,  1837,  seeking  propositions  upon  the  subject 
of  telegraphs.  A  correspondence  followed  with  Prof.  Morse,  but 
nothing  was  effected.  In  October,  1837,  Morse  filed  his  caveat 
in  the  United  States  Patent  Office.  Later  in  the  year  1837,  a 
model  instrument  was  completed  and  operated  before  the 
Franklin  Institute  at  Philadelphia  on  a  circuit  of  ten  miles. 
Thence  the  apparatus  was  removed  to  Washington,  where  it 
was  exhibited  in  successful  operation  to  a  multitude  of  per- 
sons, among  whom  were  the  President,  members  of  the  Cabi- 
net, Senators  and  Representatives  in  Congress.  It  was  placed 
in  the  room  of  the  Committee  on  Commerce  in  the  Capitol. 

FAVORABLE  REPORT  OF  THE  COMMITTEE  ON  COMMERCE  IN  CONGRESS. 

At  that  session  Prof.  Morse  had  an  application  pending  be- 
fore .Congress,  for  an  appropriation  to  aid  in  the  construction  of 
an  experimental  line  between  Washington  and  Baltimore.  The 
subject  had  been  referred  to  the  Committee  on  Commerce,  the 
chairman  of  which  was  the  distinguished  representative,  Mr. 
Francis  0.  J.  Smith.  That  gentleman  was  at  once  struck  with 
the  practicability  of  the  invention,  and  he  exerted  his  great 
powers  in  its  behalf.  The  invention  was  novel,  and  it  was 
difficult  to  get  members  of  Congress  to  believe  in  the  possibility 
of  success.  The  Honorable  Mr.  Smith,  however,  never  ceased 
his  efforts  in  behalf  of  Morse,  fully  believing  his  telegraph  to 
be,  as  he  declared,  "the  most  wondrous  birth  of  this  wonder- 
teeming  age."  He  succeeded  in  getting  the  entire  committee 
to  sign  the  following  report : 

Mr.  Smith,  from  the  Committee  on  Commerce,  made  the 
following  report,  April  6th,  1838  : 

<;  The  Committee  on  Commerce,  to  whom  the  subject  was 
referred,  have  had  the  same  under  consideration  and  report : 
On  the  3d  of  February,  1837,  the  House  of  Representatives 
passed  a  resolution  requesting  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  to 
report  to  the  House,  at  its  present  session,  upon  the  propriety 
of  establishing  a  system  of  telegraphs  for  the  United  States. 

In  pursuance  of  this  request,  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury, 
at  an  early  day  after  the  passage  of  said  resolution,  addressed 
a  circular  of  inquiry  to  numerous  scientific  and  practical  indi- 


414  HISTORY  OF  THE  AMERICAN  TELEGRAPH. 

viduals  in  different  parts  of  the  Union ;  and  on  the  6th  of 
December  last,  reported  the  result  of  this  proceeding  to  the 
House. 

This  report  of  the  Secretary  embodies  many  useful  sugges- 
tions on  the  necessity  and  practicability  of  a  system  of  tele- 
graphic despatches,  both  for  public  and  individual  purposes ; 
and  the  committee  cannot  doubt  that  the  American  public  is 
fully  prepared,  and  even  desirous  that  every  requisite  effort  be 
made  on  the  part  of  Congress  to  consummate  an  object  of  so 
deep  interest  to  the  purposes  of  government  in  peace  and  in 
war,  and  to  the  enterprise  of  the  age. 

Amid  the  suggestions  thus  elicited  from  various  sources,  and 
embodied  in  the  before  mentioned  report  of  the  Secretary  of 
the  Treasury,  a  plan  for  an  electro-magnetic  telegraph  is  com- 
municated by  Professor  Morse,  of  the  University  of  the  City 
of  New  York,  pre-eminently  interesting,  and  even  wonderful. 

This  invention  consists  in  the  application,  by  mechanism,  of 
galvanic  electricity  to  telegraphic  purposes,  and  is  claimed  by 
Professor  Morse  and  his  associates  as  original  with  them ;  and 
being  so,  in  fact,  as  the  committee  believe,  letters  patent  have 
been  secured,  under  the  authority  of  the  United  States,  for  the 
invention.  It  has,  moreover,  been  subjected  to  the  test  of  ex- 
periment, upon  a  scale  of  ten  miles'  distance,  by  a  select  com- 
mittee of  the  Franklin  Institute  of  the  city  of  Philadelphia, 
and  reported  upon  by  that  eminently  high  tribunal  in  the  most 
favorable  and  confident  terms. 

In  additional  confirmation  of  the  merits  of  his  proposed  sys- 
tem of  telegraphs,  Professor  Morse  has  exhibited  it  in  operation 
(by  a  coil  of  metallic  wire  measuring  about  ten  miles  in  length, 
rendering  the  action  equal  to  a  telegraph  of  half  that  distance) 
to  the  Committee  on  Commerce  of  the  House  of  Representa- 
tives, to  the  President  of  the  United  States,  and  the  several 
heads  of  departments,  to  members  of  Congress  generally,  who 
have  taken  interest  in  the  examination,  and  to  a  vast  number 
of  scientific  and  practical  individuals  from  various  parts  of  the 
Union ;  and  all  concur,  it  is  believed,  and  without  a  dissenting 
doubt,  in  admiration  of  the  ingenious  and  scientific  character 
of  the  invention,  and  in  the  opinion  that  it  is  successfully 
adapted  to  the  purposes  of  telegraphic  dispatches,  and  in  a 
conviction  of  its  great  and  incalculable  practical  importance 
and  usefulness  to  the  country,  and  ultimately  to  the  whole 
world. 

But  it  would  be  presumptuous  in  any  one  (and  the  inventor 
himself  is  most  sensible  of  this)  to  attempt,  at  this  stage  of 
the  invention,  to  calculate  in  anticipation,  or  to  hold  out 


REPORT  OF  COMMITTEE  OF  CONGRESS.  415 

promises  of  what  its  whole  extent  of  capacity  for  usefulness 
may  be,  in  either  a  political,  commercial  or  social  point  of 
view,  if  the  electrical  power  upon  which  it  depends  for  success- 
ful action  shall  prove  to  be  efficient,  as  is  now  supposed  it  will, 
to  carry  intelligence  through  any  of  the  distances  of  fifty,  one 
hundred,  five  hundred  or  more  miles  now  contemplated.  No 
such  attempt,  therefore,  will  be  indulged  in  this  report.  It  is 
obvious,  however,  that  the  influence  of  this  invention  over  the 
political,  commercial,  and  social  relations  of  the  people  of  this 
widely-extended  country,  looking  to  nothing  beyond,  will,  in 
the  event  of  success,  of  itself  amount  to  a  revolution  unsur- 
passed in  moral  grandeur  by  any  discovery  that  has  been  made 
in  the  arts  and  sciences,  from  the  most  distant  period  to  which 
authentic  history  extends  to  the  present  day.  With  the  means 
of  almost  instantaneous  communication  of  intelligence  between 
the  most  distant  points  of  the  country,  and  simultaneously 
between  any  given  number  of  intermediate  points,  which  this 
invention  contemplates,  space  will  be,  to  all  practical  purposes 
of  information,  completely  annihilated  between  the  States  of 
the  Union,  as  also  between  the  individual  citizens  thereof. 
The  citizen  will  be  invested  with,  and  reduce  to  daily  and 
familiar  use,  an  approach  to  the  HIGH  ATTRIBUTE  OF  UBIQUITY, 
in  a  degree  that  the  human  mind,  until  recently,  had  hardly 
dared  to  contemplate  seriously  as  belonging  to  human  agency, 
from  an  instinctive  feeling  of  religious  reverence  and  reserve 
on  a  power  of  such  awful  grandeur. 

Referring  to  the  annexed  report  of  the  Franklin  Institute, 
already  adverted  to,  and  also  to  the  letters  of  Professer  Morse, 
marked  2,  8,  and  9,  for  other  details  of  the  superiority  of  this 
system  of  telegraphs  over  all  other  methods  heretofore  reduced 
to  practice  by  any  individual  or  government,  the  committee  agree 
unanimously,  that  it  is  worthy  to  engross  the  attention  and 
means  of  the  Federal  Government,  to  the  full  extent  that  may 
be  necessary  to  put  the  invention  to  the  most  decisive  test  that 
can  be  desirable.  The  power  of  the  invention,  if  successful, 
is  so  extensive  for  good  or  for  evil,  that  the  Government  alone 
should  possess  the  right  to  control  and  regulate  it.  The  mode 
of  proceeding  to  test  it,  as  suggested,  as  also  the  relations 
which  the  inventor  and  his  associates  are  willing  to  recognize 
with  the  Government  on  the  subject  of  the  future  ownership, 
use,  and  control  of  the  invention,  are  succinctly  set  forth  in 
the  annexed  letters  of  Professor  Morse,  marked  8  and  9. 

The  probable  outlay  of  an  experiment  upon  a  scale  equal  to 
fifty  miles  of  telegraph,  and  equal  to  a  circuit  of  double  that 
distance,  is  estimated  at  $30,000.  Two  thirds  of  this  expen- 


416  HISTORY  OF  THE  AMERICAN  TELEGRAPH. 

diture  will  be  for  material,  which,  whether  the  experiment 
shall  succeed  or  fail,  will  remain  uninjured,  and  of  very  little 
diminished  value  below  the  price  that  will  be  paid  for  it. 

The  estimates  of  'Professor  Morse,  as  .will  be  seen  by  his 
letter,  marked  9,  amount  to  $26,000 ;  but,  to  meet  any  con- 
tingency not  now  anticipated,  and  to  guard  against  any  want 
of  requisite  funds  in  an  enterprise  of  such  moment  to  the 
Government,  to  the  people,  and  to  the  scientific  world,  the 
committee  recommend  an  appropriation  of  $30,000,  to  be  ex- 
pended under  the  direction  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury ; 
and  to  this  end  submit  herewith  a  bill. 

It  is  believed  by  the  committee  that  the  subject  is  one  of 
such  universal  interest  and  importance,  that  an  early  action 
upon  it  will  be  deemed  desirable  by  Congress,  to  enable  the 
inventor  to  complete  his  trial  of  the  invention  upon  the  ex- 
tended scale  contemplated,  in  season  to  furnish  Congress  with 
a  full  report  of  the  result  during  its  present  session,  if  that 
shall  be  practicable. 

All  which  is  respectfully  submitted. 

FRANCIS  0.  J.  SMITH,         JAS.  M.  MASON, 

S.  C.  PHILLIPS,  JOHN  T.  H.  WORTHINGTON, 

SAMUEL  CUSHMAN,  WM.  H.  HUNTER, 

JOHN  I.  DE  GTRAFP,  GTEORGE  "W.  TOLAND, 

EDWARD  CURTIS, 

Committee  on  Commerce,  U.  S.  H.  R." 

Nothing  further  was  effected  at  that  session  of  Congress,  and 
but  little,  hope  was  entertained  that  Congress  would  ever  grant 
the  desired  appropriation.  Mr.  F.  0.  J.  Smith  was  so  well  con- 
vinced of  the  practicability  of  the  system  of  telegraph,  that 
he  abandoned  his  seat  in  Congress,  and  purchased  one  quarter 
interest  in  the  invention  for  Europe  and  America,  under  date 
of  March,  1838.  In  May,  1838,  Professor  Morse  and  Mr. 
Smith  visited  Europe  to  obtain  patents  and  to  make  sales  of 
the  invention.  In  England  a  patent  was  refused,  because  a 
brief  Description  of  the  invention  had  been  published.  In 
France  a  patent  was  granted,  but  by  order  of  the  government 
he  was  forbidden  to  put  it  in  operation,  and  at  the  end  of  two 
years  the  patent  expired.  The  various  efforts  in  Europe  proved 
of  no  avail. 

In  June,  1840,  Professor  Morse  obtained  his  patent  in  the 
United  States,  based  on  the  specification  filed  by  him  in  April, 
1838.  In  December,  1842,  he  petitioned  Congress  again  for 
aid  to  test  the  practicability  of  his  invention,  and  on  the  30th 
of  December  the  Committee  on  Commerce  reoorted  a  bill  in 


CONSTRUCTION  OF  EXPERIMENTAL  LINE.      .  417 

favor  of  appropriating  $30,000  for  that  purpose.  The  bill 
passed  the  House  of  Representatives,  and  in  the  last  hour  of 
the  last  night  of  the  last  session  of  that.  Congress,  March  3d, 
1843,  the  bill  passed  the  Senate,  was  signed  by  the  President, 
and  became  a  law. 

CONSTRUCTION  OF  THE  EXPERIMENTAL  LINE. 

The  experimental  line  between  Washington  and  Baltimore 
was  placed  under  course  of  construction  in  1843.  It  was 
attempted  to  make  it  subterranean.  Two  copper  wires,  covered 
with  cotton  and  gum-lac,  were  drawn  through  a  leaden  tube. 
From  Baltimore  to  the  Relay  House,  nine  miles,  were  thus 
laid  in  the  earth.  On  testing  it  an  earth  circuit  was  found  ; 
not  even  a  mile  of  it  could  be  worked.  The  plan  proved  a 
failure.  Professor  Morse  then,  after  consultation  with  his 
friends,  determined  to  put  the  wires  on  poles.  The  same  cop- 
per wire  that  had  been  drawn  through  the  leaden  tubes  for 
much  of  the  distance  between  Baltimore  and  Washington  were 
taken  from  the  tubing  and  stretched  on  poles. 

In  May,  1844,  the  line  was  completed  between  those  cities, 
and  on  the  27th  day  of  May  the  first  dispatch  was  transmitted 
over  the  line  from  Washington  to  Baltimore.  It  fell  to  the 
lot  of  Miss  Annie  Ellsworth  to  send  that  dispatch,  which  was, 
"WHAT  HATH  GTOD  WROUGHT?"  As  manipulating  assistants, 
Professor  Morse  had  Mr.  Alfred  Vail  and  Mr.  L.  F.  Zantzinger, 
the  former  is  no  more,  and  the  latter  still  remains  attached  to 
the  profession  of  practical  telegraphing,  and  is  the  oldest  now 
in  the  service. 

The  apparatuses  used  were  large  and  weighty.  The  electro- 
magnet weighed  one  hundred  and  eighty-five  pounds,  and  its 
bulky  construction  made  it  necessary  for  two  men  to  handle 
it  whenever  it  had  to  be  moved.  It  was  placed  in  a  large  box. 
Fig.  4  represents,  in  part,  the  receiving  magnet  as  then  used. 

Fig.  4. 


B  B  were  the  coils  of  wire,  three  and  one  half  inches  long  and 
eighteen  inches  in  diameter.  The  soft  iron  bars  are  A  A.  The 
copper  wire  surrounding  the  spools  was  No.  16  copper  wire 
covered  with  cotton  thread.  It  was  then  supposed,  by  Profes- 
sor Morse,  as  indispensably  necessary  that  the  wire  surround- 
ing the  magnets  should  be  the  same  size  as  that  stretched 

27 


418  HISTORY  OF  THE  AMERICAN  TELEGRAPH. 

upon  the  poles  of  the  line.  This  monster  form  of  magnet  was 
continued  for  a  short  time,  and  replaced  by  another  less  in  size, 
devised  by  Professofr  Charles  Gr.  Page.  These  latter  remained 
in  the  service  until  substituted  by  some  of  the  size  now  in  use, 
which  had  been  purchased  by  Professor  Morse  in  France  in  the 
year  1845. 

INVENTION  OF  THE  LOCAL  CIRCUIT. 

In  regard  to  the  invention  of  the  local  circuit,  Professor 
Morse  deposed,  viz. : 

"I  further  state,  that  the  combination  of  machinery  in  con- 
structing my  telegraph  as  put  in  operation  in  1844,  was  differ- 
ent from  that  originally  contemplated  and  described  in  my  first 
patent  in  the  following  respects,  viz. :  The  combined  circuits  of 
my  first  patent,  were  the  combination  of  two  or  more  circuits 
as  links  in  a  main  line  for  the  purpose  of  renewing  the  power 
and  propelling  forward,  indefinitely,  the  electric  current,  in 
such  volume  as  to  render  the  power  more  available  at  the  dis- 
tant point,  and  to  charge  an  electro-magnet  with  sufficient 
magnetic  force  to  work  a  register  or  move  the  lever  of  a  relay 
magnet,  suggested  by  the  probability  indicated  by  my  own 
experiments  and  the  experiments  of  scientific  men,  that  suffi- 
cient magnetic  power  could  not  be  obtained  from  the  electric 
current  through  a  very  long  circuit  to  make  a  mark  of  any  sort. 

This  difficulty  the  undersigned  proposed  to  obviate  by  means 
of  two  or  more  circuits,  each  with  a  battery,  coupled  together 
and  broken  and  closed  by  means  of  the  same  principles  as  the 
receiving  magnet  now  used  ;  these  links  of  one  main  line  are 
to  be  made  so  short  as  to  secure  the  necessary  magnetic  power. 

The  register  was  to  be  placed,  not  in  a  short  circuit,  as  now 
arranged,  but  on  a  link  in  the  main  line.  But  this  arrange- 
ment was  liable  to  the  practical  inconvenience  that  it  would 
always  require  two  lines  of  wire,  both  always  in  order ;  be- 
cause the  receiving  magnet  would  work  only  in  one  direction. 

While  preparing  to  build  the  line  from  Washington  to  Balti- 
more, I  ascertained,  by  experiment  upon  one  hundred  and 
sixty  miles  of  insulated  wire,  and,  sometime  previously,  upon 
thirty-three  miles  of  wire,  that  magnetic  power  sufficient  to 
move  a  metallic  lever  could  be  obtained  from  .the  electric  cur- 
rent of  a  circuit  of  indefinite  length,  and  that  there  was  no 
necessity  for  combining  two  or  more  circuits  together  for  the 
purpose  of  renewing  the  power  at  short  intervals  on  the  main 
line. 

I  then  devised  the  present  combination,  which  enables  me 
to  work  tho  same  wire  both  ways,  dispensing  with  one  of 


IMPROVEMENT  OF  MARKING  APPARATUS.  419 

the  two  wires  originally  supposed  to  be  necessary  under  all 
circumstances.  This  combination  consists  of  one  main  circuit, 
connected  by  the  receiving  magnet  with  as  many  short  office- 
circuits  as  may  be  desired,  upon  wKich  respectively  are  the 
requisite  registers,  and  not  upon  the  lines  of  the  main  line,  as 
originally  contemplated.  Any  of  these  office-circuits  may  be 
separated  from  the  main  line  without  affecting  its  efficiency  ; 
whereas  the  breaking  of  a  link  in  the  chain  of  circuits  origi- 
nally contemplated  would  interrupt  all  communication.  In 
that  combination  the  battery  at  each  station  was  to  perform  the 
double  purpose  of  working  the  register  and  breaking  and  closing 
the  next  circuit  in  the  main  line. 

In  the  present  combination,  the  purpose  of  the  battery  on 
the  main  line  is  to  close  and  break  the  short  independent  office- 
circuit,  which  works  the  register.  This  new  combination  of 
parts  was  a  most  valuable  improvement  upon  my  first  plan. 
A  part  of  this  improvement  was  used  on  the  experimental  line 
between  Washington  and  Baltimore,  for  the  first  time,  in  May, 
1844,  and  the  whole  of  the  improvements  in  the  year  1846. 

The  combination  of  circuits  mentioned  in  my  French  patent 
of  October,  1838,  is  the  same  as  that  mentioned  in  my  Ameri- 
can patent  of  1840,  and  not  that  described  in  my  American 
patent  of  April  llth,  1846." 

IMPROVEMENT  OF  THE  APPARATUS. 

The  original  mode  of  manipulating  the  apparatus  for  mark- 
ing on  paper,  and  the  mode  of  making  those  marks,  were  changed 
before  the  patent  of  1840.  The  crank  and  port-rule  were  pat- 
ented, but  a  better  equivalent  was  found  in  the  lever  key,  as 
in  the  chapter  descriptive  of  the  Morse  telegraph  apparatus. 

The  pen  lever  was  changed  in  its  position,  so  that  instead  of 
making  the  v  lines  it  made  a  dot  or  a  dash.  The  mechanism 
of  fig.  2  can  be  easily  changed  to  make  the  dot  and  dash.  It 
is  only  necessary  to  place  the  paper  cylinders  in  a  perpendicular 
position.  The  face  of  the  paper  will  be  in  front  of  the  reader. 
Change  the  pencil  G  to  a  horizontal  position  in  the  lever,  so 
that  the  marking  end  will  rest  opposite  to  the  surface  of  the 
ribbon  paper.  When  .the  paper  and  the  pencil  are  thus  arranged 
the  following  will  be  the  result.  The  paper  is  moved  forward, 
the  current  causes  the  magnets  to  attract  the  lever,  which 
brings  the  pencil  point  against  the  paper.  The  mark  on  the 
paper  will  be  in  length  proportional  to  the  time  the  lever  is 
held  by  the  magnet.  If  but  a  moment,  a  dot  will  be  made ; 
if  longer,  a  dash.  The  v  marks  will,  therefore,  not  be  made, 
but  in  their  stead,  dots  and  dashes. 


420  HISTORY  OF  THE  AMERICAN  TELEGRAPH. 

The  first  key  was  very  plain  and  simple,  as  well  as  the  other 
parts  of  the  mechanism.  Attached  to  the  marking  lever  were 
fountain  pens,  gotten  up  by  Mr.  Alfred  Vail.  To  each  lever  were 
fastened  four  pens,  which  dropped  the  ink  upon  the  paper. 
After  that  improvement  the  metallic  points  were  adopted. 
There  were  at  first  four  pens,  then  three,  then  two,  and  finally 
one  pen.  The  marking  process  was  soon  abandoned,  and  the 
indenting  of  the  paper  substituted.  The  object  of  having  more 
than  one  pen  was  to  secure  the  mark,  if  one  failed  to  drop  the 
ink  or  to  indent  the  paper  the  others  might  not. 

Many  were  the  improvements  made  to  the  different  parts  of 
the  mechanism.  At  that  time,  and  since  then,  the  ingenious 
telegraphers  throughout  the  world  have,  from  time  to  time, 
devised  important  modifications  to  the  different  parts,  having 
in  view  the  perfection  of  the  mechanism.  The  most  remarkable 
change  has  been  made  in  the  receiving  magnet ;  at  first  it 
weighed  one  hundred  and  eighty-five  pounds,  and  now  it  is 
practically  used  in  weight  less  than  a  pound,  and  so  constructed 
that  it  can  be  carried,  connected  with  the  key,  in  the  pocket. 

ADMINISTRATION  OF  THE  PATENTS. 

After  the  completion  of  the  experimental  line  between  Wash- 
ington and  Baltimore,  the  commercial  advantages  resulting  from 
the  extension  of  the  telegraph  over  the  country  began  to  be 
appreciated.  It  soon  became  a  commercial  affair,  requiring 
peculiar  powers  to  manage  it,  and  to  this  end  the  Honorable 
Amos  Kendall  was  made  the  attorney  for  Messrs.  Morse,  Vails, 
and  Grale,  the  proprietors  of  three  fourths  of  the  patent.  Mr. 
Kendall  had  been  Postmaster-Greneral  of  the  United  States,  and 
had  managed  its  affairs  with  distinguished  ability.  It  was 
such  ability  that  Professor  Morse  brought  to  the  management 
of  his '  telegraph.  Mr.  Kendall  entered  into  the  affairs  with 
great  zeal,  and  in  a  short  time  the  lines  were  being  spread 
throughout  the  country.  Mr.  Kendall  devoted  his  special 
attention  to  the  South  and  Southwest,  and  Mr.  Smith  to  the 
East  and  Northwest.  These  gentlemen  thus  combining  their 
remarkable  powers,  extended  the  telegraph  to  all  the  principal 
towns  and  cities  in  th  e  United  States,  amounting  in  the  aggre- 
gate to  some  forty -five  or  fifty  thousand  miles  of  telegraph 
wires,  all  of  which  are  operated  upon  commercial  principles, 
beneficial  to  the  affairs  of  the  people  and  of  the  government 
of  the  nation. 

I  have  now  followed  the  progress  of  the  Morse  telegraph 
from  its  beginning  until  its  full  development  by  its  extension 
over  the  widespread  territories  of  the  American  Union. 


RECAPITULATION. 


421 


From  the  foregoing  it  will  be  seen  that  Morse  devised  a  sys- 
tem of  telegraphing  in  1832,  and  that  he  made  some  type  for 
the  model ;  that  in  1835-'36,  he  exhibited  it  in  operation  to 
his  friends  in  New- York ;  in  1837  he  devised  his  system  of 
combined  circuits ;  in  1844  he  applied  the  local  circuit,  without 
the  combination  of  circuits  on  the  main  line,  and  on  the  27th 
day  of  May,  1844,  he  worked  successfully  the  line,  forty  miles 
long,  from  Baltimore  to  Washington ;  and  that  the  first  dispatch, 
benign  in  its  source  and  conception,  was, 

"WHAT  HATH  (TOD  WROUGHT?" 


THE  MORSE  TELEGRAPH  APPARATUSES, 


CHAPTER    XXXII. 

The  Early  Telegraph  Instruments — Modern  Lever  Key— The  Early  Circuit 
Changer — Modern  Circuit  Closers — Nottebohn's  Circuit  Changer — Binding 
Connections— The  Electro-Magnet  of  1844— The  Modern  Relay  Magnet— 
The  Receiving  Register — The  Sounder. 

THE    EARLY    TELEGRAPH    INSTRUMENTS. 

THE  present  chapter  will  be  devoted  to  the  description  of  the 
various  parts  of  the  Morse  telegraph  apparatuses,  which  have 
been  and  are  in  use  for  practical  telegraphy. 

The  original  patented  instruments  were  soon  superseded  by 
mechanism  more  convenient  for  the  peculiar  service.  On  the 
experimental  line  constructed  between  Baltimore  and  Wash- 
ington, the  register  was  similar  to  that  represented  by  fig.  1, 
having  three  pen  points  to  indent  the  letter  into  the  paper. 
The  perspective  view  shows  the  whole  instrument.  The 
electro-magnet  H  H,  the  pen-lever  L,  and  the  armature  F,  will 
be  better  seen  on  reference  to  fig.  3,  which  represents  a  part  of 
fig.  1.  Numerals  1,  1,  1,  of  fig.  1,  represents  the  reel  of  paper, 
with  its  axle  at  Y,  fitted  into  the  brass  standard  u  at  12  ;  2,  2, 
is  the  paper  coming  from  the  reel,  passing  between  the  rollers 
E  F,  as  seen  in  fig.  2;  11  is  a  metallic  trough  ;  and  3  is  the 
paper  after  it  has  been  marked  by  the  pen  points  R  ;  4  is  the 
weight  that  puts  in  motion  the  clockwork  revolving  wheel  B, 
fig.  2,  to  which  is  fastened  the  pulley  R',  with  an  endless  band 
10,  which  puts  in  motion  the  wheel  Q.  Fig.  3  represents  the  rear 
part  of  fig.  1,  showing  the  electro-magnet.  The  letters  a  b,  in 
figs.  1  and  3,  are  the  line  wires,  one  running  to  the  battery, 
and  the  other  to  the  telegraph  poles.  "When  the  current  passes 
through  the  coils,  H  H,  the  armature  F  is  attracted,  and  the 
lever  w  attached  is  elevated  in  the  direction  of  the  arrow, 
causing  the  small  steel  points  R  to  puncture  the  paper  passing 


THE    EARLY    TELEGRAPH    INSTRUMEMTS 


424 


THE    MORSE    TELEGRAPH    APPARATUSES. 


between  them  and  the  roller  T  T.  In  fig.  1  will  be  seen  the 
key  6,  7,  8,  and  9,  shown  on  a  large  scale  by  fig.  4.  v  v  is 
the  platform ;  8  is  a  metallic  anvil,  with  its  smaller  end 
appearing  below,  to  which  is  fastened  the  copper  wire  c ;  7  is 
the  metallic  hammer  attached  to  the  brass  spring  9,  which  is 
secured  to  the  block  6,  and  the  whole  to  the  platform.  The 
copper  wire  d  is  fastened  to  the  brass  spring  9,  and  the  other 
end  to  the  line  wire ;  c  to  b,  and  a  runs  to  the  voltaic  battery. 
In  order  to  close  the  circuit  between  7  and  8,  fig.  4,  it  was 
the  custom  to  place  between  them  a  metallic  wedge.  Suppose 
the  distant  station  is  communicating  to  fig.  1,  the  current 

Fig.  2. 


would  traverse  the  line,  enter  by  the  copper  wire  d,  pass 
through  the  key  lever  9,  thence  through  7  and  the  wedge 
between  7  and  8,  thence  with  the  copper  wire  c  united  to  b, 
thence  through  the  magnet  coils,  thence  to  a  and  to  the 
battery.  Such  were  the  original  instruments  used  on  the  first 
line  of  telegraph  constructed  in  America. 

For  a  long  time  the  mode  of  making  the  mark  on  the  paper 
was  the  subject  of  much  study,"  and  it  finally  resulted  in  the 
abandonment  of  all  inks,  and  the  adoption  of  the  steel  point  to 
indent  the  paper.  The  next  question  of  equal  solicitude  was 
the  mode  of  opening  and  closing  the  voltaic  circuit.  The 
original  port  rule  system  was  not  satisfactory,  and  the  later 


THE    EARLY    TELEGRAPH    INSTRUMENTS. 


425 


mode — the  use  of  the  key  and  wedge,  represented  in  figs.  1 
and  4 — was  objectionable,  as  it  did  not  firmly  close  the  circuit. 

Fig.  3. 


It  was  proposed  to  use  a  key-board,  represented  by  figs.  5,  6, 
and  7. 

Figs.  5  and  6  exhibit  views  of  the  keyed  correspondent,  with 
its  clockwork.     A'  represents  a  top  view  of  it,  and  B'  is  a  side 

Fig.  4. 


or  front  view.  1111,  of  both  views,  represent  the  long 
cylinders  of  sheet  brass,  covered  with  wood  or  some  insulating 
substance,  except  at  the  black  lines,  which  represent  the  form 
of  the  letters,  made  of  brass,  appearing  at  the  surface  of  th6 
cylinder  and  extending  down  and  soldered  to  the  interior  brass 
cylinder.  A  cross  section  of  the  cylinder  is  seen  at  D',  of  which 


426 


THE    MORSE    TELEGRAPH    APPARATUSES. 


the  blank  ring  is  the  brass  cylinder,  and  the  blank  openings  to 
the  outer  circle  the  metallic  forms  of  the  letter  j,  and  the 
shaded  portion  of  the  circle  represents  the  insulating  substance, 
covering  the  whole  surface  of  the  cylinder,  except  where  the 
letter-forms  project  from  the  interior.  Every  letter  and  parts 
of  each  letter  are  in  metallic  connection  with  the  brass  cylinder. 
At  each  end  of  the  cylinder  is  a  brass  head,  with  its  metallic 
journal,  and  the  journal  or  arbor  turns  upon  its  centre  in  a 
brass  standard,  17,  secured  to  the  vertical  frame.  To  this 
standard  is  soldered  the  copper  wire  N,  connected  with  the 
negative  pole  of  the  battery.  There  are  together  thirty-seven 
letters  and  numerals  upon  the  cylinder,  and  made  to  correspond 

Fig.  5. 


Fig.  6. 


THE    EARLY    TELEGRAPH    INSTRUMENTS. 


427 


to  the  letters  of  the  telegraphic  alphabet.  To  each  of  these 
there  is  a  separate  key,  directly  over  the  letter  cylinder.  Each 
key  has  its  button,  with  its  letter  A,  B,  c,  D,  &o.,  marked  upon 
it,  and  beneath  the  button  in  a  frame  of  brass  is  a  little  friction 
roller.  The  key  is  a  slip  of  thin  brass,  so  as  to  give  it  the 
elasticity  of  a  spring,  and  is  secured  at  the  thicker  end  by 
two  screws  to  a  brass  plate,  extending  the  whole  length  of  the 
cylinder,  so  as  to  embrace  the  whole  number  of  keys.  This 
plate  is  also  fastened  to  the  vertical  mahogany  frame.  At  the 
right-hand  end  of  the  brass  plate  is  soldered  a  copper  wire, 
leading  to  the  positive  pole  of  the  battery,  after  having  made 
its  required  circuit  through  the  coils  of  the  magnet,  &c.  It  is 

Fig.  5. 


/8 


Fig.  6.       - 


428  THE    MORSE    TELEGRAPH    APPARATUSES. 

clear  that  if  any  one  of  the  keys  is  pressed  down  upon  any 
portion  of  a  metallic  letter,  that  the  circuit  is  completed  :  the 
voltaic  fluid  will  pass  to  the  brass  plate  to  which,  p,  wire  is 
soldered  ;  thence  along  the  plate  to  the  spring  or  key  ;  then  to 
the  small  friction  roller  beneath  the  button  ;  then  to  that  por- 
tion of  any  letter  with  which  it  is  in  contact ;  then  to  the 
interior  brass  cylinder,  to  the  arbor ;  then  to  the  brass  standard, 
and  along  the  negative  wire,  soldered  to  it,  to  the  battery.  I 
have  now  to  explain  in  what  manner  the  cylinder  is  made  to 
revolve  at  the  instant  any  particular  key  is  pressed,  so  that  the 
metallic  form  of  the  letter  may  pass  at  a  uniform  rate  under 
the  roller  of  the  key ;  breaking  and  connecting  the  circuit  so 
as  to  write  at  the  register,  with  mechanical  accuracy,  the  letter 
intended. 

4  4  is  the  platform  upon  which  the  parts  of  the  instrument 
are  fastened.  3  3  is  the  vertical  wooden  back,  or  support,  for 
the  keys  and  brass  "standard,  17.  2  is  the  barrel  of  the  clock- 
work contained  within  the  frames,  5  5.  With  the  clockwork  a 
fly  is  connected  for  regulating  its  motion,  and  a  stop,  &,  for 
holding  the  fly,  when  the  instrument  is  not  in  use ;  6  is  a  very 
fine-tooth  wheel,  on  the  end  of  the  letter  cylinder  ;  7  is  also  a 
fine-tooth  wheel,  on  a  shaft  driven  by  the  clock  train.  In  the 
front  view  is  seen,  at  9,  another  fine-tooth  wheel,  suspended 
upon  a  lever,  the  end  of  which  lever  is  seen  at  8,  fig.  5,  A'. 
18  is  a  stop  in  the  standard,  17,  to  limit  the  return  motion  of 
the  cylinder,  which  also  has  a  pin  at  18,  at  right  angles  with 
the  former.  16  is  a  small  weight,  attached  to  a  cord,  and  at 
its  other  end  is  fastened  to  the  cylinder  at  b.  The  relative 
position  of  the  three  fine-tooth  wheels,  and  the  lever  8,  are 
better  seen  in  a  section  of  the  instrument,  fig.  7.  The  same 
figures  represent  the  same  wheels  as  in  the  other  views,  A' 
and  B'.  7  is  the  wheel  driven  by  the  weight  and  train  ;  6  the 
wheel,  on  the  end  of  the  cylinder,  to  which  motion  is  to  be 
communicated ;  and  9  is  the  wheel,  suspended  upon  the  end  of 
the  lever  8,  of  which  10  is  its  centre.  1  1  is  the  brass-lettered 
cylinder.  11  and  13  the  buttons  of  the  two  keys,  one  a  little 
in  advance  of  the  other.  14  is  the  spring,  and  the  two  friction 
rollers  of  the  key  may  be  seen  directly  under  the  buttons. 
15  is  the  stop  pin.  16  the  small  weight  and  cord  attached 
to  the  cylinder,  to  bring  it  back  after  each  operation.  4  4  is 
the  end  view  of  the  mahogany  platform.  The  arrows  show  the 
direction  which  the  wheels  take  when  the  lever  is  pressed  with 
the  thumb  of  the  left-hand  at  8,  so  as  to  bring  wheel  9  up 
against  7  and  6,  connecting  the  two,  as  shown  by  the  dotted 
lines.  Wheel  7,  communicating  its  motion  to  9,  and  9  to  6, 


THE    EARLY    TELEGRAPH    INSTRUMENTS. 


429 


which  causes  the  metallic  letters  to  pass  under  the  rollers  in 
the  direction  of  the  arrow.  Now,  in  order  to  use  the  instru- 
ment, let  it  be  supposed  a  letter  is  to  be  sent.  The  stop  a, 
fig.  5,  AX,  is  removed  from  the  fly,  and  the  clockwork  is  set  in 
motion  by  the  large  weight.  Then  the  thumb  of  the  left  hand 
presses  upon  the  lever  8,  at  the  same  time  key  R  is  pressed 
down  by  the  finger  of  the  right  hand,  so  that  the  small  roller 
comes  in  contact  with  the  cylinder.  At  the  instant  the  roller 
touches  the  cylinder,  the  letter  begins  to  move  under  the  small 
roller,  making  and  creaking  the  circuit  with  mechanical  accu- 
racy. When  the  letter  has  passed  under  the  small  roller,  the 

Fig.  7. 


thumb  is  taken  off  the  lever  8,  and  the  finger  from  the  key  R. 
The  cylinder  is  then  detached  from  its  geer  wheel  9,  and  the 
weight,  16,  instantly  carries  it  back  to  its  former  position,  in 
readiness  for  the  next  letter.  Then  the  lever  8,  and  the  key  E 
are  pressed  down  at  the  same  instant  for  the  next  letter,  and  it 
is  carried  under  the  small  roller  in  the  same  manner  as  the 
first,  which,  when  finished,  the  wheel  9  is  suffered  to  fall,  and 
the  cylinder  returns  to  its  natural  position  again.  The  same 
manipulation  is  repeated  for  the  remaining  letters  of  the  word. 
In  fig.  8  is  represented  the  flat  correspondent.  It  somewhat 


430 


THE    MORSE    TELEGRAPH    APPARATUSES. 


resembles  the  keyed  correspondent,  but  without  keys  or  clock- 
work. A  represents  the  arrangement  of  the  letters,  presenting 
a  flat  surface.  Those  portions  in  the  figure  marked  by  black 
lines  and  dots  represent  the  letters  which  are  made  of  brass. 
That  portion  which  is  blank  represents  ivory  or  some  hard 
insulating  substance  surrounding  the  metal  of  the  letters.  As 
in  the  keyed  correspondent,  each  letter  and  parts  of  each  letter 
extend  below  the  ivory,  and  are  soldered  to  a  brass  plate,  the 
size  of  the  whole  figure  A.  A  sectional  view  of  this  is  seen  at 
1  ll  which  is  ivory,  and  2  2,  the  brass  plate  below.  The  whole 
is  fastened  to  a  table,  B.  5'  and  5/  is  a  brass  plate,  called  the 
guide  plate,  with  long  openings,  represented  by  the  blanks,  so 

Fig.  12. 


•     H     B 


• 

•  • 

•  D 


1 

1 

•^-Vvw- 

, 

^ 

* 

,•/ 

• 

-•r- 

"" 



; 

. 

; 

»0 

I 

• 
, 

fQ 

£ 

i 

> 

* 

•v~>^w\ 

THE    EARLY    TELEGRAPH.  INSTRUMENTS.  431 

that  when  the  guide  plate,  5X  5X,  is  put  over  the  form,  A,  each 
opening  is  directly  over  its  appropriate  letter,  and  is  a  little 
longer  than  the  length  of  the  letter.  4X  and  4X  is  the  wooden 
frame,  to  which  the  guide  plate  is  secured.  The  ends  of  this 
frame  are  seen  in  the  sectional  figure  at  4  4,  and  the  guide 
plate  at  5  5  ;  the  dark  portions  of  which  represent  the  parti- 
tions, and  the  blanks  the  openings.  It  will  be  observed  here 
that  the  plate  5  5,  resting  upon  the  wooden  frame  4  4,  is  com- 
pletely insulated  from  the  brass  letter  plate  1  1  and  2  2  ;  the 
blank  space  between  them  showing  the  separation.  It  is,  how- 
ever, necessary  that  the  guide  plate  should  be  connected  with 
one  pole  of  the  battery,  and  the  letter  plate  with  the  other  pole. 
For  this  purpose  a  brass  screw,  F,  passes  up  through  the  table 
B,  and  through  4  into  the  guide  plate  5  5.  The  head  of  the 
screw  has  a  small  hole  through  it,  for  passing  in  the  end  of  the 
copper  wire  G  from  the  battery,  and  a  tightening  screw  below, 
by  which  a  perfect  connection  is  made.  At  D  is  another  screw, 
passing  through  the  table  and  into  the  letter  plate  22.  To  the 
head  of  this  screw  is  also  connected  another  copper  wire,  E, 
extending  to  one  of  the  poles  of  the  battery. 

This  instrument,  when  used,  occupies  the  place  of  the  key 
or  correspondent,  in  the  description  heretofore  given  of  the 
register.  The  circuit  is  now  supposed  to  be  complete,  except 
between  the  guide  plate  5  5,  and  the  letter  plate  2  2.  Now,  if 
a  metallic  rod  or  pencil,  o,  be  taken,  and  the  small  end  passed 
through  one  of  the  openings  in  the  shield  above  the  letter,  its 
point  will  rest  upon  the  ivory  ;  and  if  it  be  gently  pressed  late- 
rally against  the  side  of  the  opening  of  the  guide  plate,  at  the 
same  time  a  gentle  pressure  is  given  to  it  upon  the  ivory,  and 
then  drawn  in  the  direction  of  the  arrow  4X,  it  is  obvious  that 
when  the  metallic  current  reaches,  for  instance,  the  short  line 
of  letter  B,  the  circuit  will  be  closed;  and  the  fluid  will  pass 
from  the  battery  along  the  wire  to  the  screw  F,  then  to  the 
guide  plate,  along  the  plate  to  the  rod,  thence  to  the  metallic 
short  line  of  letter  B,  thence  to  the  letter  plate  below,  thence  to 
the  screw,  from  the  screw  to  the  wire,  and  thence  to  the 
battery.  When  the  point  has  passed  over  the  short  metallic 
line,  it  reaches  the  ivory,  and  the  circuit  is  broken. 

The  next  and  most  important  improvement  was  the  manip- 
ulating key,  represented  by  fig.  9,  which  has  been  in  universal 
use  since  the  first  year  of  the  establishment  of  the  experi- 
mental line  in  1844.  This  was  called  t'he  "  lever  key." 

A  A  is  the  block  or  table  to  which  the  parts  are  secured ;  E 
represents  the  anvil  block  ;  j  the  anvil,  screwed  into  the  block, 
both  of  brass ;  B  is  another  block,  for  the  stop  anvil  K,  and  the 


432 


THE    MORSE    TELEGRAPH    APPARATUSES. 


standard  for  the  axis  of  the  lever  c  ;  L  is  the  hammer,  and  is 
screwed  into  the  lever,  projecting  downward  at  v,  almost  in 
contact  with  the  anvil  j  ;  R  is  another  screw  of  the  same  kind, 
but  in  contact  with  the  anvil  K,  when  the  lever  c  is  not  pressed 
upon.  Under  the  head  of  each  of  these  two  screws  are  tighten- 
ing'screws,  which  permanently  secure  the  two  hammers  to 
any  adjusted  position  required  for  the  easy  manipulation  of  the 
lever  c ;  D  is  a  spring  which  sustains  the  arm  of  the  key  up, 
preventing  the  hammer  L  from  making  contact  with  the  anvil 
J  when  not  in  use  ;  G  is  a  screw  connecting  with  the  brass 
block  B,  and  F  a  screw  connecting  with  the  block  E.  To  these 
.screws  the  two  wires,  i  and  H,  of  the  battery  are  connected. 
Now,  in  order  to  put  it  in  operation,  it  is  necessary  to  bring 
the  hammer  v  in  contact  with  the  anvil  j  for  so  long  a  time, 

Fig.  9. 


and  at  such  regular  intervals  as  are  required  by  the  particular 
letters  of  the  communication.  When  the  key  is  pressed  down, 
the  fluid  passes  from  the  battery  to  the  wire  H,  then  to  the 
screw  G,  then  to  the  block  B,  then  to  the  lever  c,  at  the  axis  s, 
then  to  its  metallic  anvil  j,  then  to  its  screw  F,  then  to  the 
wire  T,  and  so  to  the  battery. 

In  order  to  give  some  idea  of  the  rapidity  with  which  the 
circuit  may  be  closed  and  broken,  and  answered  by  the  motion 
of  the  lever,  fig.  10  is  here  introduced  to  explain  its  con- 
struction and  arrangement.  The  platform  is  shown  at  T,  and 
the  upright  at  s,  to  which  the  coils  of  the  electro-magnet  A  are 
secured  by  a  bolt  with  its  thumb  nut  E  ;  D  a  projecting  prong 
of  the  soft  iron,  and  c  the  armature  attached  to  the  metallic 
lever  B,  which  has  its  axis  or  centre  of  motion  at  K,  in  the  same 
manner  as  the  electro-magnet  of  the  register,  R  being  the 
standard  through  which  the  screws  pass  ;  o  is  the  steel  spring 
secured  to  R,  by  a  plate  u  upon  it,  and  the  screw  N  ;  L  and  M 


THE    EARLY    TELEGRAPH    INSTRUMENTS. 


433 


are  adjusting  screws,  for  the  purpose  of  confining  the  motion  of 
the  lever  B  within  a  certain  limit,  p  is  a  wire  with  an  eye  at 
the  top,  through  which  the  end  of  the  steel  spring  passes,  with 
a  hook  at  the  other  end  passing  through  the  lever.  The  wire 
Q  from  one  of  the  coils  is  connected  with  the  plate  u,  at  the. top 
of  the  standard  R.  As  the  standard  R  is  of  brass,  the  plate  u, 
the  axis  of  the  lever  of  steel,  and  the  lever  B  of  brass,  all  of 
them  being  metals  and  conductors  of  the  voltaic  fluid,  they 
are  made  in  this  arrangement  to  serve  as  conductors,  i  is  the 
wire  proceeding  from  the  other  coil,  and  is  extended  to  one  pole 
of  the  battery.  The  wire  H,  coming  from  the  other  pole,  is 
soldered  to  the  metallic  spring  J,  which  is  secured  to  the  up- 


Fig.  10. 


1.  JNT  M 


right  s  by  means  of  the  adjusting  thumb  screws  F  and  G.  This 
spring  is  extended  to  j,  where  it  is  in  contact  with  the  lever  B. 
We  have  now  a  complete  circuit.  Commencing  at  i,  which  is 
connected  with  one  pole  of  the  battery,  thence  it  goes  to 
the  first  coil ;  then  to  the  second ;  then  by  Q  to  u,  the  plate  ;  then 
to  the  standard  R  ;  then  to  the  steel  screw  K  ;  then  to  the  steel 
axis;  and  then  to  the  lever  to  the  point  j,  where  it  takes  the 
spring  to  H,  the  wire  running  to  the  mercury  cup  of  the  other 
pole  of  the  battery. 

The  battery  being  now  in  action,  the  fluid  flies  its  circuit  ; 
D  becomes  a  powerful  magnet,  attracting  c  to  it,  which  draws 
the  lever  down  in  the  direction  of  the  arrow  x.  But  since  B 

28 


434 


THE    MORSE    TELEGRAPH    APPARATUSES. 


and  j  are  a  part  of  the  circuit  at  v,  and  since,  by  the  downward 
motion  at  x,  and  the  upward  motion  at  v,  the  circuit  is  broken 
at  j,  the  consequence  is,  that  the  current  must  cease  to  pass, 
and  D  can  no  longer  be  a  magnet ;  the  lever  at  v  returns  to  j, 
and  the  current  again  flows. 

Such  were  the  original  instruments  and  plans  of  the  early 
telegraph  in  America.  I  will  now  present  illustrations  of  some 
of  the  more  modern  apparatuses,  with  such  descriptions  of  them 
as  may  be  necessary  to  enable  the  reader  to  understand  their 
respective  parts. 

MODERN  LEVER  KEYS. 

The  lever  key,  represented  by  fig.  9,  is  in  principle  still  in 
practical  use  on  all  the  Morse  telegraphs  on  both  continents. 
Fig.  11  represents  a  key  in  much  use.  A  c  is  the  brass  frame. 
The  lever  is  suspended  between  the  combination  screws  H  H, 
passing  through  the  upright  pieces,  G  G,  of  A  c.  The  axle  of 
the  lever  D  is  steel,  and  it  fits  into  the  sockets  of  the  screws  H  H. 
To  make  the  key  move  easy  upon  its  bearings,  many  operators 
improperly  use  oil.  At  E  is  an  ivory  cylinder,  which  passes 
through  the  brass  frame  A  ;  in  the  interior  of  E  is  a  brass  piece, 
upon  the  top  of  which  is  a  projecting  platina  head.  This* part 
of  the  key  is  called  the  anvil,  and  the  subtending  or  hanging 
nipple  to  the  lever  D  is  called  the  hammer.  The  knob  B  is 
made  of  ivory,  so  as  to  insulate  the  finger  of  the  operator.  The 
heaviest  part  of  the  lever  is  behind ;  its  normal  position  is,  as 
seen  in  the  figure,  open  at  E.  The  circuit  wires  are  connected 
under  the  table  on  which  the  key  is  fastened,  so  that  the 

Fig.  11. 


MODERN    LEVER    KEY. 


435 


current  will  pass  through  the  brass  frame  A  c  G,  the  screw  H  n, 
the  axle  of  the  lever  at  F,  with  the  lever  to  the  hammer  and 
anvil  at  E,  and  then  with  the  wire  attached  beneath.  "When 
the  operator  presses  upon  B,  the  lever  descends  and  closes  the 
circuit  at  E,  the  weight  of  the  back  part  of  the  key  elevates 
the  front.  This  key  requires  an  apparatus  known  as  a  "  circuit 
closer,"  which  will  shortly  be  described. 

Fig.  12  represents  a  key  with  the  "  circuit  closer"  attached. 

Fig.  12. 


A  is  a  small  lever,  with  an  ivory  knob  on  its  end.  In  the 
present  position  of  the  lever  A  the  circuit  is  closed,  but  to  move 
it  to  the  left  at  right  angles  with  the  key  lever  the  circuit  will 

Fig.  13. 


436 


THE    MORSE    TELEGRAPH    APPARATUSES. 


be  opened.  In  swinging  the  arm  to  a  position  at  right  angles, 
a  brass  spring  is  brought  firmly  against  a  pin  of  steel  attached 
to  the  anvil. 

Fig.  13  is  a  closed  lever  key.  The  front  part  is  heavy,  and 
closes  the  circuit  at  the  anvil  by  its  own  weight.  When 
manipulated,  the  operator  lifts  the  lever  instead  of  pressing 
upon  it,  as  with  the  other  forms  of  keys.  In  order  to  make  it 
an  "  open  lever,"  a  spiral  spring  is  placed  around  the  high 
screw  behind ;  the  spiral  spring  wTill  force  down  the  back  part 
and  .elevate  the  front,  as  seen  in  the  figure. 

Fig.  14  represents  another  form  of  key,  having  in  front  an 
insulated  elevating  spring,  to  raise  the  lever  from  a  contact  at 

Fig.  14. 


the  anvil  unless  pressed  by  the  finger.  The  spring  projects 
from  the  frame  and  holds  up  the  lever,  as  seen  in  the  figure. 
The  spring  of  course  is  insulated,  so  as  not  to  form  a  part  ot 
the  circuit. 


THE    EARLY    CIRCUIT    CHANGERS. 


Having  explained  the  lever  key,  it  becomes  necessary  to 
describe  the  different  arrangements  for  opening  and  closing  the 
circuit,  and  the  plans  adopted  for  the  transference  of  the 
polarity  of  the  circuits. 

In  the  early  history  of  the  telegraph,  it  was  common  to  have 
an  arrangement  of  mercury  cups,  with  bent  wires  connecting 
one  with  the  other,  according  to  the  necessities  of  the  occasion. 
These  mercury  cups  were  often  auger-holes  bored  into  ^the 
table  or  a  piece  of  plank,  and  the  metallic  connectors  used 
were  the  ordinary  copper  wires. 

I  introduce  here  a  description  of  an  instrument  used  for 
reversing  the  direction  of  the  voltaic  current,  and  which  is 
applied  in  the  operation  of  several  kinds  of  electric  telegraphs. 

The  following  figures,  15,  16,  and  17,  are  three  views  of  the 
instrument  as  it  appears  when  looking  down  upon  it  in  its 
three  changes.  First,  that  in  which  the  current  is  broken  and 


THE    EARLY    CIRCUIT    CHANGERS. 


437 


the  needle  vertical ;  second,  in  which  the  circuit  is  closed  and 
the  needle  deflected  to  the  right ;  third,  in  which  the  circuit  is 
closed  and  the  needle  deflected  to  the  left.  Each  figure  has, 
in  connection  with  the  pole  changer,  the  battery,  or  any  other 
generator  of  the  electric  fluid,  represented  by  N  and  p,  and  the 
electrometer  represented  by  G.  In  each  of  the  figures,  the 
circles  numbered  1,  2,  3,  4,  5,  6,  7,  and  8,  represent  cups  filled 
with  mercury  let  into  the  wood  of  the  platform,  and  made 
permanent.  The  small  parallel  lines  terminating  in  these  cups 
represent  copper  wires  or  conductors. 

A,  fig.  15,  represents  a  horizontal  lever  of  wood,  or  some 
insulating  substance,  with  its  axis  supported  by  two.  standards, 
B  and  c,  by  which  it  can  easily  vibrate.  D  represents  an  ivory 
ball,  mounted  upon  a  rod,  inserted  in  the  lever,  and  extending 
a  few  inches  above  it.  It  serves  as  a  handle,  by  which  to 
direct  the  elevation  or  depression  of  either  end  of  the  lever. 
Both  ends  of  the  lever  branch  out,  presenting  two  arms  each. 
Through  each  arm  passes  a  copper  wire,  insulated  from  each 
other.  The  left-hand  branches  support  the  wires  which  con- 
nect the  mercury  cups  1  and  4,  and  2  and  3  together  ;  the 
right-hand  branches  support  the  wires  which  connect  the  cups 
5  and  7,  and  6  and  8,  together.  The  ends  of  these  wires 
directly  over  the  mercury  cups  are  bent  down,  so  that  they 
may  freely  enter  their  respective  vessels  when  required  ;  the 
other  wires  are  permanently  secured  to  the  platform.  The 

Fig.  15. 


position  of  the  lever  is  now  horizontal,  and  the  bent  ends  of 
the  wires,  which  it  carries,  are  so  adjusted,  that  none  of  them 
touch  the  mercury  ;  consequently,  there  is  no  connection  formed 
between  the  battery  and  electrometer,  and  the  needle  is 
vertical.  The  ivory  ball,  it  will  be  observed,  is  directly  over 
the  centre  of  the  axis,  and  in  that  position  required  to  break 
the  circuit.  Thus,  the  wires  2  and  3,  1  and  4,  5  and  7, 
6  and  8,  are  each  out  of  the  mercury,  and  the  circuit  being 
broken  the  fluid  cannot  pass. 


438 


THE    MOI»E    TELEGRAPH    APPARATUSES. 


Fig.  1 6  represents  those  connections  which  are  formed  when 
the  left-hand  side  of  the  lever  is  depressed,  immersing  in  the 
mercury  those  wires  supported  by  it.  The  ball  and  lever  are 
omitted  for  the  better  inspection  of  the  wires.  Now  the  circuit 
is  closed,  and  the  current  is  passing  from  P  of  the  battery,  to 
the  mercury  cup,  1 ;  then  along  the  cross  wire  to  4  ;  to  8  ;  to 
the  coils  of  the  multiplier,  deflecting  the  needle  to  the  right  : 
then  to  7 ;  to  3 ;  then  along  the  cross  wire  (which  is  not  in 
contact  with  wire  1  and  4)  to  2 ;  to  the  N  pole  of  the  battery. 
The  arrows  also  show  the  direction  of  the  current.  It  will  be 
observed  that  the  cups  5  and  7,  and  6  and  8  are  not  now  in 

Fig.  16. 


connection,  and  consequently  the  current  cannot  pass  along  the 
wires  1  and  5,  and  2  and  6. 

Now,  if  the  ball  D  is  carried  to  the  right,  a  new  set  of  wires, 
fig.  17,  are  immersed,  and  those  represented  in  fig.  16,  as  in 
connection,  are  taken  out  of  their  cups.  The  fluid  now  passes 
from  p  of  the  battery,  to  the  mercury  cup  1 ;  to  5  ;  to  7  ;  to 
the  coils  of  the  multiplier,  deflecting  the  needle  to  the  left ; 
then  it  passes  to  cup  8 ;  to  6  ;  to  2 ;  and  then  to  the  N  pole  of 
the  battery  ;  the  arrows  representing  the  direction  of  the 
current.  It  will  now  be  found  that  the  cups,  2  and  3,  and 
1  and  4,  are  not  in  connection ;  and  consequently,  the  current 
cannot, pass  along  the  wires,  3  and  7,  and  4  and  8. 

Thus,  it  will  appear,  that  by  carrying  the  ball  D  to  the  left, 

Fig.  17. 


MODERN    CIRCUIT    CLOSERS. 


439 


the  needle  is  deflected  to  the  right ;  then,  by  carrying  the 
ball  to  the  right,  the  needle  is  deflected  to  the  left ;  and  when 
the  ball  is  brought  to  the  vertical  position,  the  needle  is 
vertical.  These  three  changes  enter  into  the  plans  of  several 
electric  telegraphs,  which  are  to  be  hereafter  described. 

MODERN    CIRCUIT    CLOSERS. 

In  later  years,  the  mercury  cups  have  been  abandoned,  and 
metallic  connectors  are  used  in  their  stead.  Fig.  18  represents 
a  circuit  closer,  that  accompanies  the  keys  represented  by  fig. 
11.  The  base  A  is  made  of  wood ; 
between  A  and  c  is  a  brass  pin 
serving  as  a  stop  to  the  lever  B. 
The  lever  moves  around  a  fulcrum 
at  the  centre  ;  c  c  are  the  top 
ends  of  the  elongated  screws, 
D  D,  the  lower  ends  of  which  are 
attached  to  the  circuit  wires ; 
these  screws  pass  through  the 
table  board.  The  line  wires 
enter  the  holes  as  seen  in  the 
larger  ends  of  the  screws,  and 
the  binding  screws  E  hold  the 
wires  with  a  good  metallic  con- 
tact ;  F  is  a  spring  which  causes 
the  lever  to  press  upon  the  upper 
ends  of  D  D.  This  is  the  normal 
position  of  the  circuit  closer.  The 
key  is  open  and  the  current 
passes  from  the  wire  into  the 
long  screw  D  at  E,  thence  through 
the  lever  from  c  to  c,  thence  down 
D  to  the  line  wire.  If  the  operator 
desires  to  manipulate  with  his 
key,  it  is  necessary  to  move  the  lever  B  from  c,  to  the  phi 
by  which  the  circuit  is  broken,  and  then  upon  pressing  the 
lever  of  the  key,  the  circuit  is  again  closed.  Whenever  the 
operator  has  finished  manipulating,  it  is  necessary  to  close  the 
circuit  by  placing  the  lever  arm  of  fig.  18  in  its  present  posi- 
tion. 

Figs.  19,  20,  21,  and  22,  are  circuit  closers  of  different  forms, 
but  constructed  upon  the  same  principle  as  fig.  18. 

Like  arrangements  are  used  for  the  transference  of  circuits 
from  one  apparatus  to  another.  There  are  a  variety  of  arrange- 
ments for  effecting  this  end.  Figs.  23  and  24  are  in  common 


440 


THE  MORSE  TELEGRAPH  APPARATUSES, 


use  in  America.  On  the  Western  Union  lines,  Mr,  Anson 
Stager  has  applied  a  very  ingenious  circuit  changer,  having 
metallic  straps  across  a  hoard,  and  a  hinge  lever  to  transfer 

Fig.  19. 


Fig.  20. 


Fig.  22. 


Fig.  21. 


NOTTEBOHN  S    CIRCUIT    CHANGER. 


441 


the  current  from  one  place  to  another.    It  is  a  compound  "  switch 
board,"  and  is  fastened  upon  the  wall,  so  that  any  operator  in 

Fig.  23. 

Fig.  24, 


the  room  can  see  from  his  place  the  arranged  circuits.     Fig. 
23  is  a  single,  and  fig.  24  is  a  double  switch. 

NOTTEBOHN'S  CIRCUIT  CHANGER. 
An  ingenious  contrivance  was  gotten  up  by  Mr.  Nottebohn, 

Fig.  25. 


442 


THE  MORSE  TELEGRAPH  APPARATUSES. 


director-general  of  the  Prussian  telegraphs,  for  the  purpose  of 
changing  the  circuits.  Fig.  25  represents  the  circuit  changer 
used  on  the  Prussian  lines.  It  consists  of  six  "brass  pieces,  or 
plates,  insulated  by  means  of  ivory,  and  situated  upon  a  square 
piece  of  plank.  Between  the  plates  are  seven  holes,  numbered 

from  1  to  7.     By  means  of  the  metallic  plug,  fig. 

25a,  placed  in  one  of  the  holes,  between  two  plates, 

¥a  metallic  connection  is  established.  For  example, 
if  the  metallic  plug  is  placed  in  hole  number 
3,  a  connection  is  made  between  the  upper  plate 
and  the  plate  4,  6,  L.  The  holes  8  and  9  in  the 
plank  are  merely  to  contain  the  plugs  when  not  in  use.  By 
means  of  the  bolt  1  the  line  wire  coming  from  one  side  is 
fastened — for  example,  from  Berlin  through  ^  to  the  sjde 
going  to  Minden — and  at  E  the  wire  leading  to  the  earth  is 
fastened.  Letters  o1  and  G2  are  vertical  electrometers ;  R  o  is 
connected  with  the  apparatus  by  means  of  numeral  2  ;  and  R  u 
by  means  of  numeral  1 ;  and  by  means  of  bolt  3  with  £ .  The 
copper  end  of  the  battery  K  is  connected  with  the  earth,  and 
the  zinc  end  with  the  instrument.  In  the  writing  apparatus, 
the  wire  of  the  local  battery  proceeds  from  bolts  m  and  iv. 
E  E  are  the  earth  plates.  The  board  containing  these  circuit 
connections  is  fastened  to  the  wall  at  some  convenient  place, 
and  thence  run  the  wires  to  the  different  apparatuses. 


BINDING    CONNECTIONS. 


The  wires  in  the  stations  are  often  changed  and  discon- 
nected from  the  apparatus,  battery,  or  other  parts.     To  faoili- 


Fig  26. 


Fig.  27. 


tate  the  handling  of  the  wires,  screw-standards,  such  as  fig. 
26  and  26a,  are  attached  to  the  instruments.     The  wire  enters 


ELECTRO-MAGNET    OF    1844. 


443 


a  hole,  and  the  screw  A,  to   the  right,  binds  the  wire  fast. 
Figs.  27  and  28  are  for  uniting  two  ends  of  the  wire  together. 


Fig.  26a. 


Fig.  28. 


Figs.  29  and  30  are  for  making  the  connection  between  the 
wires  and  the  arms  of  the  battery. 

Fig.  30. 


Fig.  29. 


THE    ELECTRO-MAGNET    0F    1844. 

The  next  telegraphic  apparatus  which  I  propose  to  describe 
is  the  electro-magnet  of  1844.  It  is  one  of  the  most  important 
parts  of  the  system,  and  one  that  every  operator  should  well 
understand.  There  are  two  kinds,  the  register  magnet  and 
the  relay  magnet.  The  name  of  the  latter  is  not  strictly 
proper,  but  in  its  understood  sense  it  means  an  electro-magnet 


444 


THE    MORSE    TELEGRAPH    APPARATUSES. 


that  is  placed  in  the  main  circuit  for  the  purpose  of  putting 
into  action  another,  a  local  or  secondary  circuit.  In  the  under- 
stood sense,  as  a  telegraphic  technicality,  I  use  the  term  relay 
magnet. 

The  magnet  first  used  on  the  American  telegraph  in  1844 
was  as  represented  by  figs.  31  and  32,  and  was  thus  described 
by  Mr.  Vail : 

"  The  electro-magnet  is  the  basis  upon  which  the  whole  inven- 
tion rests  in  its  present  construction  ;  without  it,  it  would 
entirely  fail.  As  it  is  of  so  much  importance,  a  detailed 
account  will  be  given  of  the  construction  of  the  electro-magnet, 
as  used  for  telegraphic  purposes.  A  bar  of  soft  iron,  of  the 
purest  and  best  quality,  is  taken  and  made  into  the  form  pre- 
sented in  fig.  31,  which  consists  of  four  parts — viz.,  A  F  and  A  F 
are  the  two  legs  or  prongs  of  the  magnet,  of  a  rounded  form, 
and  bent  at  the  top,  approaching  each  other  toward  the  centre, 
where  the  ends  of  each  prong,  without  touching,  turn  up  and 


Fig.  31. 


Fig.  32. 


present  flat,  smooth,  and  clean  surfaces,  level  with  each  other, 
at  F  F.  The  other  end  of  these  prongs  or  legs  is  turned  smaller 
than  the  body,  on  the  end  of  which  is  a  screw  and  nut,  c  c. 
These  ends  pass  through  a  plate  of  iron,  B,  of  the  same  quality, 
at  i  and  i,  until  they  rest  upon  the  plate  at  the  shoulder  pro- 
duced by  turning  them  smaller.  They  are  then  both  perma- 
nently secured  to  the  plate  B  by  the  nuts  c  c,  and  the  whole 
becomes  as  one  piece.  This  arrangement  is  made  for  the  pur- 
pose of  putting  on  the  coils  or  taking  them  off  with  facility. 
The  form  most  common  for  electro-magnets  is  that  of  the  horse- 
shoe ;  and  is  simply  a1  bar  of  iron  bent  in  that  form.  E  repre- 
sents a  small  flat  plate  of  soft  iron,  sufficiently  large  to  cover 
the  faces  of  the  two  prongs  F  and  F,  presenting  on  its  under 


ELECTRO-MAGNET    OF    1844.  445 

side  a  surface  clean  and  smooth,  and  parallel  with  the  faces, 
F  and  F. 

The  coils  or  helices  of  wire  which  surround  the  prongs  A  A, 
necessary  to  complete  the  electro-magnet,  consist  of  many 
turns  of  wire,  first  running  side  hy  side,  covering  the  form 
upon  which  the  spiral  is  made,  until  the  desired  length  of  the 
coil  is  obtained ;  the  wire  is  then  turned  back,  and  wound 
upon  the  first  spiral,  covering  it,  until  the  other  end  of  the  coil 
is  reached,  where  the  winding  began ;  then  again  mounting 
upon  the  second  spiral,  covers  it,  and  in  the  same  manner  it  is 
wound  back  and  forth,  until  the  required  size  of  the  coil  is 
attained. 

The  coil  is  wound  upon  a  form  of  the  size  (or  a  little  larger) 
of  the  legs  of  the  magnet,  and  when  the  coil  is  completed,  the 
form  is  taken  out,  leaving  an  opening  in  the  centre,  B,  into 
which  the  prongs  may  freely  pass.  Fig.  32  represents  a  coil 
constructed  in  the  manner  described.  A  and  A  are  the  two 
ends  of  wire  which  are  brought  out  from  the  coils.  The  one 
proceeds  from  the  centre  of  the  coil,  and  the  other  from  the 
outside,  c  and  c  are  circular  wooden  heads,  on  each  end  of 
the  coil,  and  fastened  to  it  by  binding  wire,  running  from  one 
head  to  the  other  around  the  ceil.  The  wire  used  in  construct- 
ing it,  as  heretofore  mentioned,  is  covered  in  the  same  manner 
as  bonnet  wire,  and  saturated  or  varnished  with  gum  shellac. 
This  preparation  is  considered  necessary,  in  order  to  prevent  a 
metallic  contact  of  the  wires  with  each  other.  Such  a  contact 
of  some  of  the  wires  with  others  encircling  the  iron  prong 
would  either  weaken  or  altogether  destroy  the  effect  intended 
by  their  many  turns.  If  the  wires  were  bare  instead  of  being 
covered,  the  electric  fluid,  when  applied  to  the  two  ends,  A  and 
A,  instead  of  passing  through  the  whole  length  of  the  wire  in 
the  coil  as  its  conductor,  would  pass  laterally  through  it  as  a 
mass  of  copper,  in  the  shortest  direction  it  could  take.  For  this 
reason  they  require  a  careful  and  more  perfect  insulation. 
Two  coils  are  thus  prepared  for  each  magnet,  one  for  each 
prong  A  and  A,  fig.  31." 

Such  was  the  construction  of  the  magnets  in  1844.  The 
wire  was  large,  and .  one  pair  of  coils  weighed  185  pounds. 
Since  then  the  ingenious  spirit  of  the  age  has  reduced  the  size 
and  weight ;  the  usual  weight  does  not  exceed  from  one  to  two 
pounds  ;  the  wire  is  very  fine,  and  well  covered  or  insulated 
with  silk.  The  mechanism  has  very  much  changed  ;  so  much 
so,  in  fact,  that  the  telegrapher  unacquainted  with  the  facts  in 
the  case,  would  not  suppose  the  magnets  above  described  ever 
belonged  to  the  telegraph. 


446         THE  MORSE  TELEGRAPH  APPARATUSES. 


THE  MODERN  RELAY  MAGNET. 

The  modern  relay  magnets  are  of  many  forms  of  construc- 
tion. I  will  describe  one  of  them  in  detail.  Fig.  33  repre- 
sents the  magnet  as  it  sets  upon  the  table,  with  its  wooden 
base,  having  at  each  corner  binding  posts.  The  line  wire 
enters  the  hole  in  the  post  A,  and  is  bound  by  the  screw  in  its 
top.  To  the  post  A  is  soldered  the  copper  wire  leading  to  the 
spools  or  coils  of  the  magnet.  One  end  of  the  insulated  wire 
that  surrounds  the  coils  is  joined  to  the  wire  that  leads  to  the 
post  A  ;  the  other  end  of  the  spool  wire  is  in  the  same  manner 
connected  with  the  post  M.  The  current  from  the  line  wire 
enters  the  station  and  follows  the  conductor  to  the  post  A, 
thence  through  the  magnet  coils,  thence  to  post  M,  and  thence 
to  the  battery. 

The  local  circuit  is  united  to  the  posts  B  and  c ;  the  lower 

.  Fig.  33. 


end  of  post  B  is  connected  by  a  wire  beneath  the  base  to  the 
metallic  frame  G  ;  the  other  local  post,  c,  is  connected  by  a 
wire  underneath  to  the  metallic  standard  H  ;  the  armature  D 
is  attached  to  a  brass  upright  lever,  on  the  side  of  which,  near 
E,  is  fixed  a  piece  of  platina  ;  K  is  an  adjusting  screw,  with 
an  insulating  point,  F,  made  of  ivory  ;  L  is  another  adjusting 
screw,  with  a  platina  point  E.  The  upright  lever  attached  to 
the  armature  D  does  not  touch  the  brass  arm  H.  Suppose  a 
current  is  transmitted  over  the  line  wire  ;  it  traverses  the  coils 
and  produces  magnetism  in  the  cores  of  the  spools.  The  arma- 
ture D  is  then  attracted  toward  the  magnet,  and  the  upright 
lever  is  brought  into  contact  with  the  platina  point  E,  which 
closes  the  local  circuit.  The  current  from  the  local  battery 
will  then  flow  with  the  copper  wire  conductor  to  the  post  B, 


THE  MODERN  RELAY  MAGNET. 


447 


thence  to  the  metallic  axle  frame  G,  thence  up  the  lever  of  the 
armature,  thence  with  the  screw  E,  thence  with  the  brass  work 
H,  thence  underneath  the  board  to  post  c,  and  from  there 
through  the  register  magnets  to  the  other  end  of  the  battery. 
This  completes  the  local  voltaic  circuit.  If  the  circuit  be 
broken  at  E,  the  local  battery  fails  to  act.  Every  time  the 
current  is  transmitted  over  the  line  by  the  contact  of  a  key  at 
a  distant  station,  the  current  flows  through  the  relay  magnet  t 
the  local  circuit  is  then  closed,  and  the  local  battery  curreni 


448 


THE    MORSE    TELEGRAPH    APPARATUSES. 


passes  through  the  register  magnets,  which  causes  the  pen 
lever  to  mark  upon  the  paper.  If  the  magnetism  in  the  cores 
be  too  strong,  the  armature  D  is  drawn  farther  from  their  ends 
by  the  adjusting  screw  o,  to  the  end  of  which  is  attached  a  silk 
thread  or  cord.  This  cord  is  tied  to  one  end  of  a  spiral  spring, 
N,  the  other  end  being  fastened  to  the  armature  lever.  These 
explanations  are,  I  presume,  sufficient  to  enable  the  reader  to 
understand  the  application  of  the  relay  magnet  in  the  telegraph 
apparatus. 


THE  MODERN  RELAY  MAGNET.  449 

Fig.  34  represents  a  relay  magnet  with  adjustable  coils.  By 
turning  the  screw  at  the  left  of  the  engraving,  the  spools  or 
helices  can  be  drawn  from  the  armature  or  placed  closer  to  it, 
as  circumstances  require.  It  is  best  for  the  armature  lever  to 
be  poised  on  its  axle,  and  when  the  adjusting  screws  are  all 
arranged,  it  is  easier  to  remove  the  coils  backward  or  forward 
by  the  one  screw,  than  to  readjust  the  armature  lever  by  the 
three  screws  L  K  and  o,  as  seen  in  fig.  33.  This  valuable  im- 
provement was  invented  by  Mr.  Thomas  Hall,  of  Boston,  who 
has  been  engaged  in  the  manufacture  of  telegraphic  appa- 
ratuses since  the  commencement  of  the  enterprise.  By  his 
ingenious  mechanical  skill  many  very  valuable  improvements 
have  been  made,  arid  the  telegrapher  has  realized  many  advan- 
tages in  the  service  by  the  application  of  Mr.  Hall's  contri- 
vances in  the  different  departments  of  the  art. 

Fig.  35  is  another  form  of  a  relay  magnet,  manufactured  by 
the  same  gentleman.  The  line  wire  is  connected  to  the  various 
parts  beneath  the  base  board. 

Fig.  36  is  another  improved  relay  magnet,  gotten  up  by 

Fig.  86. 


those  energetic  telegraphers,  Messrs.  Chester  and  Brothers. 
The  coils  of  this  magnet  are  covered  with  a  glass  case,  set  in  a 
brass  frame  with  hinged  top.  The  coils  are  moveable  by  an 
adjusting  screw  outside  of  the  glass.  At  one  end  of  the  board 
is  attached  a  paratonnerre,  with  the  earth  wire  connected  to 
the  centre  post.  The  line  wire  is  fastened  to  the  posts  at  each 
end  of  the  paratonnerre.  If  the  lightning  enters  the  station, 
it  passes  from  the  inner  to  the  outer  brass  plate  between  the 
two  posts  in  preference  to  traversing  the  coils.  If  the  wire 
from  one  end  of  the  brass  plate  is  not  connected  with  the  earth, 

29 


450 


THE    MORSE    TELEGRAPH    APPARATUSES. 


and  both  ends  lead  on  to  other  stations  on  each  side,  the  plus 
lightning  will  pass  over  to  the  exterior  or  right-hand  brass 
plate  and  follow  the  earth  wire  from  the  centre  post,  seen  in 
the  figure.  This  excellent  combination  is  worthy  of  the 
highest  appreciation. 

Fig.  37  is  a  pocket  relay  magnet ;  it  is  small,  and  weighs 
about  one  pound.  The  coils  are  fitted  in  a  little  case,  and  all 
the  arrangements  for  wire  connections  are  perfect.  On  the 
side  is  attached  a  small  key,  so  that  an  operator  can  manipulate 


with  it  as  perfectly  as  with  the  larger  keys  of  the  station. 
The  binding  posts  at  the  right  hand  end  receive  the  line  wires. 
The  current  traverses  the  coils,  and  the  armature  lever  makes 
the  telegraphic  sound,  and  the  expert  operator  is  thus  enabled 
to  transmit  and  receive  information  with  the  same  perfection, 
common  at  the  stations.  Repairers  find  this  miniature  mag- 
net of  great  value. 

Fig.  38  represents  what  has  been  commonly  known  in  Amer- 
ica as  the  Bain  sounder.  It  is  the  ordinary  relay  magnet, 
with  one  or  more  glass  disks  attached  to  it  as  seen  in  the 
figure.  It  was  used  as  a  call  magnet  on  the  lines  not  having 
the  patented  authority  to  work  the  Morse  system.  The  Bain 


THE    RECEIVING    REGISTER.  451 

lines  applied  this  magnet,  so  that  the  stations  could  hear  the 

"call"  when  wanted  by  a  distant  station.  The  armature 

Fig.  38. 


striking  upon  the  glass  disk,  a  distinct  and  intelligible  sound 
was  made. 

THE    RECEIVING    REGISTER. 

The  next  apparatus  to  be  described  is  the  register,  an 
instrument  of  simple  construction,  and  perfectly  effective  in 
the  recording  of  the  dispatch.  The  register  herein  before 
described  was  a  complete  success.  Subsequent  improvements 
have  added  to  the  exactness  of  the  mechanism,  and  rendered  it 
as  reliable  and.  durable  in  its  service  as  possible  to  be  attained 
in  the  art. 

Fig.  39  represents  an  improved  register,  exhibiting  the  clock- 
work and  magnets.  The  pen-lever  is  seen  in  the  figure  with 
the  steel  point  projecting  upward;  the  magnets  are  fastened 
to  the  upriglit  standard.  The  wire  from  the  local  battery  con- 
nects with  the  front  standard,  and  it  is  then  carried,  as  seen  in 
the  figure,  to  the  front  coil;  after  surrounding  it  and  the  rear 
spool,  it  is  united  with  the  rear  standard.  The  wire  surround- 
ing these  magnets  is  not  so  fine  as  the  wire  used  for  the  relay 
magnets.  The  local  battery  circuit  commences  with  the 
platina  end  of  the  battery,  and  runs  to  the  relay  magnet,  and 
passes  through  the  connections  at  that  instrument  as  before 
described  ;  thence  it  comes  to  the  register,  and  through 
the  coils ;  it  then  runs  to  the  zinc  end  of  the  battery,  which 
completes  the  local  circuit.  Whenever  the  relay  magnet,  fig. 
34,  attracts  the  armature,  the  local  circuit  is  closed  at  E,  and 


452 


THE  MORSE  TELEGRAPH  APPARATUSES. 


the  local  current  traverses  the  coils  of  the  register  magnet,  fig. 
39,  which  generates  magnetism  in  the  cores,  the  armature  is 
then  attracted  down,  which  elevates  the  other  end  of  the  lever, 
and  the  pen  point  is  thus  caused  to  puncture  the  ribbon  paper, 


as  seen  in  fig.  40.  The  clockwork  being  in  motion,  the  paper 
is  drawn  through  .by  the  grooved  rollers,  and  thus  a  clear  piece 
of  paper  is  continually  presented  for  indentation  by  the  pen 
point.  The  clockwork  is  wound  up  by  the  key,  seen  in  the 
figure,  and  it  is  set  in  motion  or  stopped  by  the  stop  slide,  the 
handle  of  which  is  seen  at  the  centre  and  under  the  mechanism. 

Fig.  40. 


THE    RECEIVING    REGISTER. 


453 


Fig.  41  represents  an  improved  register,  manufactured  by 
the  Messrs.  Chester.  It  is  one  of  beautiful  finish  and  perfec- 
tion of  mechanism.  The  base  is  of  pure  Italian  marble,  highly 

Fig.  41 


454 


THE    MORSE    TELEGRAPH    APPARATUSES 
Fig.  42. 


THE  TELEGRAPHIC  SOUNDER.  455 

polished.  It  is  encased  in  glass,  with  an  opening  at  the  top 
with  a  hinge. 

The  arrangement  for  winding  up  this  register  is  on  the  out- 
side of  the  glass  case,  which  can  be  done  while  the  clockwork 
is  running.  The  pen-lever  is  also  arranged  to  open  and  close 
another  main  circuit  serving  the  purposes  of  a  "  repeater/' 
The  wire  connections  are  made  outside  with  the  binding  posts, 
as  seen  in  the  figure. 

Fig.  42  is  a  closed  register,  manufactured  by  Mr.  Thomas 
Hall.  The  clock-work  is  enclosed  in  a  brass  or  iron  case.  In 
front  is  a  hinged  opening,  which,  when  open,  occupies  the 
position  indicated  by  the  dotted  lines  to  the  left.  This  register 
has  been  extensively  used  on  railway  telegraph  lines,  and  it 
has  given  universal  satisfaction.  The  clock-work  once  put  in 
order  remains  so  for  a  very  long  time,  and  the  wheels  are  thus 
enabled  to  move  with  the  desired  celerity.  It  has  all  the 
necessary  and  improved  appliances  for  adjusting  and  regu- 
lating the  different  parts,  and  the  whole  embraces  everything 
necessary  to  render  it  useful  and  economical. 

THE    TELEGRAPHIC    SOUNDER. 

Fig,  43  represents  a  sounder,  as  now  successfully  usecLvin 
many  of  the  American  telegraph  stations.  The  register,  wTth 
all  its  clock-work,  marking  on  paper,  and  accompaniments,  has 
been  laid  aside  at  the  leading  stations,  and  this  simple  appa- 
ratus has  taken  its  place.  The  coils  are  the  same  as  those 

Fig  43. 


used  in  the  register  ;  the  lever  is  made  substantial,  and  the 
local  current  causes  the  magnet  cores  to  attract  the  armature 
with  great  strength,  and  thus  a  good  clear  sound  is  made,  by 
which  the  operator  in  any  part  of  the  room  can  hear  and 
understand  what  is  communicated  by  any  other  station  on  the 
whole  line. 


456 


THE    MORSE    TELEGRAPH    APPARATUSES. 


Fig.  44  is  another  form  of  the  sounder  ;  the  lever  is  adjusted 
at  the  end  by  the  spiral  spring,  seen  in  the  figure.  Some 
operators  prefer  one  mode  of  construction,  and  others  choose  a 
different  kind  ;  some  prefer  a  heavy  sound,  others  can  hear 
more  distinctly  a  lighter  tone.  The  sense  of  hearing  is  not 
the  same  with  all  operators,  and  it  is  but  natural  that  there 
should  be  a  difference  in  choice  as  to  the  sounder. 

Of  all  the  mysterious  agencies  of  the  electric  telegraph, 
there  is  nothing  else  so  marvellous  as  the  receiving  intelligence 
by  sound.  The  apparatus  speaks  a  language,  a  telegraphic 
language,  as  distinct  in  tone  and  articulation  as  belong  to  any 


THE    TELEGRAPHIC    SOUNDER. 


457 


tongue.  The  sound  that  makes  the  letter,  is  as  denned  in  the 
one  as  it  is  in  the  other.  An  operator  sits  in  his  room,  per- 
haps some  ten  feet  from  his  apparatus,  and  he  hears  a  con- 
versation held  between  two  others,  hundreds  of  miles  distant, 
and  perhaps  the  parties  conversing  are  equally  as  far  apart. 
He  hears  every  word ;  he  laughs  with  them  in  their  merri- 
ment, or  perhaps  sympathizes  with  them  in  their  bereavements. 
The  lightning  speaks,  and  holds  converse  with  man !  What 
can  be  more  sublime  ! 


INTERIOR   OF,  AN    AMERICAN  TELE- 
GRAPH STATION, 


CHAPTER    XXXIII. 

Receiving  Department  of  a  Telegraph  Station — The  Operating  or  Manipulating 
Department — Receiving  Dispatches  by  Sound — Incidents  of  the  Station — 
Execution  of  an  Indian  Respited  by  Telegraph. 

RECEIVING    DEPARTMENT    OF    A    TELEGRAPH    STATION. 

IN  the  present  chapter  I  will  explain  the  routine  of  the  in- 
terior of  a  telegraph  station  on  the  American  lines.  The  public 
reception  rooms  are  sometimes  on  the  lower  floor,  so  that  en- 
trance may  be  direct  from  the  street.  At  many  of  the  offices, 
it  is  in  the  second  story.  Figure  1  represents  the  public  recep- 
tion room  in  the  Cincinnati  Station.  Behind  the  counter  are 
seen  the  receiving  clerks ;  in  front  is  the  public  department.  At 
convenient  places  are  arranged  tables  or  stands  on  which  are 
placed  pencils  and  blanks  to  be  used  in  writing  dispatches  to 
be  transmitted.  A  copy  of  these  blanks  will  be  found  at  the 
end  of  this  chapter,  marked  A.  It  is  not  necessary  to  write  the 
dispatch  with  ink,  and  in  fact  it  is  the  universal  practice  to 
use  the  ordinary  lead  pencil ;  the  paper  used,  is  generally  soft 
and  receives  the  lead  so  that  the  writing  can  be  easily  read. 
"When  the  dispatch  is  handed  to  the  receiver  at  the  counter,  the 
words  are  counted  and  endorsed  on  its  margin.  No  regard  is 
given  to  the  signature,  and  the  receiver  may  know  it  to  be 
fictitious,  yet  he  promptly  receives  the  dispatch  and  the  money 
for  its  transmission.  The  blank  form  A  has  been  adopted  re- 
cently on  several  of  the  American  lines,  but  it  is  not  compulsory 
to  use  them.  In  short,  messages  are  received  and  sent  from 
any  one  offering,  whether  upon  the  company's  blanks  or  upon 
any  other  kind  of  paper. 


THE    RECEIVING    DEPARTMENT. 
Fig.   1. 


459 


460  INTERIOR    OF    AMERICAN    TELEGRAPH    STATION. 

The  general  reception  room  represented  in  the  figure,  was 
arranged  by  Mr.  Charles  Davenport,  who,  for  many  years,  has 
been  energetically  engaged  in  that  most  difficult  department, 
discharging  his  trust  with  more  than  ordinary  skill.  There  is 
no  part  of  the  telegraph  service  more  tedious  and  perplexing 
than  the  administration  of  the  reception  department.  Thou- 
sands of  people  send  their  dispatches  hundreds  of  miles,  and 
know  not  but  what  they  go  and  their  answers  come  the  same 
instant.  Far  in  the  West,  I  have  known  persons  to  offer  dis- 
patches for  the  extreme  East,  some  twelve  or  fifteen  hundred 
miles  distant,  passing  over  the  lines  of  some  half  a  dozen  com- 
panies, and  expect  the  answer  while  they  are  waiting  at  the 
counter.  It  becomes  the  duty  to  explain  to  the  anxious  and 
uninformed  public  the  cause  of  the  delay  of  a  dispatch.  The 
answer  is  generally  anxiously  expected,  because  it  may  refer  to 
some  speculation,  the  death  of  a  friend  or  relative,  or  of  some- 
thing of  great  import  to  the  parties.  The  mysterious  workings 
of  the  telegraph  are  but  little  known  to  the  public,  and  the 
most  respectful  tone  has  to  be  observed,  by  the  receiver,  in  his 
explanations.  The  service  of  the  receiver  is  an  art,  and  one 
that  requires  more  than  ordinary  powers,  manners  and 
amiability  of  disposition  to  discharge. 

I  have  not  deemed  it  necessary  to  embrace  in  this  work  the 
fiscal  details  of  the  telegraph,  nor  is  it  easy  for  the  European 
reader  to  comprehend  the  celerity  and  economy  practically 
observed  on  the  American  lines.  In  the  city  of  New  York  I 
have  estimated  the  number  of  dispatches  transmitted  daily  at 
2,430,  or  for  the  year  about  739,000.  But  this  is  in  the  great 
metropolis.  At  Cincinnati,  a  city  in  the  far  West,  where  a  little 
more  than  a  half  century  in  the  past,  there  were  but  a  few  log 
huts  to  be  seen,  now  the  telegraph  largely  enters  into  the  com- 
mercial affairs  of  the  public,  and  through  that  station  an  ave- 
rage of  about  950  dispatches  pass  daily,  or  about  385,000  per 
annum.  To  execute  this  great  amount  of  business  there  are 
employed  12  operators,  2  book-keepers,  2  receiving  clerks,  and 
14  messengers. 

To  the  left  of  the  public  room,  in  fig.  1,  is  the  messenger 
or  delivery  department.  To  the  left  of  the  receiving  space  is 
the  cashier's  room.  Such  is  the  arrangement  of  the  reception 
department  of  the  Cincinnati  office,  of  the  great  Western  Union 
Range  of  telegraph  lines. 

THE    OPERATING    DEPARTMENT. 

The  operating  department  is  in  the  story  above  the  receiving 
room.  A  representation  will  be  seen  in  fig.  2.  In  this  station 


THE    OPERATING    DEPARTMENT. 

Fig.  2. 


461 


462  INTERIOR    OF    AMERICAN    TELEGRAPH    STATION. 

the  sounding  apparatuses  are  wholly  used.  No  recording 
mechanism  is  there  employed.  The  register,  and  the  moving 
ribbon  paper  are  no  more  to  -be  seen  in  that  station.  The  en- 
graving gives  a  very  correct  idea  of  the  interior  of  the  manip- 
ulating department.  The  operator  sits  at  a  small  table,  on 
which  is  the  manipulating  key,  the  magnet,  and  the  sounder. 
These  three  pieces  of  mechanism  constitute  the  whole  of 
the  telegraphic  apparatus.  The  operator  transmits  by  the  key 
and  receives  by  the  sounder.  As  fast  as  the  dispatches  are  re- 
ceived from  the  public,  they  are  sent  to  the  operating  room  by 
a  pulley,  and  then  distributed  to  the  proper  files  of  the  routes 
over  which  they  are  to  be  sent.  The  operator  takes  them  from 
the  files,  and,  in  turn,  transmits  them  to  their  respective  desti- 
nations. 

RECEIVING    DISPATCHES    BY    SOUND. 

The  process  of  receiving  by  the  operator  is  as  follows,  viz. : 
He  has  before  him  on  the  table  the  blanks  represented  by  the 
form  B,  at  the  end  of  this  chapter.  He  fills  the  blank  with  the 
date,  address,  and  the  message  as  it  arrives.  He  receives  it  by 
sound,  and  writes  it  in  ink  upon  the  blank.  When  thus  re- 
ceived it  is  .sent  to  the  delivery  department  by  a  pulley,  and 
there  it  is  registered,  placed  in  an  envelope,  entered  into  the 
messenger's  book,  and  then  immediately  delivered.  This  is 
the  whole  formality,  and  the  time  occupied  does  not  necessarily 
exceed  five  minutes,  if  the  party  for  whom  the  dispatch  is  in- 
tended lives  within  a  square  of  the  station.  If  the  dispatch 
thus  delivered  requires  an  answer,  the  messenger  returns  with 
it,  and  it  is  immediately  forwarded. 

INCIDENTS     OF    THE    STATION. 

After  the  dispatches  received  from  the  public  at  the  station 
have  been  sent,  they  are  registered,  that  is,  the  names  to  and 
from,  the  date,  and  the  amount.  The  originals  are  then  filed. 

The  wire  from  the  line  enters  the  office  at  the  window,  and 
is  connected,  first  with  the  paratonnerre,  and  then  with  the 
"  circuit  changer "  on  the  side  of  the  wall,  and  thence  it 
is  conducted  to  the  magnet  and  thence  to  the  battery  wires. 

The  foregoing  description  of  the  interior  department  of  the 
telegraph,  embraces  the  whole  routine  therein  executed.  The 
whole  formality  is  based  upon  celerity  and  the  most  complete 
promptness.  Practically,  an  expert  operator  can  send  or  receive 
by  sound,  two  thousand  words  per  hour,  and  serve  ten  hours 
per  day,  making  20,000  words  per  day,  and  the  twelve  operators, 


INCIDENTS    OF    THE    STATION.  463 

represented  in  fig.  2,  can  send  and  receive  240,000  words  per 
day.  According  to  this  data,  it  will  be  seen  that  the  capacity 
of  the  line  for  transmission  of  intelligence  is  equal  to  the  most 
expert  manipulation.  It  is  in  contemplation,  by  some  lines,  to 
apply  mechanism  by  which  the  general  news  may  be  sent  with 
more  rapidity  than  by  hand.  Contrivances  have  been  made  by 
which  twenty  thousand  words  per  hour  may  be  successfully 
transmitted.  The  day  is  not  far  distant  when  this  will  be  a 
daily  achievement.  Ten  years  ago,  each  line  in  the  station  had 
the  most  complete  set  of  apparatuses.  The  register  for  re- 
ceiving was  manufactured  with  the  greatest  care,  so  that  the 
clock-work  would  move  with  perfection,  the  paper  had  to  be 
adjusted  on  cylinders,  and  the  various  appliances  had  to  be 
arranged  in  a  particular  form.  The  operator  put  the  machinery 
in  motion,  and  he  read  from  the  paper  the  dispatch  as  it  was 
slowly  received.  He  read  aloud,  and  the  copyist,  near  by, 
wrote  it  down  with  a  pencil ;  and  when  thus  finished,  it  was 
handed  to  the  copying  clerk,  whose  duty  it  was  to  copy  it  on 
the  forms  as  represented  by  B.  It  was  then  enveloped  and 
handed  to  the  messenger  for  delivery. 

Expert  telegraphers  soon  dispensed  with  the  copyists,  then 
followed  the  dismissal  of  the  copying  clerks,  and  soon  there- 
after, the  recording  instruments  were  laid  aside.  The  first 
operator  to  practically  receive  by  sound  was  Mr.  Edward  F. 
Barnes,  of  New  York,  and  at  that  day  it  was  regarded  as  a  feat 
most  extraordinary.  But  now  it  is  the  daily  practice  in  all  the 
leading  telegraph  stations  in  America — only  the  local  or  interior 
stations  have  in  use  the  recording  apparatuses. 

If  a  telegrapher  cannot  receive,  perfectly,  by  sound,  he  is 
not  regarded  as  an  expert,  and  the  ambitious  young  man  ceases 
not  until  he  has  fully  attained  that  degree  of  perfection. 

Some  years  ago,  as  president  of  a  telegraph  line,  I  adopted 
a  rule  forbidding  the  receiving  of  messages  by  sound.  Since 
then  the  rule  has  been  reversed,  and  the  operator  is  required  to 
receive  by  sound  or  he  cannot  get  employment  in  first  class 
stations.  At  the  Cincinnati  stations,  for  example,  there  is  not 
a  recording  apparatus,  and,  of  course,  if  an  operator  cannot 
read  the  language  uttered  by  the  mysterious  messenger,  as 
transmitted  over  the  wires,  he  cannot  have  employment  there. 
No  mistakes  are  made,  and,  in  fact,  many  experts  have  inform- 
ed me  that  the  ear  proves  to  be  more  reliable  than  the  mechanism. 

It  is  quite  common  for  the  operator  to  take  with  him,  when 
he  proceeds  upon  the  line  to  repair  it,  a  small  pocket  magnet, 
and  when  he  arrives  at  the  place  of  difficulty,  to  communicate 
back  to  his  office.  Some  operators  care  not  for  even  this  small 


464  INTERIOR    OF    AMERICAN    TELEGRAPH    STATION. 

mechanism,  preferring  to  manipulate  by  striking  the  wires  to- 
gether, and  then  receive  with  the  tongue,  by  placing  one  wire 
above  and  the  other  wire  below  it.  The  voltaic  pulsations  will 
be  felt  on  the  tongue,  and  the  dots  and  dashes  are  thus  recog- 
nized as  to  time  by  the  sense  of  feeling.  In  latter  days  practice 
has  gone  farther,  and  a  second  party  has  received  intelligence 
from  a  distant  office  by  noticing  the  quivering  of  the  nerves  of 
the  tongue  of  another,  who  had  the  wires  attached  as  above 
described.  These  latter  modes  of  receiving,  of  course  can  nevei 
be  used  for  practical  telegraphing,  but  they  are  common  in  the 
repairing  service,  and  have  been  for  several  years. 


EXECUTION    OP      AN    INDIAN    RESPITED    BY    TELEGRAPH. 

In  1850,  a  mail  carrier,  by  the  name  of  Colburn,  was  mur 
dered  on  the  plains  some  three  hundred  miles  from  the  whito 
settlements,  on  the  Santa  Fe  trail.  The  mail  bag  was  found 
near  the  dead  body,  open,  and  its  contents  scattered  on  the 
ground.  Among  the  papers  were  found  several  drafts  for  money, 
which  fact  alone  was  sufficient  to  demonstrate  that  the  murder 
had  been  committed  by  the  Indians. 

Search  was  made  by  the  whites,  and  different  articles  were 
found  in  the  possession  of  an  old  Indian,  who  was  supposed  to 
be  the  murderer.  He  was  arrested,  and  so  was  his  whole 
family.  They  were  brought  to  Jefferson  City,  in  the  State  of 
Missouri,  that  being  the  place  of  the  nearest  court  of  jurisdiction. 
At  the  first  term  thereafter  the  Indian  was  put  on  trial,  and  a 
son  of  the  old  man  was  called  as  a  witness.  He  denied  that 
his  father  had  anything  to  do  with  the  murder,  or  that  he  had 
been  accessory  either  before  or  after  the  fact.  He  confessed  to 
the  murder,  and  declared  that  he  alone  had  committed  the 
horrid  deei  !  The  father  was  released,  and  so  were  the  whole 
family,  except  the  son.  He  was  placed  on  trial.  He  again 
confessed  to  the  murder,  which  was  satisfactorily  proved  by 
some  circumstantial  evidence.  He  was  convicted  of  the  mur- 
der, and  sentenced  to  be  hung  on  the  14th  of  March,  1851. 
The  old  Indian  and  his  family  were  then  conducted  back,  by 
the  Government,  to  their  home  in  the  wilds  of  the  West,  leaving 
the  youthful,  but  brave  son  behind,  never  again  to  be  seen  by 
them. 

But,  a  few  days  before  the  time  fixed  by  the  law  for  the 
execution  of  the  young  Indian,  whose  name  was  See-see-sah- 
ma,  it  was  discovered  that  he  was  not  the  murderer  of  the  mail 
carrier,  and  that  he  had  confessed  to  the  crime,  in  order  to  save 
his  father  from  dying,  other  than  by  the  hands  of  the  Great 


EXECUTION  RESPITED    BY    TELEGRAPH.  465 

Spirit.  He  wanted  him  to  die  brave  in  battle,  or  calmly  in  the 
midst  of  his  own  family.  The  fact  of  this  self-sacrifice  for  an 
aged  parent,  was  satisfactorily  substantiated  to  the  citizens  of 
Jefferson  City,  too  late  to  save  his  life  by  the  ordinary  means 
of  communication  with  the  United  States  Government.  The 
documents  were  prepared  as  speedily  as  possible,  praying  the 
President  to  respite  the  execution,  having  in  view  a  considera- 
tion of  the  recently-discovered  evidence.  On  the  13th  of 
March,  the  day  before  the  fatal  hour,  the  papers  had  not  been 
forwarded,  and  there  was  no  hope  for  the  poor  doomed  Indian, 
excapt  through  the  telegraph.  All  the  facts  in  the  case  were 
transmitted  to  me  at  St.  Louis,  with  the  request  for  me  to  aid 
in  getting  a  respite.  In  the  evening  of  that  day,  about  eight 
o'clock,  I  sent  to  the  President  the  following  dispatch,  viz.  : 

To  His  Excellency, 

MlLLARD  FlLLMORE,   PRESIDENT  OF  THE  UNITED  STATES. 

I  am  requested  to  petition  your  excellency  for  a  respite  of 
the  execution  of  the  Indian,  See-see-sah-ma,  to  take  place  to- 
morrow at  Jefferson  City,  for  the  term  of  thirty  days.  Docu- 
ments substantiating  his  innocence  are  being  prepared,  and  will 
be  forwarded  to  Washington. 

TAL.  P.  SHAFFNER. 

The  above  dispatch  reached  the  President  that  night,  but 
too  late  to  be  answered  before  the  closing  of  the  telegraph  lines. 
On  the  morning  of  the  14th,  the  day  of  execution,  at  half-past 
nine  o'clock,  the  President  sent  to  the  office  his  answer,  viz. : 

WASHINGTON,  March  14,  1851. 
To  Tal  P.  Shaffner,  St.  Louis: 

The  Marshal  of  the  District  of  Missouri,  is  hereby  directed 
to  postpone  the  execution  of  the  Indian,  See-see-sah-ma,  until 
Friday,  the  18th  of  April.  MILLARD  FILLMORE. 

One  copy  of  this  message  was  sent  via  Philadelphia,  Pitts- 
burg,  Cincinnati,  Louisville,  to  St.  Louis,  a  distance  of  some 
1100  miles,  reaching  its  destination  at  ten  minutes  before  ten 
o'clock,  A.  M.  Another  copy  was  sent  via  New  York,  Buffalo, 
Cleveland,  Chicago  to  St.  Louis,  a  distance  of  about  two  thou- 
sand miles,  reaching  the  latter  city  at  five  minutes  after  ten 
o'clock,  A.  M.  Another  copy  was  sent  via  Baltimore,  Wheeling, 
Louisville,  Nashville,  Cairo  to  St.  Louis,  a  distance  of  some 
sixteen  hundred  miles,  reaching  St.  Louis  at  eight  minutes 
after  ten  o'clock,  A.  M.  Each  of  these  copies  was  transmitted 
over  the  wires  of  four  different  companies,  and  on  the  latter 
route  was  ferried  over  the  Ohio  river  in  an  ordinary  skiff. 

30 


466 


INTERIOR    OF    AMERICAN    TELEGRAPH    STATION. 


The  execution  of  the  Indian  was  to  take  place  at  noon. 
Thousands  of  people  had  assembled  around  the  gallows  to  see 
the  poor  red  man  of  the  forest  launched  into  eternity  in  atone- 
ment for  the  awful  crimes,  supposed  to  have  been  committed 
by  him,  namely,  the  murdering  of  a  fellow-being  and  robbing 
the  great  mail  of  the  United  States.  There  was  no  time  for 
delay,  and  I  hastened  to  search  for  the  Marshal,  who  resided  in 
the  city  of  St.  Louis.  I  found  him  in  his  office,  some  half 
mile  distant  from  the  telegraph  station.  He  wrote  the  follow- 
ing dispatch  to  his  deputy  at  Jefferson  City : 

To  Mr.  W.  D.  Kerr,  Deputy  Marshal : 

You  are  hereby  directed  to  postpone  the  execution  of  the 
Indian  prisoner,  See-see-sah-ma,  till  Friday,  the  18th  of  April. 

JOHN  W.  TWITCHELL, 
United  States  Marshal,  District  of  Missouri. 

The  above  order,  accompanied  with  the  President's,  was  sent 
to  Jefferson  City  twenty  minutes  after  ten  A.  M.  The  Indian, 
who  was  already  on  his  way  to  the  place  of  execution,  was  re- 
turned to  his  cell  in  the  prison,  his  coffin  stored  away,  and  the 
multitude  dispersed. 

The  President  received  the  evidence,  and  the  Indian,  See- 
see-sah-ma,  was  spared  the  ignominy  of  a  public  execution 
upon  the  gallows. 


TELEGRAPH   DISPATCH   FORMS. 


467 


0 
D 

H 

3 

(5 
H 
ri 


0 

H 

15 


I     I 

w 


m         i:    o   <i>   o   is 

i  11 


^  a  a  a 

B   O   O   ou 


0   %   ®  4>- 

0        «°55 
H      5  4  fl  a 


I  !l!ill 

| 


^S§g^^.2 


468 


INTERIOR    OF    AMERICAN    TELEGRAPH    STATION. 


^«&p 


O  *8  Jp  4>  .H  £*        O 

'S  »,M  ~  £  -9      ^ 


M 


3 

i 

i] 


0 


ft  ss^s;! 


0  *    llfl! 


sl||fsit« 


l 


Ililfl 
!Illll 


i 


THE  MORSE  TELEGRAPH  ALPHABET. 


CHAPTER    XXXIV. 

Composition  of  the  American  Morse  Alphabet — The  Alphabet,  Numerals,  and 
Punctuation — The  Austro-Germanic  Alphabet  of  1854 — European  Morse 
Alphabet  of  1859. 


COMPOSITION    OF    THE    AMERICAN    MORSE    ALPHABET. 

THE  alphabet  of  the  American  Morse  telegraph  is  composed 
of  dots,  dashes,  and  spaces,  arranged  upon  mathematical  scale. 
A  student  of  the  profession  should  at  the  beginning  of  his 
studies  arrange  a  scale  of  measurement  of  his  writing  or  sound 
by  the  telegraph  pen.  The  length  of  the  mark  or  of  the  space 
upon  the  ribbon  paper  will  be  precisely  the  same  as  the  length 
of  the  contact  made  with  the  key.  If  the  student  will  first 
arrange  a  scale,  determining  the  style  of  writing  he  desires, 
and  place  it  before  him  as  he  manipulates  with  the  key — 
observing  the  letter  made  upon  ribbon  paper  of  the  register 
before  him — he  can  in  a  short  time  perfect  the  measurement 
of  his  manipulation  to  the  scale  adopted. 


Fig.  1. 

123456789  10 11 


Fig.  2. 


Fig.  1  represents  a  coarse  hand-writing,  and  fig.  2  a  fine 
hand.  Whether  the  dots,  spaces,  and  dashes  be  long  or  short, 
they  should  be  uniform ;  and  unless  they  are  thus  methodi- 
cally made,  the  writing  cannot  be  perfect.  In  the  use  of  the 


470 


THE    MORSE    TELEGRAPH    ALPHABET 


foregoing  scale,  to  make  an  #,  one  of  the  spaces  is  used  for 
the  dot,  one  for  the  space,  and  two  for  the  dash.  For  the 
letter  £,  the  first  dash  occupies  two  spaces,  then  follows  one 
for  the  space,  then  one  for  a  dot,  the  next  for  a  space,  the 
next  for  the  dot,  the  next  for  a  space,  and  the  next  for  a  dot, 

making  • b.     For  the  letter  c,  the  first  space  for  the  dot, 

the  next  for  a  spacq,  the  next  for  a  dot,  the  two  next 
for  the  space,  and  the  next  for  the  dot.  The  letter  r 
is  the  reverse  of  the  letter  c.  The  letter  t  is  composed  of  a 
dash  occupying  two  spaces,  as  the  dash  of  the  letter  a  ;  the 
letter  /  is  a  double  £,  or  a  dash  occupying  four  consecutive 
spaces  ;  the  figure  6  occupies  alternate  spaces,  being  six  dots 
and  five  spaces ;  the  figure  5  is  composed  of  three  t  dashes, 
each  separated  by  a  space ;  the  cipher  0  is  composed  of  three 
t  dashes,  joined,  or  six  divisions  of  the  scale. 

AMERICAN    MORSE    ALPHABET. 

A  —  J  S  ••• 

B  —  •  K  ~-  T  - 

C  ••'  L  —  U  ••- 

D  -"  M  —  V  ••  — 

E  '  N  —  W 

F  —  0  v-  X  •— 

G P  Y  ••-•• 

H  •  —  Q,  •—  Z  '**-.'! 

I  ••  R  *--•  &  •_•" 


NUMERALS. 


1 

2 
3 
4 
5 

Period 

Comma  , 

Colon  : 

Interrogation  ? 


PUNCTUATION. 


•*"  Exclamation    \ 
Apostrophe 
Paragraph       IF 
Italics 


PRACTICAL    EXAMPLES.  471 

In  learning  to  make  the  alphabet,  the  student  should  first 
make  the  dots,  such  as  e,  s,  A,  p,  &c.  The  spaced  letters 
c,  o,  r,  y,  and  z,  require  much  care  to  make  them  correctly. 
In  making  the  c,  as  with  the  other  spaced  letters,  it  is  im- 
portant not  to  occupy  more  than  two  spaces  between  the  last 
two  dots.  Between  words  the  space  should  be  equal  to  three 
lines,  or  one  third  greater  than  the  space  used  in  the  spaced 
letters.  If  the  space  in  the  formation  of  the  letter  c  be  too 
long,  it  will  be  received  as  the  separation  between  two  words, 
and  it  will  be  taken  as  i  e.  In  ordinary  language  the  error 
would  at  once  be  detected  by.  the  'receiving  operator,  but  in 
the  use  of  cipher  terms  it  would  not  be.  On  the  other  hand, 
the  space  must  not  be  too  short,  or  the  letter  s  will  be  received. 
There  was  a  case  of  serious  importance  resulting  from  an  error 
of  this  kind.  A  merchant  telegraphed  from  New-Orleans  to 
his  correspondent  in  New- York,  to  protect  a  certain  bill  of 
exchange  about  maturing.  In  the  word  "  protect,"  the  c  was 
received  as  an  s,  and  the  word  was  changed  to  "  protest,"  and 
the  consequence  was  very  serious  to  the  parties  interested. 

After  the  student  has  succeeded  in  making  the  dot  and 
spaced  letters,  he  should  proceed  in  the  next  place  to  make 
single  dashes,  then  the  compound  dashes,  such  as  /,  &c.  After 
he  is  perfect  in  making  the  latter,  then  to  unite  the  dots, 
spaces  and  dashes  for  the  formation  of  letters  ;  it  will  then  be 
easy  to  write  words  and  sentences. 

The  following  are  practical  examples  : 

AMERICAN   ALPHABET    EXAMPLES. 

IN    HOC      SIGNO      VINCES 


EN    a    L     AN    D    EX    PECTSEVERY 
MANTODOHIS       DUTY 
HONOR      THY       FATHER     AND 
THY        MOTHER. 


472  THE    MORSE    TELEGRAPH    ALPHABET. 

THE       UNION          NOW          AND 
FOB      EVER 


THE    AUSTRO-GERMANIC    MORSE    ALPHABET. 

The  Austro-Grermanic  alphabet  adopted  for  the  Morse  sys- 
tem of  telegraphing  is,  with  some  amendments,  in-  the  service 
of  nearly  all  the  governments  of  Europe,  and,  in  fact,  wherever 
the  Grerman  or  Latin  letter  is  used.  It  is  the  same  language 
in  all  Grermany,  Denmark,  Norway,  Sweden,  France,  the 
Italian  States,  Sardinia,  Spain,  Malta,  Corfu,  North  Africa,  &c. 

This  alphabet  differs  from  the  combination  of  the  dots  and 
spaced  letters  of  the  American  telegraphic  alphabet.  In  the 
European  there  are  no  spaced  letters,  and  there  is  less  liability 
of  error  than  in  the  American,  though  it  requires  more  time  to 
transmit  by  the  former  than  by  the  latter. 

The  Austro-Grermanic  Alphabet  of  1854,  herewith  presented, 
has  been  engraved  much  larger  than  the  usual  letter  made  in 
the  ordinary  telegraphic  manipulation  in  Grermany.  I  have 
copied  the  alphabet,  as  officially  published  by  Prussia,  Den- 
mark, and  the  other  Grerman  states,  as  used  in  1854.  Since 
then  the  alphabet  has  been  amended,  so  as  to  accommodate 
special  letters,  common  to  other  languages  on  the  continent. 
I  have  added  the  new  combination,  as  now  used  all  over 
Europe  under  the  name  of  the  European  Morse  Alphabet. 

AUSTRO-GERMANIC    MORSE    ALPHABET    OF    1854. 

A    .«.  J     o^^^ 

I    .«».«•  E    «»•«•» 

B      ••»»••  Li      0  o»  e  • 

G  —  .-.*  M  -»•» 

D  «»••  JN  —  • 

E  .  0  —  :.£„ 

F  •••»•  O  •»««»• 

G  «••»«  P  •«•»• 

H  ••«•  Q  «*».« 

I  «•  fi  •  —  • 


THE    AUSTRO-GERMANIC    ALPHABET.  473 


s   ...  w 

T    —  X 

••  —  Y 

u  ••«•  —  z 

V    •••—  Ch 


NUMERALS. 


St         •««»«»«»     7 

5       •«©«»«»       8 

5        •••••  0 


PUNCTUATION. 


474 


THE    MORSE    TELEGRAPH    ALPHABET. 


EUROPEAN    MORSE    ALPHABET    OP    1859. 


A 

A 

B 

C 

D 

E 

E' 

F 

a 

H 
I 


J 

K 
L 

M 
N 
0 

6 
P 

ft 

R 

S 


T 

U 
U 
V 

w 

X 
Y 
Z 

Oh 


NUMERALS. 


1  

2  

3  

4  

5  


PUNCTUATION. 


Period 

Semicolon  ; 

Comma  , 

Colon  : 

Interrogation  ? 
Quotation 

Exclamation  ! 


Hyphen 
Apostrophe       ' 
Dash 

Parentheses  (  ) 
Paragraph  IF 
Italics 


PRACTICAL    EXAMPLES.  475 

EUROPEAN    ALPHABET    EXAMPLES. 

IN         HO         C          S   I     0    N      0 

V     I    N     C      ES    , 


SUUM         C       U   I       Q,       UE     . 

"  Je         desire  que 

mes  cen  dres  rep  o  sent 
sur  les  b  o  rds  de  la 
Seine  ,  au  milieu  de 

cepeup         leFrancais 
que  j  aitant          a  i 

m       e       ;...*       " 

Nap         o         leon. 

Wah     re     Wissens     c        h    a      f     t 
dur         c       h          "Wissens       c       ha 

f      f     t     . 

Steinhei      1 


476  THE  MORSE  TELEGRAPH  ALPHABET. 


THE  RUSSIAN  MORSE  ALPHABET. 

The  Russian  language,  composed  of  thirty-six  letters,  has 
been  reduced  to  a  telegraphic  alphabet  of  thirty,  as  represented 
by  the  following  engraving.  The  numerals  and  punctuation 
marks  are  the  same  as  those  used  on  the  European  Morse 
telegraph  lines.  The  Morse  system  of  telegraphing  is  used  on 
all  the  imperial  lines,  and  dispatches  in  English,  Grerman,  and 
French  languages  can  be  transmitted  over  them. 

The  dots  and  dashes  have  been  arranged  to  economize  their 

use  in  the  formation  of  letters.  For  example,  the  A  .— ,  which 
is  the  equivalent  of  the  English  broad  A  ;  the  B  —  •,  equivalent 
to  the  English  v  and  the  Grerman  w,  a  letter  much  used  ;  the 
H  — ,  equivalent  to  the  English  N  ;  the  c  — ,  equivalent  to  the 
English  s .  the  P  — ,  equivalent  to  the  English  R,  &c. 

A    •«*.  0»^-»  —  « 

E    .<•»•«•»          X    •«««  — 
B    _.  H    »-»« 

r  ••••       H  ««— . 
__    -.7  m 

••  m  — — — — 

«B  «n»  •  »  L  •••• 

3     •••»«  bl  —•«»«» 

M    •••  10  «••» 

M    ««».«  ^  .  —  «.. 

K  ••••         n  »-.o 

JL    •«••  P    ««» 

M    _•••  C    ••• 

H    «.  T.  __• 

o  •  y  •  — — 


MANIPULATING    CODE SIGNALS.  477 

ft 

MANIPULATING    CODE. 

Having  become  familiar  with  the  alphabet,  numerals,  and 
arbitrary  signals,  the  next  step  for  the  student  is  the  trans- 
mission and  reception  of  dispatches.  There  is  no  uniform  rule 
governing  these  formalities ;  the  circumstances  pertaining  to 
this  part  of  the  service  are  not  the  same  with  all  lines. 
Experts,  between  themselves,  seldom  pay  regard  to  the  lesser 
forms.  Day  by  day,  accustomed  to  each  other's  manipulation, 
they  have  their  own  peculiar  rules.  On  lines  where  there  are 
employed  operators  of  moderate  ability,  some  forms  are  observed. 
In  these  matters,  great  changes  have  taken  place  on  the  Amer- 
ican lines.  In  earlier  days  there  were  some  hundreds  of 
arbitrary  signals,  but  they  have  become  mostly  obsolete. 

The  following  are  a  part  of  the  uniform  signals  used  in 
America : 

SIGNALS. 

II  I  am  ready.  S  F  P    Stop  for  paper. 

0  K  All  correct.  1  Wait  a  moment. 

G  A  Go  ahead.  2  Get     answer     imme- 

SSS  Finish  Signal.  diately. 

R  R  Repeat.  13  Do  you  understand? 

G  M  Good  morning.  23  A  Message  for  all. 

G  N  Good  night.  31  Don't  understand. 

Ahr  Another.  33  Answer  paid  here. 

Col  Collect.  44  Answer     immediately 

Pd  Paid.  by  telegraph. 

"W  Words.  77  Are  you  ready  to  re- 

D  H  Free.  ceive  my  message  ? 

S  F  D  Stop  for  dinner.  92  Was  message  000  re- 

S  F  T  Stop  for  tea.  .  ceived  and  delivered? 

Besides  the  foregoing,  different  lines  have  arbitrary  signals 
of  their  own.  Those  given  above  are  generally  understood 
throughout  America. 

On  examination  at  the  stations  in  New  York,  I  find  different 
formalities  observed  in  the  transmission  and  reception  of  dis- 
patches. I  present  the  following  instructions,  as  the  nearest 
to  the  practised  code. 

Suppose,  for  example,  the  line  extends  from  Europe  to  Amer- 
ica. Each  station  has  an  independent  signal.  Europe  may 
have  the  letter  E,  though,  as  that  letter  is  composed  of  but 
one  dot,  it  would  not  make  an  acceptable  signal,  and  therefore 
another  letter  would  be  better.  For  the  illustrations  herein,  I 


478  THE    MORSE    TELEGRAPH    ALPHABET. 

* 

will  use  the  letter  E  as  the  signal  for  Europe,  and  the  letter 
A  as  the  signal-  for  America  ;  M  for  Marly-la-ville,  L  for  Lon- 
don, N  for  New  York,  and  P  for  Philadelphia. 

Europe  wants  America.  The  former  adjusts  its  magnet 
carefully,  and,  finding  the  line  free,  calls  America,  thus, 

AAAAA  E  ( •—  •)  Having  thus  called  Europe, 

it  pauses  for  a  response.  If  no  answer,  it  repeats  the  call 
four  or  five  times,  pausing  a  reasonable  time  between  calls  for 
America  to  answer.  This  process  should  be  repeated  from 
time  to  time  until  the  answer  is  received.  The  operator  at  the 
American  station  may  be  temporarily  beyond  the  hearing  of 
his  call,  and  hence  it  is  well  to  repeat  it  every  few  minutes. 

When  America  hears  the  call,  it  promptly  responds  I  I  A 

( — ).  Europe  may  give  signals  to  America,  meaning  "  I 

have  a  message  for  you,"  "Are  you  ready?"  &c.,  and  in 
response  America  may  send  the  signals  Gr  A,  meaning  "  Go 
ahead."  These  forms  are  sometimes  used,  but  in  general 
practice  they  are  obsolete. 

Having  gotten  the  response  from  America,  Europe  proceeds 
as  follows: 

EXAMPLE  I. 

M  to  P  May  10  1752  for  Dr  Franklin  Philadelphia  Ex- 
perimenting  upon  your  suggestions  I  have  drawn  the  lightning 
from  the  heavens  Sig  Dalibard  12  W  pd 

1200  SSS  E 

In  the  above  example  the  tariff  is  put  at  one  dollar  per  word. 
No  punctuation  is  given,  because  the  language  expresses  the 
points.  Thus  as  preceding  the  sig.  the  receiving  operator 
knows  ti^ere  is  a  full  stop  ;  the  SSS  is  the  finish  signal.  Some- 
times the  office  signal  is  given  at  the  end,  and  at  other  times 
the  operator's  initial  is  given. 

The  following  example  illustrates  the  -sending  of  a  message 
from  Philadelphia  to  London,  viz. : 

EXAMPLE  II. 

P  to  L  June  1  1752  for  Mr  Collinson  London  By  the 
aid  of  a  kite  I  have  demonstrated  that  lightning  and  electricity 
are  identical  Sig  Benjamin  Franklin  15  W 

pd  1500  Ahr  A 

Example  2  illustrates  the  affixing  of  the  signals,  indicating 
that  another  (Ahr)  message  is  to  follow.  America,  without 
receiving  any  response  from  Europe,  proceeds  at  once  to  send 
another  dispatch,  and  so  on  until  there  are  no  more.  When 


TRANSMITTING    MESSAGES EXAMPLES.  479 

all  are  sent,  the  signals  SSS  are  given,  and  in  response  Europe 
says  II  OK  E,  which  means  that  the  whole  are  understood, 
and  that  all  had  been  received  correct. 

The  following  example  gives  the  last  words  of  the  late  illus- 
trious Emperor  of  Russia.  The  news  was  telegraphed  from 
St.  Petersburg  to  the  Kremlin  City. 

EXAMPLE    III. 

S  to  M  March  5  1855  for  the  People  of  Moscow  The 
Emperor  bids  farewell  to  Moscow  Sig  Nicholas 

6  W  D  H  SSS  S 

The  foregoing  examples  represent  the  mode  of  transmitting 
messages  where  no  punctuation  is  given.  When  a  message 
contains  two  or  more  independent  subjects,  or  broken  into 
paragraphs,  it  is  represented  by  the  proper  signals.  Other 
points  of  punctuation  are  seldom  used  on  the  American  lines. 
In  Europe  more  attention  is  given  to  them. 


TELEGRAPH  ELECTRIC  CIRCUITS. 


CHAPTER    XXXV. 

Electric  Circuits  on  European  Lines — Circuit  of  the  Main  Line  described — Ad- 
justment of  the  Line  Batteries — Early  Experimental  Circuits — The  Stager 
Compound  Circuits — Combining  of  Electric  Circuits. 


|       ELECTRIC    CIRCUITS    ON    EUROPEAN    TELEGRAPHS. 

IN  the  present  chapter  it  is  my  purpose  to  explain  the  simple 
and  compound  electric  circuits  as  applied  to  the  working  of  the 
telegraph,  with  special  reference  to  the  Morse  system.  As  a 
preliminary,  it  is  important  for  the  reader  to  be  informed,  that 


Fig.  1. 


on  the  European  lines  the  current  of  electricity  is  transmitted 
over  the  wires  by  the  manipulating  station.  In  its  normal  or 
rest  state,  the  line  wire  is  free  from  the  voltaic  current.  The 
reverse  of  the  above  is  the  practice  on  the  American  lines. 
Their  normal  state  is  electrical.  They  are  continuously  charged 


ELECTRIC    CIRCUITS    ON    EUROPEAN    TELEGRAPHS.  481 

with  the  voltaic  force,  and  the  manipulation  for  the  transmission 
of  information  breaks  the  flow  of  the  current. 

In  further  explanation  of  the  above,  I  would  refer  the  reader 
to  fig.  1,  which  represents  the  European  line,  when  being  oper- 
ated. The  two  stations  are  A  and  B,  and  the  former  is  transmit- 
ting to  the  latter.  In  the  normal  state  of  the  line,  the  key  s  at 
station  A  would  be  closed  in  the  rear  and  open  in  front,  exactly 
as  represented  by  the  key  s/  of  station  B.  As  the  key  is  closed 
at  A,  the  battery  force  of  A  charges  the  line.  If  the  key  of  A  was 
connected  with  the  line,  as  the  key  of  B,  there  would  be  no  cur- 
rent on  the  line,  because  there  would  be  no  metallic  circuit 
formed  with  the  respective  batteries.  The  base  of  the  keys 
shown  in  the  figure  does  not  give  a  metallic  circuit.  The  front 
is  not  metallically  connected  with  the  back  part.  The  battery 
h'  of  station  B  is  in  its  normal  condition,  that  is,  inactive.  The 
course  of  the  current  generate4  by  the  battery  6,  of  station  A, 
follows  the  route  indicated  by  the  arrows,  thus  :  through  the 
anvil  of  the  key,  the  key  lever  s,  over  the  line  wire  to  the  lever  . 
s'  of  station  B  ;  thence  from  the  rear  of  the  key  through  the 
magnet  m'  to  the  earth  plate  p/ ;  thence  through  the  earth  to  the 
plate  P  ;  from  the  plate  P  the  current  ascends  with  the  earth 
wire  of  station  A,  and  traverses  the  magnet  m,  and  thence  to 
the  zinc  end  of  the  battery  b.  Thus  the  circuit  is  made  com- 
plete. If  the  lever  s  of  station  A  is  elevated  from  .thy  contact 
shown  in  the  figure,  there  will  be  no  current  on  the  line.  The 
moment  the  battery  is  placed  in  the  circuit,  the  current 
flows  over  the  whole  route.  The  station  B  is  receiving,  and  in. 
case  the  operator  at  B  wishes  to  respond  to  A,  or  to  interrupt 
the  transmission,  he  presses  the  lever  s/  upon  the  anvil  several 
times,  and  the  effect  upon  the  magnet  m  at  A  is  at  once  seen, 
and  the  operator  at  A  stops  to  ascertain  the  cause  of  the  inter- 
ruption. The  operator  at  B  then  makes  his  explanations,  dur- 
ing which  process,  the  key  lever  s  at  A  is  elevated  by  a  spring 
in  front,  so  that  the  rear  end  is  in  contact  with  the  metallic 
projection  of  the  base  ;  and  the  battery  b'  of  station  B  is  active, 
and  the  battery  b  of  station  A  is  inactive.  The  above  explana- 
tions pertain  wholly  to  the  single  or  main  circuit.  The  route 
of  the  current  and  the  mode  of  interrupting  it,  by  the  opening 
and  closing  of  the  circuit,  have  been  described.  It  is  necessary,,  - 
however,  for  the  reader  to  remember,  that  the  wires  connecting 
the  rear  ends  of  the  respective  keys  with  the  wires  between 
the  batteries  and  the  magnets,  are  not  used  on  the  American 
lines ;  erase  them  from  the  figure,  and  the  circuit  will  be  com- 
posed as  practically  operated  in  America,  excepting  the  key  s7 
of  station  B  should  be  closed  as  represented  at  station  A.  Hav- 

31 


482 


TELEGRAPH   ELECTRIC   CIRCUITS. 
Fig.  2. 


CIRCUIT    OF    THE    MAIN    LINE.  483 

ing  fully  explained  the  main  circuit,  I  will  now  proceed  to 
describe  its  functions  telegraphically  applied. 

THE    CIRCUIT    OK    THE    MAIN    LINE    DESCRIBED. 

Figure  2  represents  two  stations,  for  example,  New- York 
and  Washington,  distance  250  miles.  The  normal  state  of  the 
line  is  shown,  the  current  flowing  continuously  as  indicated  by 
the  arrows.  The  right  hand  station  A,  is  New- York,  and  the 
left  hand,  B,  is  Washington.  The  numerals  at  the  two  stations 
indicate  the  same  parts  at  each  respectively  :  1,  1,  are  the  elec- 
tro or  relay  magnets  ;  2,  2,  the  base  frames  of  the  keys  ;  8,  8, 
are  the  key  levers ;  3,  3,  are  the  register  frames  ;  4, 4,  the 
register  or  local  magnets ;  6,  the  line  ;  and  7,  7,  the  pen  lever  ; 
p,  p,  are  the  platina  or  positive  poles  ol  the  batteries,  and  z,  z, 
are  the  zinc  or  negative  poles  of  the  batteries.  The  zinc  end 
of  the  battery  at  Washington  is  connected  with  the  earth,  and 
the  platina  end  is  joined  to  the  line  wire.  At  New- York,  the 
platina  end  of  the  battery  is  joined  to  the  earth  wire.  In 
figure  1,  the  battery  is  placed  between  the  magnets  and  the 
keys ;  in  figure  2,  it  is  placed  between  the  magnet  and  the 
earth.  The  proper  place  for  the  battery  is  as  represented  in 
fig.  2,  that  is,  next  to  the  earth. 

In  fig.  2,  the  current  generated  at  Washington,  follows  the 
wire  to  and  traverses  the  magnet  1,  thence  to  the  key  8  over 
the  line  6,  to  New- York,  thence  into  the  office  to  the  key  8, 
thence  to  and  through  the  coils  of  the  magnet  1,  thence  to 
the  zinc  pole  of  the  battery,  and  after  traversing  the  different 
cells  it  proceeds  from  the  pole  p  to  the  earth.  The  reader  will 
observe  that  the  batteries  are  always  constructed,  so  that  the 
poles  will  be  in  the  same  direction.  If  the  poles  p  and  p  were 
united,  the  battery  would  be  ineffective.  The  special  function 
of  this  circuit  is  to  generate  magnetism  in  the  soft  iron  cores 
of  the  magnet  1  and  1.  When  the  current  flows  through  the 
coils,  the  iron  cores  become  magnetized,  and  when  it  ceases  to 
flow  they  are  demagnetized.  The  passage  of  the  voltaic  cur- 
rent over  the  wire  arid  through  the  spools  or  bobbins,  instan- 
taneously produces  magnetism  in  the  iron  cores.  When  the 
line  and  the  iron  cores  are  thus  charged,  the  armatures  of  the 
magnets  are  immediately  attracted,  which  action  closes  other 
independent  circuits.  The  dotted  lines  indicate  the  latter,  or 
local  circuits,  which  run  from  the  armatures  of  the  mag- 
nets 1,  1,  to  the  batteries  L,  L  ;  thence  to  and  traverses  the 
spools  of  the  magnets  4,  4,  of  the  registers,  and  thence  to  the 
armatures  of  the  magnets.  The  opening  and  closing  of  these 
local  currents  attract  or  let  go,  the  armatures  7,  7,  of  the 


484 


TELEGRAPH    ELECTRIC    CIRCUITS. 
Fig.  3. 


CIRCUIT    OF    THE    MAIN    LINE.  485 

registers.  The  special  and  only  function,  therefore,  of  the 
main  circuit  is  to  open  and  close  the  local  circuits  in  each  office 
on  the  line,  and  the  local  circuit  gives  motion  to  the  writing 
or  imprinting  pen  levers,  7, 7,  in  each  register. 

Having  described  the  arrangements  of  the  two  end  stations 
of  a  telegraph  line,  I  will  now  explain  the  organization  of  a 
line  having  on  it  one  or  more  local  stations.  The  terms  main 
and  local  apply  to  the  special  arrangement  of  the  batteries ; 
for  example,  New- York,  being  the  end  of  the  line,  the  main 
battery  is  located  at  that  station,  Philadelphia,  Baltimore,  and 
other  places,  do  not  require  batteries  other  than  on  their  local 
circuits.  Practically,  however,  the  above  places  have  main 
batteries  for  general  application,  on  one  or  more  of  the  many 
wires  connecting  those  cities  with  others.  The  batteries  at  the 
two  ends  are  fully  sufficient  to  work  the  whole  line,  except 
under  circumstances  of  bad  insulation.  The  localization  of 
the  main  batteries  give  those  places  the  name  of  "  main 
stations,"  and  the  use  only  of  local  batteries  and  the  fact  of 
their  intermediate  positions  give  to  the  other  stations  the 
name,  "  local  stations."  If  an  intermediate  office  has  a  main 
battery,  it  is  called  a  "  main  station ;"  as,  for  example,  the 
arrangement  represented  by  fig.  3  :  A,  is  a  "  main  station," 
and  the  other,  B,  is  a  "  local  station,"  the  former,  A,  represent- 
ing Philadelphia,  and  the  latter,  B,  Baltimore.  The  Baltimore 
station,  it  will  be  observed,  has  no  main  battery,  and  the  cur- 
rent from  the  Washington  line  wire  enters  the  station,  passes 
through  the  key,  2,  8,  to  the  magnet  coil  1,  and  thence  to  the 
main  auxiliary  battery  at  Philadelphia,  where  the  current  pro- 
ceeds from  the  platina  end  of  the  battery  through  the  magnet 
coils,  thence  to  the  key,  and  thence  to  New- York.  The  local 
batteries  are  marked  6,  6,  one  of  which  has  two  cells,  and  the 
other  has  three.  It  is  usual  to  use  but  two  ;  occasionally,  how- 
ever, when  it  is  not  sufficiently  effective,  owing  to  its  decay, 
or  from  some  other  reason,  the  number  is  increased  to  three  or 
more. 

Figure  2  represents  the  two  termini  stations  with  their  main 
and  local  batteries ;  and  figure  3,  two  intermediate  places,  one 
a  "  local "  and  the  other  a  "  main"  station. 

A  line  of  telegraph  300  miles  long,  can  be  successfully 
operated  when  properly  insulated,  in  one  circuit.  In  many 
cases,  lines  have  worked  a  longer  distance,  but  as  a  practical 
circuit  on  the  American  lines,  300  miles  is  a  fair  average. 
When  the  length  of  a  line  exceeds  the  power  of  the  end  bat- 
teries to  charge  it  effectually  with  the  voltaic  current,  it  is  the 
practice  to  place  a  main  battery  at  an  intermediate  station,  as 


486  TELEGRAPH    ELECTRIC    CIRCUITS. 

represented  by  fig.  3.     Suppose,  for  example,  the  line  is  300 
miles,  and  the  stations  are  thus  arranged. 

AdefgBhiklC 


300  miles. 

Stations  A,  B,  and  c,  have  main  batteries  and  stations ;  d  e  f  g 
h  i  k  and  /  are  local.  The  current  traverses  the  whole  line 
from  A  to  c,  passing  through  the  coils  or  spools  of  the  electro- 
magnets throughout  the  whole  line.  If  A  transmits  a  message 
to  B,  or  c,  all  the  other  stations  can  receive  the  same.  Every 
magnet  attracts  and  lets  go  its  armature,  every  local  circuit  is 
opened  and  closed,  and  every  pen  lever  is  put  in  motion.  If  A 
wishes  to  send  a  message  to  all  the  stations,  he  transmits  a 
signal,  which  indicates  that  fact,  and  in  proper  time  every 
operator  puts  in  motion  the  clock-work  of  his  apparatus,  and 
the  dispatch  is  indented  upon  the  ribbon  paper. 

If  the  line  be  600  miles  long,  and  the  battery  arrangements 
fail  to  charge  it  sufficient  for  telegraphing,  it  is  the  practice  to 
operate  it  by  "  compound  circuits,"  and  the  application  of  an 
apparatus  called  a  repeater. 

To  thus  arrange  a  line,  it  is  necessary  to  sever  the  circuit  at 
the  half-way  station  B,  as  represented  by  the  following  diagram. 
The  line  is  divided  at  B.  The  section  between  A  and  B  is  300 

AdefgBhiklC 


ooo     300  miles,     ooo     ooo        300  miles.        ooo 

miles  long,  and  at  A  and  B  are  earth  wires  and  main  batteries. 
The  section  between  B  and  c  is  the  same  as  the  former.  At  B, 
there  are  two  batteries  and  an  apparatus  that  opens  and  closes 
the  next  circuit  in  succession,  from  the  station  manipulating. 
Thus,  when  A  transmits  to  c,  the  circuit  between  A  and  B  is 
opened  and  closed  by  the  operator  at  A,  which,  by  the  aid  of 
magnets,  opens  and  closes  the  circuit  between  B  and  c.  If  c 
wishes  to  respond,  he  opens  his  circuit  and  manipulates  with 
his  key,  which  action  is  immediately  perceived  by  the  operator 
at  A.  In  the  same  manner  d  and  /,  or  any  other  of  the  stations, 
can  communicate  one  with  the  other.  In  general  practice,  it 
is  the  custom  for  the  lesser  intermediate  stations  to  transmit 
their  dispatches  for  places  on  other  circuits,  to  the  end  station 
of  the  section  on  which  the  local  or  intermediate  station  is 
situated. 


THE    LINE    BATTERIES.  487 

ADJUSTMENT    OF    THE    LINE    BATTERIES. 

As  to  the  amount  of  battery  necessary  to  charge  a  line  of  300 
miles  there  is  no  fixed  rule.  It  is  a  question  depending  upon 
the  climate,  the  quality  and  size  of  the  wire,  and  the  insula- 
tion of  the  line  wire.  Ordinarily,  in  good  dry  weather,  a  Grove 
battery  of  60  cells  will  be  sufficient  to  effect  successful  opera- 
tion. If  the  weather  is  damp,  or  the  insulation  at  fault,  the 
circumstances  of  the  case  must  determine  the  amount  required. 
It  very  often  occurs  on  the  American  lines,  that  the  station  at 
one  end  of  the  line  can  receive  well,  and  the  other  end  can  not 
receive  anything  intelligible.  For  example,  on  line  A  B,  300 
miles  long,  B  cannot  understand  the  faint  signals  received  from 
A,  but  at  the  same  time  A  receives  perfectly  from  B.  This  diffi- 

A  a         B 


oooooo  300  miles  ooo 

culty  is  occasioned,  sometimes  by  atmospheric  electricity,  but 
more  generally  by  faults  of  the  line  insulation.  The  metallic 
conductor  is  imperfect  near  B.  The  battery  at  B  becomes  active 
as  a  quantity  battery.  Its  quantitative  development  is  plus, 
and  does  not  harmonize  with  the  intensity  stream  coming  from 
A.  One  of  the  remedies  in  such  cases,  is  the  reduction  of  the 
number  of  cells  at  B,  and  the  increasing  of  the  battery 
at  A.  I  have  sometimes  found  benefit  in  the  polarization  of 
the  batteries  to  meet  the  emergency  ;  thus,  by  placing  the  plat- 
ina  or  positive  pole  of  the  battery  at  A,  directed  toward  B,  and 
the  zinc  pole  to  the  earth.  The  battery  at  B  should  also  be 
reversed.  Some  experts  are  of  the  opinion,  that  the  direction 
of  the  poles  have  no  particular  value  in  the  working  of  a  line  ; 
in  my  experience,  I  have  found  the  fact  to  be  otherwise,  and 
entitled  to  consideration. 

If  there  be  an  earth  connection  at  a  near  B,  the  quantitative 
development  at  B  will  be  plus,  and  in  practical  service  I  have 
found  that  it  had  a  retarding  or  hindering  influence  of  the  in- 
tensity current  from  A.  The  reduction,  therefore,  of  the  bat- 
tery at  B  lessens  that  hinderance,  and  the  current  from  A  becomes 
more  effective.  The  earth  connection  at  a  will  carry  off  a  part 
of  the  electric  force  from  A,  but  if  the  conductor  from  a  to  the 
earth  be  insufficient  to  lead  off  the  whole,  enough  will  pass  on 
to  the  station  B,  to  effect  the  ends  of  telegraphing.  Suppose 
that  seventy-five  per  cent,  is  carried  off  to  the  earth  at  &,  and 
the  remaining  twenty-five  per  cent,  continues  on  to  B,  that,  or 
ev*en  a  less  amount,  will  be  sufficient.  Station  B,  under  such  a 
state  of  the  electrical  force,  can  communicate  with  A.  The 


488  TELEGRAPH    ELECTRIC    CIRCUITS. 

magnet  at  A  can  not  be  wholly  demagnetized,  but  the  strength 
of  the  magnet  force  will  be  minus  and  plus,  according  to  the 
manipulation  of  B.  The  armature  of  A  will  have  to  be  re- 
moved farther  from  the  cores  of  the  spools,  so  that  the  break- 
ing of  the  circuit  at  B,  will  be  effective  in  the  attraction  of 
the  armature  of  the  magnet  at  A.  When  the  circuit  at  B  is 
broken,  the  seventy-five  per  cent,  current  that  passes  off  at  a, 
creates  in  the  soft  iron  cores  at  A,  seventy-five  per  cent,  of  at- 
tractive force.  The  adjustable  spring  of  the  armature  may 
draw  it  beyond  that  power,  but  the  moment  B  closes  the  cir- 
cuit, the  magnetic  force  of  the  cores  at  A,  becomes  increased 
twenty-five  per  cent.,  and  the  spring  no  longer  holds  the 
armature,  and  it  is  attracted  so  that  the  armature-lever  closes 
the  local  circuit,  and  thus  the  apparatus  at  A  becomes  subser- 
vient to  the  will  of  the  operator  at  B. 

The  difficulties  hereinbefore  described  are  not  always  charge- 
able to  the  causes  given.  Sometimes  the  fault  will  be  found 
in  the  connections  of  the  wire,  and  many  times  I  have  found  it 
to  be  with  the  earth  wire.  The  earth  must  be  moist  where 
the  connection  with  the  telegraphic  conductor  is  made.  The 
metal  surface  in  the  earth  should  be  large.  In  my  experience, 
for  an  iron  wire  line,  I  have  found  it  best  to  have  an  earth 
wire  of  copper,  number  12,  Birmingham  gauge,  well  soldered 
to  a  copper  plate,  at  least  two  feet  square,  or  its  equivalent 
surface,  and  buried  in  the  wet  earth.  If  the  earth  be  not  wet, 
the  working  of  the  whole  line  will  be  less  effective.  Dry  earth 
is  considered  a  non-conductor  ;  therefore,  in  order  to  consum- 
mate a  perfect  circuit,  it  is  necessary  for  the  metallic  surface, 
in  contact  with  the  water  of  the  earth,  to  be  commensurate 
with  the  conductibility  of  the  line  wire.  If  the  earth  con- 
nection be  inferior,  the  electrical  action  of  the  battery  will  be 
minus  in  the  same  proportion.  It  is  better  to  have  the  con- 
ductor uniform,  equalling  the  generative  powers  of  the  bat- 
tery, so  that  the  voltaic  streams  can  be  sufficient  for  the 
consummation  of  the  most  certain  and  effective  telegraphic 
manipulation. 

EARLY    EXPERIMENTAL    CIRCUITS. 

In  July,  1747,  Dr.  Watson,  Bishop  of  Llandaff,  together 
with  several  other  electricians,  ascertained  the  passage  of  elec- 
tricity through  the  water,  by  sending  shocks  across  the  Thames, 
and  in  August,  1747,  they  transmitted  shocks  through  two 
miles  of  wire  and  two  miles  of  earth  at  Shooter's  Hill. 

On  the  experimental  line,  erected  by  Professor  Steinheil  from 
Munich  to  Bogenhausen,  in  1836,  two  lines  of  wire,  were 


EARLY    EXPERIMENTAL    CIRCUITS.  489 

erected  to  complete  the  electric  circuit.  It  was  not  then  known 
that  the  earth  would  serve  as  one  half  of  the  conducting  cir- 
cuit. Soon  thereafter,  he  discovered  that  the  earth  would 
answer,  and  that  only  one  wire  was  sufficient  for  telegraphic 
purposes.  When  Morse  constructed  the  experimental  line  from 
Baltimore  to  "Washington,  he  did  not  know  that  the  earth  would 
answer  for  the  half  circuit,  and  therefore  he  erected  two  wires, 
and  the  voltaic  current  was  sent  over  one  wire  and  it  returned 
over  the  other,  as  represented  by  fig.  4  :  B  is  Baltimore,  and  w  is 
Washington.  One  of  the  wires  is  east  and  the  other  west.  The 

Fig.  4.      ' 


East  wire 


West  -wire 


current  starts  from  p,  the  positive  pole  of  the  battery,  passes 
through  the  key,  &,  and  the  relay  magnet  m,  at  the  Baltimore 
station,  thence  over  the  east  wire  to  Washington,  where  it  passes 
through  the  key  &',  the  relay  magnet  m',  and  thence  over  the 
west  wire  to  Baltimore,  wheie  it  enters  the  negative  pole  of 
the  voltaic  battery. 

After  the  line  had  been  in  operation  for  some  six  months,  the 
earth  was  made  a  part  of  the  circuit,  according  to  the  following 
diagram. 

Fig.  5. 
jEcf'Sir  wire 
e —    ground,       «-r 


The  route  of  the  current  is  precisely  the  same  as  the  diagram 
before  described,  except  that  the  earth  is  made  a  part  of  the 
circuit.  The  current  arriving  at  copper  plate  c'  passes  through 
the  earth  as  indicated  by  the  arrows,  to  copper  plate  c,  which 
is  also  buried  in  the  moist  earth,  and  thence  to  the  N.  pole 


490  TELEGRAPH    ELECTRIC    CIRCUITS. 

of  the  battery.  The  plates  used  by  Professor  Morse  were  five  feet 
long,  and  two  and  a  half  feet  broad ;  at  Baltimore,  it  was  buried 
in  the  water  at  the  bottom  of  the  dock,  near  Pratt  street ;  at 
Washington  it  was  placed  in  the  earth  under  the  Capitol. 

A  subsequent  experiment  demonstrated  the  practicability  of 
working  the  two  wires,  arranged  as  represented  in  the  follow- 
ing diagram. 

Fig.  6. 
— >  JZastivire  > 


West 


By  this  arrangement  the  keys  were  not  required  to  be  closed. 
Each  station  had  its  wire,  independent  of  the  other.  At  that 
time  it  was  a  discovery  of  great  import,  and  to  Mr.  Alfred  Vail 
the  credit  is  due.  They  were  called  independent  circuits.  It 
will  be  seen  that  the  west  wire  was  used  for  transmitting  from 
Baltimore  to  Washington,  and  the  east  wire  from  w  to  B.  The 
battery  at  B  was  used  in  common  for  both  circuits.  When 
B  transmitted  to  w,  the  current  proceeded  from  p  of  the  bat- 
tery to  &,  then  over  the  west  wire,  then  to  m/  at  w,  thence  to 
cx,  thence  through  the  earth  to  c  at  B,  and  thence  to  the  N,  or 
negative  pole  of  the  battery  as  shown  by  the  arrows.  When 
w  transmitted  to  Baltimore,  the  current  proceeded  from  the  p 
of  the  battery  to  w,  then  over  the  east  wire,  then  to  A/,  at  w, 
thence  to  cx,  thence  through  the  earth  to  c  at  B,  thence  to  the 
N,  or  negative  pole  of  the  battery,  as  shown  by  the  arrows.  In 
the  above  arrangement  Mr.  Vail  used  but  one  battery,  and  the 
same  earth-plates  common  to  both  lines.  The  circuits  were 
called  "  open  circuits,"  because  the  keys  at  each  station  were 
always  open,  unless  when  used  for  transmitting  intelligence. 

In  1844,  Mr.  Vail .  experimented  on  the  line  between  Balti- 
more and  Washington,  with  the  two  telegraph  wires  then  erected. 
There  were  none  others  in  America.  When  he  ascertained  that 
the  two  wires  could  be  practically  worked,  as  described  herein- 
before, he  advanced  the  opinion,  that  several  circuits  could  be 
operated  with  one  battery,  or  by  a  series  of  batteries. 

In  the  following  fig.  7,  let  the  right-hand  side  represent 
Washington,  and  the  left  Baltimore.  The  lines  1,  2,  3,  4, 


EARLY    EXPERIMENTAL    CIRCUITS. 


491 


5,  and  6,  between  m  and  k,  respectively,  represent  the  six  wires 
connecting  (for  example)  Washington  with  Baltimore  ;  m  1, 
m  3,  and  m  5,  represent  the  three  magnets,  or  registers,  and 
k  2,  k  4,  and  k  6,  the  three  keys,  or  correspondents,  at  Balti- 
more ;  A;  1,  A:  3,  and  k  5,  are  the  three  keys  or  correspondents, 
and  m  2,  m  4,  and  m  6,  the  three  magnets  or  registers,  at 
Washington. 


The  "battery  is  represented  by  four  black  dots,  marked  N,  B, 
p.  The  course  of  the  fluid  in  this  case  is  from  p  to  c,  the  cop- 
per plate  on  the  left  side  ;  then  through  the  ground  to  c,  the 
copper  plate  on  the  right ;  then  through  the  single  wire  to  any 
of  the  six  wires,  which  may  be  required,  then  to  the  single 
wire  on  the  left  side  to  N,  of  the  battery.  It  is  obvious  that  in 
this  arrangement  there  is  a  division  of  the  power  of  the  bat- 
tery, depending  upon  the  number  of  circuits  that  may  be 
closed  at  one  instant.  For  example :  if  circuit  1  is  alone  being 
used,  then  it  is  worked  with  the  whole  force  of  the  battery. 
If  1  and  2  are  used  at  thft  same  instant ;  each  of  them  employ 
one  half  the  force  of  the  battery.  If  1,  2,  and  3,  are  used,  then 
each  use  one  third  its  power.  If  1,  2,  3,  and  4,  then  each  cir- 
cuit has  one  fourth  the  power  ;  if  1,  2,  3,  4,  and  5,  are  used 
at  the  same  moment,  then  one  fifth  is  only  appropriated  to 
each  circuit,  and  if  1,  2,  3,  4,  5,  and  6,  then  each  employ  a 
sixth  part  of  the  voltaic  fluid  generated  by  the  battery. 


492 


TELEGRAPH    ELECTRIC    CIRCUITS. 


THE    STAGER    COMPOUND    CIRCUITS. 

On  the  extension  of  the  lines,  their  continual  use  becoming 
necessary  for  commercial  purposes,  the  working  of  the  lines 
with  open  circuits,  according  to  the  plan  adopted  by  Mr.  Vail, 
was  found  impracticable  for  successful  telegraphing. 

The  plan  was  then  adopted,  to  keep  the  circuits  always 
closed,  and  the  battery  current  continuously  on  the  line  wires. 
This  occasioned  the  necessity  of  placing  upon  each  wire  a  bat- 
tery, each  independent  of  the  other.  It  was  maintained  at  a 
very  great  expense,  but  there  seemed  to  be  no  law  known  by 
which  it  could  be  avoided. 

For  several  years  the  lines  throughout  America  thus  worked. 
Various  plans  were  tried  to  economize  in  the  battery  organiza- 
tion, but  without  success.  The  most  skilled  experts  had  their 
attention  directed  to  the  subject,  and  it  fell  to  the  lot  of  Mr. 
Anson  Stager,  of  the  Cincinnati  station,  to  devise  a  plan  by 
which  might  be  successfully  operated  any  number  of  lines 
from  the  same  battery.  This  discovery  made  by  Mr.  Stager, 
in  December,  1850,  gave  additional  evidence  of  the  very  superior 
skill  which  had  before  and  since  characterized  his  telegraphic 
career.  Mr.  Stager  thus  explains  his  plan  of  operating  a  series 
of  lines  by  the  same  battery. 

Fig.  8. 


The  improvement  consists  in  wording  a  "  multiplicity  of 
main  circuits  with  a  single  main  battery  >  instead  of  a  battery 
to  each  circuit,  as  was  practised  previous  to  this  discovery."  It 
is  described  as  follows  : 

B,  is  a  main  battery,  w,  w7,  large  wires  leading  from  the 
poles  of  the  battery ;  E,  the  earth-plate  ;  L,  L,  L,  L,  four  main 
lines  branching  from  the  large  wire  of  the  battery  at  wx,  and 
extending  to  the  several  terminal  stations,  each  finally  connect- 


THE    STAGER    COMPOUND    CIRCUITS.  493 

ing  with  a  ground  plate.  In  their  course  each  of  the  main 
lines  may  include  at  any  point,  or  points,  where  stations  are 
required,  receiving  magnets,  represented  by  R,  RX,  &o..  connected 
in  each  instance  with  registers  and  the  usual  telegraphic  appa- 
ratuses. 

Mode  of  Operation. — The  single  battery,  B,  being  in  action, 
any  one  or  all  of  the  apparatuses  in  the  several  main  circuits, 
may  be  used  and  operated  in  the  same  manner  as  though  each 
main  circuit  was  a  separate  and  independent  circuit,  supplied 
with  a  separate  and  independent  battery  ;  and,  herein  consists 
the  novelty  and  utility  of  the  improvement,  viz. :  A  multiplicity 
of  circuits  at  even  twenty  or  more,  each  extending  several 
hundreds  of  miles,  can  thus  be  worked  by  means  of  a  single 
battery,  instead  of  one  to  each  circuit,  as  was  practised  pre- 
vious to  this  improvement.  In  this  use  of  a  single  battery, 
according  to  the  above  described  plan*  there  is  no  interference 
of  circuits,  one  with  another  ;  each  performing  its  functions, 
precisely  as.it  would  do  if  it  were  a  complete  and  independent 
circuit.  Nor  does  the  single  battery,  thus  used  to  supply  many 
main  lines,  seem  to  be  consumed  faster  than  the  single  battery 
of  a  single  circuit  as  formerly  used. 

In  case  one  or  more  of  the  main  circuits  be  short,  for  ex- 
ample, 5  and  6,  they  need  but  a  small  voltaic  force,  and  they 
may  be  supplied  by  branches,  starting  out  at  intermediate 
points  of  the  battery,  as  at  a  and  b.  -The  voltaic  force,  thus 
taken  from  a  section  of  the  battery,  will  not  diminish  percep- 
tibly the  current  on  the  other  main  circuits. 

It  is  a  condition  necessary  to  the  success  of  this  mode  pf 
working,  that  each  main  circuit  include  a  receiving  magnet,  or 
a  resisting  wire  equal  to  that  of  a  relay  magnet.  There  must 
be  no  "  cut  off,"  or  earth  conductor,  between  the  main  battery 
and  a  contiguous  receiving  magnet.  If  a  circuit  be  thus  made, 
the  battery  force  will  be  withdrawn  from  the  other  circuits, 
and  they  may  cease  to  operate  effectively.  If  the  earth  con- 
nection be  made  beyond  the  receiving  magnet,  as  at  L,  thus 
compelling  the  electricity  to  traverse  the  fine  wire  of  magnet  R, 
before  reaching  the  earth,  and  returning  to  the  prime  ground 
plate  E,  there  will  be  no  interference  with  the  other  main  circuits, 
though  they  may  be  of  great  lengths,  and  the  other  circuit  very 
short.  This  affords  to  the  operator  the  advantage  of  working 
one  or  more  registers  within  the  same  station  with  the  battery, 
independently  of  all  other  registers,  and  without  any  inter- 
ference with  them. 

In  the  plan  as  heretofore  practised,  of  having  a  battery  in 
each  circuit,  the  quantity  of  electricity  generated,  was  more 


494 


TELEGRAPH    ELECTRIC    CIRCUITS. 


than  sufficient  for  supplying  the  single  circuit ;  and  the  plus 
was  retarded  by  the  resisting  coils  of  the  magnets.  It  has 
been  practically  demonstrated,  that  when  there  are  several 
main  circuits  connected  with  one  main  battery,  each  with  its  re- 
ceiving magnet  or  coils  of  resistance,  prevents  the  electricity 
from  taking  one  circuit  exclusively r,  and  the  voltaic  force  will 
be  diffused  over  all  the  circuits  sufficiently  for  telegraphic  ser- 
vice. The  surplus  electricity  which  was  on  the  single  circuit 
system  wasted  or  returned,  by  return  shocks  through  the  bat- 
tery, is,  by  this  improvement,  brought  into  actual  service. 

Another  valuable  advantage  resulting  from  this  arrangement 
is,  that  an  operator,  having  a  key  in  the  main  common  circuit 
between  E  and  w,  can  work  "all  of  the  registers  on  all  the  main 
circuits,  and  can  thus  multiply  and  diffuse  identically  dupli- 
cate copies  of  important  documents,  or  newspaper  reports,  to 
all  points  at  the  same  moment. 

COMBINING    ELECTRIC    CIRCUITS. 

As  soon  as  the  telegraph  lines  were  extended  over  long 
ranges,  it  was  found  to  be  impracticable  to  operate  them  in 
long  circuits.  Yarious  experiments  were  then  made  to  remedy 
the  difficulty.  Mr.  Ezra  Cornell,  arranged  the  apparatus  of 
one  station  to  open  and  close  the  next  succeeding  circuit.  This 

Fig.  9. 


COMBINING    ELECTRIC    CIRCUITS.  495 

was  called  the  "  Cornell  switch."  By  this  arrangement,  the 
second  circuit  could  not  respond  without  a  transfer  of  the  switch 
instrument  at  the  central  station,  done  by  the  operator.  When 
B  answered  A,  the  operator  at  the  central  station,  with  a  spring, 
changed  the  register  magnets,  or  the  local  circuit,  from  the 
relay  magnets  of  the  circuit  of  A,  to  the  circuit  of  B. 

The  next  arrangement  operated,  was  one  proposed  by  Col. 
John  J.  Speed,  Jr.,  and  is  represented  by  fig.  8.  The  instruments 
in  the  figure  are  supposed  to  be  at  Cleveland.  On  the  riglit, 
the  wires  run  to  Detroit,  and  on  the  left,  to  Buffalo.  A  A/  are 
relay  magnets,  constructed  with  a  platina  point  to  close  the 
connecting  circuit,  through  the  action  of  a  spring,  when  the 
main  circuit  is  broken  ;  B  B7  are  the  connector  magnets  ;  c  c' 
are  local  batteries,  to  operate  the  connector  magnets  ;  D  v'  are 
closing  points,  to  each  of  which  is  attached  one  main  wire  and 
one  of  the  connectors  ;  E  v'  are  the  closing  points  to  which  the 
connecting  circuits  are  attached. 

The  manner  of  operating  this  instrument,  commonly  called 
a  "  repeater,"  is  as  follows,  viz.  : 

When  Buffalo  breaks  the  circuit,  the  armature  of  the  relay 
magnet  A,  at  Cleveland,  will  be  drawn  back  by  means  of  the 
spring,  against  the  closing  point  E.  This  will  put  in  action  the 
battery  c,  and  the  magnet  B  will  break  the  connection  at  D, 
thus  breaking  the  circuit  of  the  Detroit  line  at  D,  and  also  break- 
ing the  connecting  circuit,  from  the  battery-  c7  at  the  point  D. 
The  breaking  of  the  battery  current  cx,  prevents  the  magnet  B/ 
from  breaking  the  Buffalo  line  at  the  point  DX.  When  Buffalo 
closes  the  circuit,  the  relay  magnet  A,  will  break  the  connecting 
circuit,  from  the  battery  c,  at  E.  The  armature  of  the  con- 
nector magnet  B  will  be  drawn  back,  by  means  of  a  spring, 
against  the  point  D,  and  close  the  Detroit  circuit  at  the  point  D, 
at  which  time  the  connecting  circuit  c7,  is  also  closed  on  the 
same  point,  and  at  the  same  instant.  The  main  battery  on 
the  Detroit  circuit  having  the  greater  number  of  cells,  will 
break  the  connecting  circuit  cx,  at  the  point  EX  before  the  small 
battery  cx  will  operate  the  magnet  B,  and  break  the  Buffalo  cir- 
cuit at  DX.  The  law  being,  that  the  battery  of  the  greatest 
intensity  will  make  its  magnet  first,  or,  in  other  words,  the 
velocity  of  a  current  of  electricity  is  in  proportion  to  its  in- 
tensity. This  arrangement  is  now  obsolete. 


ELECTRIC   CURRENTS. 


CHAPTER    XXXVI. 

Electric  Currents  explained — Electric  Circuits — Quantity  and  Intensity  Cur- 
rents— Phenomena  of  the  Return  Current — Retardation  of  the  Current  illus- 
trated— Estimated  Velocity  of  the  Electric  Current  on  Subaqueous  Conduc- 
tors. 

ELECTRIC  CURRENTS  EXPLAINED. 

IN  the  consideration  of  electric  currents  I  shall  have  especial 
reference  to  their  application  to  purposes  of  practical  telegraph- 
ing— of  the  science  to  the  art.  It  is  possible  that  some  of  the 
views  entertained  by  me,  and  which  are  founded  upon  obser- 
vations during  several  years  of  telegraphing,  may  not  be  con- 
sistent with  theoretical  laws  advanced  from  time  to  time  by 
philosophers.  In  my  experience  I  have  found  many  problems 
in  electrical  science  unsolved,  and  which  to  this  day  remain 
hidden  mysteries,  known  to  Him  alone  who  rules  the  storms  and 
directs  the  movements  of  worlds. 

A  current  of  electricity  is  the  passing  of  an  invisible  and  an 
imponderable  fluid  over  certain  matter  acting  as  conductor, 
starting  from  its  generating  source,  traversing  the  circuit,  and 
ending  at  the  point  of  starting. 

The  source  from  which  the  current  flows  is  known  as  the 
voltaic  battery  ;  one  end  of  which  is  positive  and  the  other  end 
negative.  It  is  composed  of  two  metals  and  chemical  com- 
pounds. The  media  through  which  the  stream  of  electricity 
flows  from  one  end  of  the  battery  to  the  other  are  called  electric 
conductors,  and  they  are  usually  of  iron  or  copper  metal.  The 
whole  chain  of  metals  and  chemicals  through  which  the  elec- 
tric current  or  stream  flows  is  called  a  circuit.  A  contact  be- 
tween the  parts  must  be  complete  or  there  can  be  no  electricity ; 
because  there  can  be  no  electricity  if  the  two  poles  of  the 
voltaic  organization  are  not  connected  with  one  continuous  and 
unbroken  circuit. 


ELECTRIC  CIRCUITS.  497 

The  electric  influence  is  sometimes  called  a  "pulse,"  a 
"wave,"  a  "stream,"  a  "current,"  a  "fluid,"  &c.  These 
terms  can  mean  but  one  thing,  and  that  is,  the  presence  of  elec- 
tricity. 

ELECTRIC    CIRCUITS. 

Overground  wires,  suspended  on  poles,  extend  in  circuits  of 
indefinite  lengths,  usually,  as  a  maximum,  three  hundred  miles. 
The  electric  circuit  will  be  as  a  maximum  six  hundred  miles ; 
that  is,  three  hundred  miles  of  wire  and  three  hundred  miles 
of  earth.  The  tendency  of  the  current,  when  it  leaves  the 
positive  pole  of  the  battery,  is  to  reach  the  negative  pole  as 
soon  as  it  can.  Static  or  friction  al  electricity  will  leap  from 
one  conductor  to  another  to  reach  its  opposite;  but  dynamic 
electricity,  generated  by  a  voltaic  series,  requires  one  continuous 
conductor  in  order  to  have  life  or  existence. 

In  the  use  of  the  term  or  technicality,  "dynamic,"  I  mean 
electricity  that  has  a  continuous  movement  over  the  conductor, 
from  one  pole  of  the  battery  to  the  other,  effecting  an  uninter- 
rupted neutralization  or  a  continual  re-union  of  the  two  elec- 
tricities— the  negative  and  the  positive. 

If  "dynamic  electricity"  is  transmitted  over  very  fine  metal 
wire,  and  of  short  length,  the  metal  becomes  heated  and  may 
melt.  If  the  conductor  be  water,  when  the  "dynamic  current" 
is  transmitted,  the  water  is  in  part  decomposed,  and  its  two 
constituent  gases,  the  oxygen  and  hydrogen,  are  seen  to  be  set 
free. 

On  a  line  of  some  three  hundred  miles  it  is  certain  that  there 
will  be  many  media  through  which  the  fluid  can,  in  part, 
escape  to  the  earth  and  return  again  to  its  original  source. 
From  each  of  these  escaping  places  on  the  route,  branch  off 
lesser  circuits ;  and  in  the  three  hundred  miles  there  may  be 
three  hundred  places  where  small  portions  of  the  current  "leak" 
from  the  wire  and  pass  off  in  small  streams  to  the  earth.  If 
these  conductors  were  equal  to  the  wire  the  whole  of  the  cur- 
rent would  pass  to  the  earth  and  return  to  its  original  source, 
and  not  traverse  the  line  circuit.  These  media  through 
which  the  current  passes  off  from  the  line  wire,  are  some  of  the 
many  conductors  mentioned  elsewhere  in  this  work,  and  to 
which  may  be  added  fog  and  heat.  Fig.  1  represents  a  line 
passing  through  the  air  on  poles.  A  is  a  sectional  view  of  the 
wire;  B  is  fog  or  heat,  and  c  is  the  earth.  The  voltaic  current 
is  represented  by  the  arrows.  In  working  a  telegraph  line 
through  a  heavy  fog,  much  difficulty  is  experienced,  and  it 
frequently  becomes  necessary  to  increase  the  number  of  the 

32 


498 


ELECTRIC  CURRENTS. 
Fig.  1. 


G£3 


,^r^<-^ 


mm 


cells  to  obtain  intensity  of  current  sufficient  to  overcome  the 
losses  occasioned  by  the  fog.  The  current  escapes  through  the 
watery  particles  in  contact  and  reaches  the  earth.  The  figure 
does  not  exactly  represent  the  case,  but  it  is  sufficiently  cor- 
rect to  enable  the  reader  to  form  an  idea  as  to  the  "leaking" 
of  the  current  from  the  wire  through  the  fog  to  the  earth. 

Heat  has  frequently  produced  the  same  result  as  mentioned 
above.  On  some  lines  in  America,  during  very  hot  days,  in  the 
afternoon,  when  everything  was  dry  and  all  surface  moisture 
absorbed  by  the  rays  of  the  sun,  I  have  known  it  to  be  impos- 
sible to  work  on  a  well-insulated  line  as  far  as  two  hundred 
miles.  The  result  may  not  have  been  the  heat,  but  there  is 
no  other  way  to  account  for  it.  The  metallic  circuit  was  good, 
because  at  times  when  it  was  dry  and  cool,  or  when  it  rained, 
and  during  the  morning  hours,  there  was  no  difficulty  in  work- 
Fig.  2. 


ing  the  line.  The  dry,  hilly  regions  traversed  by  the  line  were 
free  from  trees,  from  grass,  and  from  everything  that  partook  of 
moisture.  If  it  was  not  the  heat,  I  know  of  no  means  of  ac- 
counting for  the  strange  phenomena  which  so  often  and  for  so 
many  weeks  manifested  itself. 


QUANTITY  AND  INTENSITY  CURRENTS.  499 


QUANTITY  AND  INTENSITY  CURRENTS. 

I  have  frequently  in  this  work  used  the  terms  quantity  and 
intensity  currents,  and  I  have,  on  as  many  occasions  as  possi- 
ble, explained  the  element  of  each.  On  a  line  of  three  hun- 
dred miles  a  quantity  current  would  be  of  no  value.  Connect 
a  line  of  that  length  to  a  large  quantity  battery,  «and  the  wire 
would  be  burned  long  before  the  intensity  nature  of  the  current 
would  reach  the  farther  end.  It  can  be  so  great  that  it  would 
partake  of  the  nature  of  Motional  electricity,  and  pass  beyond 
the  management  of  art.  The  telegraphic  service  requires  a 
current  of  intensity  and  not  of  quantity.  The  strict  technical 
definitions  of  these  terms  have  been  given  by  the  great  philos- 
opher, Prof.  Faraday,  whose  name  stands  in  golden  capitals 
upon  many  pages  of  the  annals  of  progressive  science.  He 
says : 

"The  character  of  the  phenomena  described  in  this  report 
induces  me  to  refer  to  the  terms  intensity  and  quantity  as  ap- 
plied to  electricity ;  terms  which  I  have  had  such  frequent 
occasion  to  employ.  These  terms,  or  equivalents  for  them, 
cannot  be  dispensed  with  by  those  who  study  both  the  static 
and  the  dynamic  relations  of  electricity.  Every  current,  where 
there  is  resistance,  has  the  static  element  and  induction  involv- 
ed in  it,  while  every  case  of  insulation  has  more  or  less  of  the 
dynamic  element  and  conduction;  and  we  have  seen  that,  with 
the  same  voltaic  source,  the  same  current  in  the  same  length 
of  the  same  wire  gives  a  different  result  as  the  intensity  is 
made  to  vary  with  variations  of  the  induction  around  the  wire. 
The  idea  of  intensity,  or  the  power  of  overcoming  resistance, 
is  as  necessary  to  that  of  electricity,  either  static  or  current, 
as  the  idea  of  pressure  is  to  steam  in  a  boiler,  or  to  air  passing 
through  apertures  or  tubes,  and  we  must  have  language  compe- 
tent to  express  these  conditions  and  these  ideas." 

The  quantity  of  electricity  developed  by  a  given  voltaic  bat- 
tery depends  practically  upon  the  size  of  the  plates  used.  The 
intensity  is  the  force  with  which  the  quantity  is  brought  to 
bear  upon  anything  to  produce  a  given  result ;  its  energy  in 
overcoming  obstacles  or  impediments  to  the  free  passage  of  the 
electric  current.  This  intensity  is  generally  acquired  by  in- 
creasing the  number  of  ceils,  and  it  is  proportioned  to  that 
numerical  increase.  A  quantity  current  can  be  so  great  as  to 
be  unmanageable  for  telegraphic  service.  It  becomes  as  rest- 
less as  static  or  lightning  electricity,  and  will  leave  the  wire 
in  part,  if  near  a  better  conductor.  An  intensity  current  is 
necessary  for  overcoming  distance.  In  reference  to  this  sub- 
ject, that  distinguished  philosopher,  Dr.  Lardner,  said,  viz. : 


500  ELECTRIC  CURRENTS. 

"  To  produce  the  effects,  whatever  these  may  "be,  by  which 
the  telegraphic  messages  are  expressed,  it  is  necessary  that 
the  electric  current  shall  have  a  certain  intensity.  Now,  the 
intensity  of  the  current  transmitted  by  a  given  voltaic  battery 
along  a  given  line  of  wire  will  decrease,  other  things  being  the 
same,  in  the  same  proportion  as  the  length  of  the  wire  increases. 
Thus,  if  the  wire  be  continued  for  ten  miles,  the  current  will 
have  twice  the  intensity  which  it  would  have  if  the  wire  had 
been  extended  to  a  distance  of  twenty  miles. 

It  is  evident,  therefore,  that  the  wire  may  be  continued  to 
such  a  length  that  the  current  will  no  Longer  have  sufficient 
intensity  to  produce  at  the  station  to  which  the  despatch  is 
transmitted  those  effects  by  which  the  language  of  the  despatch 
is  signified. 

The  intensity  of  the  current  transmitted  by  a  given  voltaic 
battery  upon  a  wire  of  given  length  will  be  increased  in  the 
same  proportion  as  the  area  of  the  section  of  the  wire  is  aug- 
mented. Thus,  if  the  diameter  of  the  wire  be  doubled,  the 
area  of  its  section  being  increased  in  a  four- fold  proportion,  the 
intensity  of  the  current  transmitted  along  the  wire  will  be 
increased  in  the  same  ratio. 

In  fine,  the  intensity  of  the  current  may  also  be  augmented 
by  increasing  the  number  of  pairs  of  generating  plates  or  cyl- 
inders composing  the  voltaic  battery. 

Since  it  has  been  found  most  convenient  generally  to  use 
iron  as  the  material  for  the  conducting  wires,  it  is  of  no  prac- 
tical importance  to  take  into  account  the  influence  which  the 
quality  of  the  metal  may  produce  upon  the  intensity  of  the 
current.  It  may  be  useful,  nevertheless,  to  state  that,  other 
things  being  the  same,  the  intensity  of  the  current  will  be  in 
proportion  to  the  conducting  power  of  the  metal  of  which  the 
wire  is  formed,  and  that  copper  is  the  best  conductor  of  the 
metals. 

M.  Pouillet  found,  by  well-conducted  experiments,  that  the 
current  supplied  by  a  voltaic  battery  of  ten  pairs  of  plates, 
transmitted  upon  a  copper  wire  having  a  diameter  of  four  one- 
thousandths  of  an  inch,  and  a  length  of  six  tenths  of  a  mile, 
was  sufficiently  intense  for  all  the  common  telegraphic  purpo- 
ses. Now,  if  we  suppose  that  the  wire,  instead  of  being  four 
one-thousandths  of  an  inch  in  diameter,  has  a  diameter  of  a  quar- 
ter of  an  inch,  its  diameter  being  greater  in  the  ratio  of  sixty- 
two  and  one  half  to  one,  its  section  will  be  greater  in  the  ratio 
of  nearly  four  thousand  to  one,  and  it  will,  consequently,  carry 
a  current  of  equal  intensity  over  a  length  of  wire  four  thousand 
times  greater — that  is,  over  two  thousand  four  hundred  miles 
of  wire." 


THE  RETURN  CURRENT.  501 

Fig.  2  is  intended  to  represent  the  intensity  current  moving 
in  a  voltaic  conductor.  Commencing  upon  the  right  and  run- 
ing  to  the  left,  the  farther  from  the  place  of  starting  the  feebler 
becomes  the  force.  The  intensity  or  the  energy  of  the  current 
lessens  in  its  force,  as  indicated  by  the  lessening  of  the  arrows 
in  the  given  section  of  the  conductor.  In  the  preparation  of 
the  diagram,  and  the  others  in  this  chapter,  I  have  waived  the 
question  as  to  localization  of  the  motion  and  existence  of  elec- 
tricity in  the  metallic  conductor.  It  is  my  opinion,  however, 
that  the  electricity  on  or  near  the  surface  might  be  properly 
called  "electricity  in  motion,"  and  that  within  "electricity  at 
rest."  I  have  no  doubt  but  what  the  presence  of  electricity 
pervades  the  whole  wire,  but  that  the  intensity,  principally, 
has  its  motion  at  or  near  the  surface.  I  am  led  to  believe  this 
from  the  result  of  some  experiments  which  I  have  instituted. 
It  is  a  question  of  much  importance  to  the  telegraphic  enter- 
prise, and  it  is  to  be  hoped  that  others  will  give  it  a  careful 
consideration. 

In  regard  to  the  distribution  of  electricity 
on  a  circular  plane,  it  has  been  found  that 
the  extent  or  thickness  of  the  electric  stra- 
tum was  almost  constant  from  the  centre, 
to  within  a  very  small  distance  of  the  circum- 
ference, when  it  increased  all  on  a  sudden 
with  great  rapidity.  The  end  section  of  a 
wire  may  represent  the  plane,  and  the  phi- 
losophy established  would  prove  that  the 
inner  or  centre  part  was  but  slightly  charged  with  electricity, 
and  that  it  increased  as  to  volume  or  amount  from  the  centre 
to  the  surface ;  but  that  at  or  near  the  surface  it  was  very 
considerably  increased.  My  experiments  have  confirmed  the 
truth  of  the  foregoing  law.  It  may  be  possible  that  the  inten- 
sity of  the  current  moves  at  or  near  the  surface  of  the  con- 
ductor, and  that  its  quantitative  element  pervades  the  whole 
metal. 

The  foregoing  remarks  may  be  applied  to  all  kinds  of  tele- 
graph conductors,  whether  in  air  or  in  the  earth. 

PHENOMENA  OF  THE  RETURN  CURRENT. 

I  will,  in  the  next  place,  notice  the  difference  between  prac- 
tical working  of  subterranean,  submarine  and  air  lines. 

On  air  lines  we  have  to  contend  against  atmospheric  elec- 
tricity, induced  currents  and  cross  currents,  or  the  escape  of  the 
electricity  by  heat,  fog,  &c.  On  subterranean  and  submarine 
lines  a  new  phenomenon  has  been  manifested,  which  materially 


502  ELECTRIC   CURRENTS. 

interferes  with  the  successful  working  of  the  telegraph. 
Whether  in  the  earth  or  in  the  water,  the  philosophy  is  the 
sitme,  except  as  the  water  exists  in  greater  quantities  nearer 
the  submarine  cable  than  to  the  subterranean,  the  influence  is 
greater  on  the  latter  than  on  the  former. 

The  discovery  of  this  new  phenomenon  was  announced  by 
Professor  Faraday  in  1854 ;  and  notwithstanding  electricians 
have  expended  much  labor  and  money  to  discover  a  remedy  for 
the  difficulty,  there  has  been  nothing  accomplished  to  amelio- 
rate, in  the  slightest  degree,  the  effects  of  the  remarkable 
phenomenon  in  subaqueous  telegraphing,  described  by  Professor 
Faraday  to  the  Royal  Institute  of  Great  Britain.  The  sub- 
stance of  the  report  will  be  found  in  the  following  extracts,  viz. : 

"In  consequence  of  the  perfection  of  the  workmanship,  a 
Leyden  arrangement  is  produced  upon  a  large  scale  ;  the  cop- 
per wire  becomes  charged  statically  with  that  electricity  which 
the  pole  of  the  battery  connected  with  it  can  supply  ;  it  acts 
by  induction  through  the  gutta-percha  (without  which  induc- 
tion it  could  not  itself  become  charged,  Exp.  Res.  1177).  pro- 
ducing the  opposite  state  on  the  surface  of  the  water  touching 
the  g  tta-percha,  which  forms  the  outer  coating  of  this  curious 
arrangement.  The  gutta-percha,  across  which  the  induction 
occurs,  is  only  0.1  of  an  inch  thick,  and  the  extent  of  the 
coating  is  enormous.  The  surface  of  the  copper  wire  is  nearly 
eight  thousand  three  hundred  square  feet,  and  the  surface  of 
the  outer  coating  of  water  is  four  times  that  amount,  or  thirty- 
three  thousand  square  feet.  Hence  the  striking  character  of 
the  results.  The  intensity  of  the  static  charge  acquired  is  only 
equal  to  the  intensity  at  the  pole  of  the  battery  whence  it  is 
derived ;  but  its  quantity  is  enormous,  because  of  the  immense 
extent  of  the  Leyden  arrangement ;  and  hence,  when  the  wire 
is  separated  from  the  battery  and  the  charge  employed,  it  has 
all  the  powers  of  a  considerable  voltaic  current,  and  gives 
results  which  the  best  ordinary  electric  machines  and  Leyden 
arrangements  cannot  as  yet  approach. 

Mr.  Clarke  arranged  a  Bain's  printing  telegraph,  with  three 
pens,  so  that  it  gave  beautiful  illustrations  and  records  of  facts 
like  those  stated ;  the  pens  are  iron  wires,  under  which  a  band 
of  paper,  imbued  with  ferro-prussiate  of  potassa,  passes  at  a 
regular  rate  by  clock-work  ;  and  thus  regular  lines  of  prussian 
blue  are  produced  whenever  a  current  is  transmitted,  and  the 
time  of  the  current  is  recorded.  In  the  case  to  be  described  the 
three  lines  were  side  by  side,  and  about  0.1  of  an  inch  apart. 
The  pen  m  belonged  to  a  circuit  of  only  a  few  feet  of  wire, 
and  a  separate  battery  ;  it  told  whenever  the  contact  key  was 


VELOCITY  OF  THE  CURRENTS.  503 

put  down  by  the  finger ;  the  pen  n  was  at  the  FiS-  4- 

earth  end  of  the  long  air  wire,  and  the  pen  o 
at  the  earth  end  of  the  long  subterraneous 
wire;  and,  by  arrangement,  the  key  could  be 
made  to  throw  the  electricity  of  the  chief  bat- 
tery into  either  of  these  wires  simultaneously 
with  the  passage  of  the  short  circuit  current 
through  pen  m.  When  pens  m  and  n  were  in 
action,  the  m  record  was  a  regular  line  of  equal 
thickness,  showing  by  its  length  the  actual 
time  during  which  the  electricity  flowed  into 
the  wires ;  and  the  n  record  was  an  equally 
regular  line,  parallel  to  and  of  equal  length 
with  the  former,  but  the  least  degree  behind  it ; 
thus  indicating  ihat  the  long  air  wire  conveyed 
its  electric  current  almost  instantaneously  to  the  further  end- 
But  when  pens  m  and  o  were  in  action,  the  o  line  did  not  begin 
until  some  time  after  the  m  line,  and  it  continued  after  the  m 
line  had  ceased — i.  e.,  after  the  o  battery  was  cut  off.  Further- 
more, it  was  faint  at  first,  grew  up  to  a  maximum  of  intensity, 
continued  at  that  as  long  as  battery  contact  was  continued, 
and  then  gradually  diminished  to  nothing.  Thus  the  record  o 
showed  that  the  wave  of  power  took  time  in  the  water  wire  to 
reach  the  further  extremity ;  by  its  first  faintness,  it  showed 
that  power  was  consumed  in  the  exertion  of  lateral  static 
induction  along  the  wire  ;  by  the  attainment  of  a  maximum 
and  the  after  equality,  it  showed  when  this  induction  had  be- 
come proportionate  to  the  intensity  of  the  battery  current ;  by 
its  beginning  to  diminish,  it  showed  when  the  battery  current 
was  cut  off;  and  its  prolongation  and  gradual  diminution, 
showed  the  time  of  the  outflow  of  the  static  electricity  laid  up 
in  the  wire,  and  the  consequent  regular  falling  of  the  induc- 
tion which  had  been  as  regularly  raised. 

When  an  air  wire  of  equal  extent  is  experimented  with,  in 
like  manner,  no  such  effects  as  these  are  perceived ;  or  if,  guided 
by  principle,  the  arrangements  are  such  as  to  be  searching, 
they  are  perceived  only  in  a  very  slight  degree,  and  disappear 
in  comparison  with  the  former  gross  results," 

MR.  BRIGHT'S  EXPERIMENTS  ON  THE  VELOCITY  OF  THE  CURRENT. 

In  reference  to  this  subject,  Mr.  Edward  B.  Bright,  the  very 
able  secretary  of  the  English  and  Irish  Telegraph  Company,  in 
association  with  the  late  Atlantic  telegraph,  has  written  a  very 
clear  paper,  viz. : 

"  On  extending  this  system  [underground  lines]  throughout 


504  ELECTRIC    CURRENTS. 

the  United  Kingdom,  where  circuits  of  several  hundred  miles 
were  brought  into  operation,  it  was  found  upon  communicating 
a  current  to  such  wires,  that,  after  the  withdrawal  of  the  exci- 
tation (whether  galvanic  or  magnetic  electricity  was  employed), 
an  electric  recoil  immediately  took  place  at  the  end  of  the  wire 
to  which  the  current  had  been  previously  communicated.  This 
recoil  was  apparently  analogous  in  all  respects  to  the  discharge 
of  electricity  from  a  Leyden  jar,  except  that  the  current  flowing 
from  the  wire  partook  of  a  quantitative  rather  than  an  intense 
nature ;  thus,  however,  finishing  the  remaining  link  of  com- 
parison, and  establishing  the  identity  as  regards  primary  char- 
acteristics of  all  species  of  electricity. 

Although  this  phenomena,  as  analyzed  by  Dr.  Faraday,  has 
proved  highly  gratifying  in  a  philosophical  point  of  view,  its 
existence  interfered  materially  with  the  working  of  all  the  pre- 
vious existing  telegraphic  apparatus,  not  having  been  at  all 
contemplated  or  provided  for ;  and,  up  to  this  time,  I  am  not 
aware  that,  as  regards  the  galvanic  system,  any  adequate  reme- 
dy has  been  applied.  The  nature  of  the  interference  will  be 
easily  understood,  when  I  mention  that,  with  a  letter  printing 
telegraph,  the  surplus  current  has  the  tendency  to  carry  the 
machinery  on  further,  and,  to  make  other  letters  than  those  in- 
tended. With  the  chemical  and  other  recording  telegraphs, 
the  surplus  flow  of  electricity  will  continue  nearly  a  minute, 
entirely  confounding  the  marks  representing  one  letter  with 
the  next.  And,  lastly,  with  Cooke  and  "Wheatstone's  and  other 
needle  telegraphs,  a  beat  more  is  made  by  the  back  current 
than  intended  with  every  letter  formed. 

Another  remarkable  feature  to  be  noticed  in  connection  wifh 
the  underground  system  is  the  small  comparative  velocity  with 
which  the  electric  impulse  is  communicated  through  each  con- 
ductor in  long  circuits. 

In  experiments  conducted  by  my  brother  and  myself  upon  a 
circuit  of  four  hundred  and  eighty  miles  of  the  under- 
ground wires,  a  marked  difference  between  the  communication 
of  the  electric  impulse,  and  its  arrival  at  the  other  end,  has  been 
observed  ;  the  interval  required  for  the  passage  of  the  sensa- 
tion amounting  to  rather  more  than  a  third  part  of  a  set  ond. 

The  rate  of  transmission  of  the  voltaic  or  magnetic  fluids, 
through  such  conductors,  is  therefore  only  about  one  thousand 
miles  per  second. 

Professor  Wheatstone's  experiments,  showing  the  passage  of 
frictional  electricity  through  a  short  length  of  wire  in  a  room, 
to  take  place  at  a  speed  approaching  three  hundred  thousand 
miles  per  second,  are  well  known  and  incontestable. 


VELOCITY  OF    THE  CURRENTS.  505 

A  subsequent  experiment,  conducted  by  Professor  Walker, 
on  some  of  the  overground  wires  comprised  in  the  American 
system,  gives  the  velocity  of  the  voltaic  current,  through  two- 
hundred-and-fifty  mile  circuits,  at  about  sixteen  thousand  miles 
per  second. 

The  underground  wires,  however,  as  just  mentioned,  give  a 
far  lower  result ;  and  hence  it  appears  evident  that  the  velocity 
of  f rictional  electricity  far  exceeds  the  voltaic  or  magnetic  cur- 
rent, owing,  doubtless,  to  the  far  greater  intensity  and  com- 
paratively small  quantitative  development  of  the  former. 

The  retardation  experienced  in  underground  wires,  as  re- 
gards the  propagation  of  the  electric  impulse,  is  not,  however, 
due  to  any  resistance  of  the  conducting  medium  ;  for,  as  it  is 
found,  in  the  instance  of  the  Leyden  jar,  that  the  frictional 
electricity  communicated  is  temporarily  absorbed  by  the  metal 
in  the  interior  of  the  jar,  so  the  galvanic  or  magnetic  currents, 
during  their  passage  through  the  underground  wires,  are  partly 
absorbed,  until  the  mass  of  copper  constituting  the  wire  is 
saturated  with  electricity ;  and  it  would  also  appear  that  a 
definite  time  is  occupied  in  the  absorption  of  the  electricity  by 
the  successive  portions  of  the  wire,  such  as  is  found  to  occur  in 
charging  a  Leyden  jar  ;  and  until  this  process  of  impregnation 
has  been  completed,  the  sensation  cannot  be  communicated  to 
the  other  end  of  the  conductor. 

The  retardation  will,  therefore,  result,  not  from  resistance, 
but  from  the  first  portion  of  the  charge  communicated  being 
absorbed  for  the  time  by  the  conductor  through  which  it  passes  ; 
for,  in  addition  to  the  foregoing,  copper  wire  conducts  far  more 
freely  than  the  iron  wire  made  use  of  in  the  overground  wires. 

Consequently  the  speed  with  which  an  electric  impulse  is 
communicated  varies  with  the  energy  or  intensity  of  the  cur- 
rent employed,  and  the  nature  or  conditions  of  the  conductor 
interposed." 

In  relation  to  this  subject,  the  following  question  among 
others,  was  propounded  to  Mr.  Charles  T.  Bright,  the  engineer 
of  the  late  Atlantic  Telegraph  Company,  and  his  answer  to  the 
same  is  herewith  given,  viz. : 

"  43.  What  do  you  consider  return  currents  ?  and  to  what 
extent  do  you  find  the  existence  of  the  same  on  both  overground 
and  underground  lines  ?  Please  state  all  the  points  fully. 

Answer  43d.  On  overground  lines  they  are  very  trifling,  in- 
deed, compared  with  underground  ;  the  conditions  on  which  the 
wires  are  suspended  and  insulated,  passing  also  through  a  me- 
dium, capable,  to  a  certain  extent,  of  absorbing  any  electricity 
developed  in  surplus,  prevents  the  occurrence  of  any  effects 
appreciable  by  ordinary  needle  telegraphic  instruments. 


506 


ELECTRIC    CURRENTS. 


I  look  upon  an  underground  wire  as  being  exactly  similar, 
on  a  large  scale,  to  a  Ley  den  jar,  and  I  am  borne  out  in  this  by 
the  experiments  of  my  brother  and  myself,  and  by  those  insti- 
tuted by  Faraday  on  the  underground  wires  more  recently  laid 
by  the  Electric  Telegraph  Company.  The  magneto-electricity, 
as  well  as  the  voltaic  (or  chemical)  electricity,  evinces  these 
phenomena,  hitherto  supposed  to  belong  to  properties  appertain- 
ing peculiarly  to  Motional  electricity. 

The  copper  may  be  compared  to  the  inner  metallic  coatings 
of  a  Leyden  battery,  the  gutta-percha  to  the  glass,  and  the 
earth  and  moisture  surrounding  to  the  outer  covering. 

1  was  much  interested,  in  one  of  our  experiments,  to  observe 
that  the  larger  the  size  of  the  wire  experimented  upon,  with  the 
same  battery  power,  the  greater  the  amount  of  return  current  : 
a  strong  support  of  our  opinion,  as,  had  it  arisen  from  an  elastic 
return,  owing  to  the  wire  being  unable  to  receive  as  much 
electricity  as  was  forced  into  it,  as  some  supposed,  of  course  a 
smaller  wire  (with  the  same  power  as  that  employed  with  the 
larger  size)  should  have  given  out  a  greater  amount  of  return 
current.  If  you  experimentalize  on  No.  18  and  No.  16,  you 
will  see  this  very  clearly." 

RETARDATION    OF    THE    CURRENT    ILLUSTRATED. 
Fig.  5. 


%&^&tt?z5&*£&s* 

Ss?s/ss.  •  ^^^CSsTri  n 


r^1^  _ 

3 


Fig.  5  represents  a  sectional  view  of  a  sub-marine  cable :  A 
is  the  copper  conducting  wire  ;  c  c  the  gutta-percha  covering, 
serving  as  an  insulation  ;  B  B  is  the  water.  The  arrows  repre- 
sent the  voltaic  currents  starting  from  A,  full  of  energy.  II 
presses  forward  in  the  completion  of  its  circuit  until  overcome 
by  the  influence  of  the  negative  electricity  of  the  earth.  The 
wire  is,  in  principle,  the  same  as  the  inner  coating  of  a  Leydei? 
jar,  fully  charged. 


VELOCITY    OF    THE    CURRENTS.  507 

In  charging  the  inner  coating,  nature  furnishes  simultaneous- 
ly an  opposite  electricity  on  the  exterior  covering  of  the  jar. 
The  glass  intervenes  in  the  use  of  the  jar,  and  the  gutta-percha 
intervenes  in  the  case  of  sub-marine  cables.  At  the  end  c  c, 
the  positive  current  is  seen  at  rest,  brought  to  the  position  by 
the  influence  of  the  electricity  of  the  earth,  existing  in  the 
water.  This  phenomenon  is  called  the  retardation  of  the  cur- 
rent. If  at  A  a  negative  current  be  applied,  the  positive  in  the 
cable  becomes  neutralized.  If  the  battery  be  disengaged  from 
the  cable,  and  the  end  of  the  wire  be  allowed  to  hang  in  the 
air  for  an  hour,  the  electricity  will  be  held  in  the  cable  in  suffi- 
cient quantity  -to  discharge  a  cannon,  on  renewing  the  earth 
circuit.  The  current  thus  coming  back  is  called  the  "  return 
current."  The  electricity  of  the  earth  encircling  the  cable  is 
negative,  when  it  is  charged  with  a  positive  current.  If  the 
current  transmitted  through  the  cable  was  negative,  then  the 
earth  electricity  would  be  positive,  and  the  effect  would  be  the 
same.  These  imponderable  elements  seem  to  exist  only  in  the 
effort  to  unite  one  with  the  other. 

It  is  this  retardation  of  the  electric  current  that  renders  the 
success  of  ocean  telegraphy  so  exceedingly  questionable. 

I  have,  time  and  again,  expressed  a  want  of  faith  in  the 
practicability  of  operating  long  subaqueous  conductors  for  tele- 
graphic purposes,  at  least,  until  some  new  developments  in 
science  dispels  the  difficulties  hereinbefore  mentioned.  The 
working  of  the  subterranean  telegraph  lines  in  England,  Den- 
mark, Prussia,  Russia,  and  other  states  of  Europe,  and  of  the 
various  submarine  lines,  in  different  parts  of  the  world,  prove 
that  long  circuits  through  the  water,  or  through  the  earth,  can 
not  be  successfully  operated,  and  that  the  maximum  circuit 
that  can  be  practically  operated  for  telegraphic  purposes,  must 
be  less  than  one  thousand  miles. 

ESTIMATED    VELOCITY    OF    THE    CURRENT. 

The  operating  of  the  line  from  Sardinia  through  the  Mediter- 
ranean Sea  to  Malta,  and  thence  to  Corfu,  demonstrates  the  im- 
practicability of  working  long  submarine  telegraphs.  The  time 
required  for  the  transmission  of  the  electric  current  is  irregular 
and  unreliable.  Such  are  the  facts  as  known  at  the  present 
time.  The  nearest  estimate  as  to  the  time  required  for  the 
transmission  of  the  electric  current,  can  be  reliably  based  upon 
some  experiments  instituted  by  the  brothers  Bright,  of  Eng- 
land. The  following  was  communicated  to  me  by  Mr.  Bright : 

"  Answer  44th.  In  the  course  of  a  long  series  of  experiments 
carried  on  last  year  by  my  brother  and  myself,  inquiries  were 


508  ELECTRIC    CURRENTS. 

instituted  with  reference  to  the  speed  with  which  the  galvanic 
or  magnetic  sensation  is  communicated  through  underground 
wires. 

The  result  of  the  inquiry  shows  decidedly  that  the  communi- 
cation of  the  electric  impulse  through  a  length  of  500  miles  of 
underground  gutta-percha  covered  copper  wire  (1-6  gauge) 
does  not  exceed  900  to  1,000  miles  per  second — a  speed  far 
below  that  usually  assigned. 

Reasoning  upon  the  issue  of  these  experiments,  and  those 
previously  tried  in  America,  I  have  no  doubt  that  the  speed  of 
any  description  of  electricity  varies  greatly  with  the  peculiar 
conditions  and  nature  of  the  conductor  used,  and  also  with  the 
length  of  the  conductor  interposed ;  and  that  a  wire  suspended 
in  the  open  air,  especially  if  insulated  only  at  points  of  its  sup- 
port, (such  as  in  a  pole  line)  would  offer  far  less  resistance 
(coster is  paribus)  than  a  wire  underground. 

Submarine  cables  are  similar,  as  regards  electrical  conditions, 
to  subterranean  lines,  and  the  speed  with  which  the  electric 
impulse  is  communicated  would  be  the  same." 

On  the  laying  of  the  Atlantic  cable  in  1857,  Professor  Morse 
communicated  the  following  important  fact,  viz. :  "  We  got  an 
electric  current  through  until  the  moment  of  parting  [of  the 
cable],  so  that  the  electric  connection  was  perfect ;  and  yet  the 
further  we  paid  out,  the  feebler  was  the  current" 

The  highest  speed  of  receiving  intelligible  and  unintelligible 
signals  over  the  late  Atlantic  cable,  was  about  one  wave,  or 
pulsation,  for  each  3^  seconds.  The  value  of  the  wave  depends 
upon  their  combination  in  the  formation  of  the  alphabet. 

WORKING    OF    THE    MEDITERRANEAN    TELEGRAPHS. 

So  true  is  the  philosophy  set  forth  in  the  preceding,  that  no 
practical  telegrapher  can  question  it ;  but,  on  the  contrary,  every 
experiment  instituted  on  submarine  or  subterranean  telegraph 
lines,  adds  evidence  to  its  confirmation.  Besides  the  proofs 
given,  reference  may  be  made  to  the  following  concise  report 
of  Signor  Bonelli, 'the  able  director  general  of  Sardinian  tele- 
graphs, viz. : 

"  Among  the  delays  observed  in  the  transmission  of  dispatches 
which  cross  Sardinia,  I  was  at  first  surprised  at  the  long  intervals 
that  were  noticed  between  time  when  the  dispatches  were  pre- 
sented at  Malta,  and  their  reception  at  the  Cagliari  station — 
principally  when  these  dispatches  were  of  considerable  length. 
Unwilling  to  suspect  habitual  negligence  on  the  part  of  the  em- 
ployes at  the  Cagliari  junction,  I  inquired  as  to  the  causes  of 
the  delay.  I  was  told  that  the  difficulty  was  in  the  method  used 


MEDITERRANEAN    TELEGRAPHS.  509 

in  this  line,  in  consequence  of  the  well-known  inconveniences  of 
submarine  cables,  which  are  the  greater  here,  as  the  lines  from 
Cagliari  to  Malta,  and  from  Malta  to  Corfu,  are  each  nearly 
600  kilometres  (about  375  miles),  much  longer  than  any  pre- 
^viously  existing.  I,  therefore,  deem  it  useful  to  exhibit,  in 
some  detail,  the  effects  which  have  been  observed,  the  conse- 
quences which  result  therefrom  for  the  service,  and  the  import- 
ance of  discovering  a  remedy. 

The  submarine  cable  between  Cagliari  and  Malta  is  com- 
posed of  a  very  fine  copper  wire,  around  which  are  twisted  six 
similar  wires  of  equal  fineness,  all  in  free  contact  with  one 
another,  so  that  if  one  or  more  of  them  should  break,  the  trans- 
mission would  not  be  interrupted.  The  seven  wires  together 
form  a  cord  of  about  two  millimetres  (1-16  inch)  in  diameter, 
covered  with  a  gutta-percha  case  of  two  millimetres,  and  a 
second  envelope  of  tarred  hemp.  Eighteen  iron  wires,  two  milli- 
metres in  diameter,  twisted  in  an  extended  spiral,  enclose  the 
whole,  and  form  the  outer  covering  of  the  cable,  the  total 
diameter  of  which  is  thus  carried  to  14  millimetres  (about  £ 
inch),  and  weight  547  kilogrammes  per- kilometre  (about  2,000 
pounds  per  mile).  The  two  extremities  of  the  cable,  both  at 
Malta  and  Cagliari,  are  fastened  to  two  pieces  of  wire  on  the 
land,  each  5  kilometres  (about  3  miles)  long. 

After  the  experiments  made  in  England,  and  elsewhere,  to 
diminish  the  difficulties  which  were  foreseen,  it  was  decided  to 
employ  for  transmission  induced  electrical  currents,  with  piles 
of  a  large  surface,  and  a  special  apparatus  to  change  the  direc- 
tion of  the  current  alternately. 

In  spite  of  all  these  precautions,  the  following  effects  have 
been  experienced : 

If  the  transmission  is  made  too  rapidly,  the  signals  are  so 
uncertain  as  to  become  unintelligible  ;  it  is  better,  therefore, 
to  be  very  slow  in  making  them.  But  several  inconveniences 
result  from  this.  Such  a  degree  of  special  skill  is  required  in 
the  operator,  that  among  the  employes  at  Malta,  for  instance, 
only  one  was  able  to  transmit  the  signals  satisfactorily.  Pauses 
of  nearly  a  second  must  be  made,  so  that  scarcely  75  signals 
can  be  transmitted  in  a  minute — that  is  to  say,  but  two  or  three 
words — while  on  the  land  lines  the  average  transmission  in  the 
same  time  is  280  signals,  or  perhaps  ten  words. 

Besides — principally  to  avoid  the  difficulty  of  a  current 
generated  in  the  opposite  direction,  called  return  current — the 
apparatus  is  so  arranged,  that  during  the  transmission  from  one 
side,  nothing  can  be  received  from  the  other,  nor  can  the  cur- 
rent be  interrupted.  The  operator  to  whom  the  message  is 


510  ELECTRIC    CURRENTS. 

transmitted,  cannot,  therefore,  give  notice  if  a  word  has  escaped 
him  ;  hence  the  necessity  of  suspending  the  transmission  about 
every  ten  words,  and  reversing  the  apparatus,  to  ascertain  if 
everything  is  understood,  and  if  the  words  must  be  repeated 
before  going  further.  This  is  one  cause  of  an  immense  loss  of- 
time.  And  if  the  operator  is  not  able  to  calculate  the  interval 
of  the  pauses  precisely,  the  confusion  of  the  signals  makes  fre- 
quent repetitions  necessary,  which  almost  indefinitely  prolongs 
the  duration  of  a  dispatch.  Finally,  it  is  impossible  to  obtain 
simple  points  from  the  instrument,  for,  in  working  rapidly,  we 
either  get  no  signal  at  all,  or  a  line ;  hence,  Morse's  alphabet, 
instead  of  giving  points  and  lines,  is  reduced  to  merely  long  and 
short  lines.  This  is  enough  to  show  the  danger  of  confusion 
and  mistake. 

To  give  an  idea  of  the  delay  thus  produced,  it  is  only  neces- 
sary to  cite  an  example :  A  dispatch,  consisting  of  58  words, 
and  containing  news  from  India,  took  more  than  five  hours  in 
passing  from  Malta  to  Cagliari. 

The  causes  of  this  have  already  been  explained  by  Mr.  Fara- 
day, and  proceed  from  the  conditions  of  every  cable,  which  per- 
forms the  function  of  a  Ley  den  jar ;  the  copper  wire  forming  the 
internal  armor,  the  gutta-percha  and  hemp  make  the  insulation, 
the  iron  wire  and  water  serving  as  the  external  armor,  in  com- 
munication with  the  earth.  The  extreme  length  of  the  cable 
gives  it  an  immense  surface,  in  spite  of  the  fineness  of  the  cop- 
per wire,  and  the  interruption  of  the  electric  equilibrium  which 
takes  place  on  every  passage,  or  on  every  discontinuance  of  the 
current  by  the  reciprocal  influence  of  the  two  armors  and  the 
insulating  substances,  occasions  the  delays  as  well  as  the  ap- 
parent anomalies  of  which  I  have  spoken  in  the  action  of  the 
current  on  the  telegraphic  apparatus. 

Another  phenomenon  quite  important  to  notice — for  it  may 
perhaps  suggest  the  remedy  for  the  defects  inherent  in  subma- 
rine cables — is  that  the  confusion  of  the  signals  and  the  trans- 
formation of  the  points  into  lines  were  incomparably  more 
numerous,  when  the  telegraphic  apparatus  was  attached  direct- 
ly to  the  end  of  the  cable,  than  since  the  operation  has  been 
performed  at  stations  with  the  interposition  of  five  kilometres 
of  wire  on  the  land. 

If  the  effects,  of  which  I  have  stated  the  simple  history,  con- 
siderably obstruct  the  service  of  the  Malta  and  Corfu  lines, 
they  also  show  how  far  the  fears  are  justified  with  regard  to  the 
mischief  they  may  produce  on  the  far  longer  Atlantic  cable, 
and  the  necessity  of  profiting  by  the  lines  already  existing  for 
the  application  of  science  to  the  correction  of  the  difficulties. 


MEDITERRANEAN    TELEGRAPHS.  511 

It  is  true  that  Faraday  and  Whitehouse  have  made  experiments 
touching  the  phenomena  in  question,  but  these  experiments 
have  been  made  only  on  cables  prepared  for  immersion  and 
coiled  up  in  storehouses,  or  on  submarine  cables  by  uniting 
different  wires,  in  order  to  multiply  the  length,  or  by  combining 
them  with  long  extensions  of  land  lines.  Now,  in  each  of 
these  cases,  the  effect  took  place  of  an  inverse  current  on  the 
cables  or  adjacent  wires,  whence  resulted  phenomena  in  the 
transmission  entirely  different  from  those  which  are  manifested 
with  a  single  current  over  a  single  wire  of  great  length.  Be- 
sides, if  we  have  seen  the  great  effect  of  the  simple  connection 
of  five  kilometres  of  land  wire  on  a  submarine  cable  of  600 
kilometres,  how  can  we  estimate  the  influence  of  the  land  wires 
of  so  much  greater  length  employed  by  the  English  experiments? 
It  seems  to  me  that  their  reasons  alone  are  sufficient  to  throw 
great  doubt  on  the  certainty  of  the  result  obtained  by  those  ex- 
periments ;  but  the  convincing  proof  of  their  insufficiency  is 
derived  from  a  comparison  of  these  results  with  those  presented 
by  the  Malta  line,  although  in  both  cases,  the  apparatus  was 
the  same  and  similarly  arranged.  While,  in  fact,  we  see  an 
operator  of  the  first  order  obtain  a  maximum  of  75  signals  in  a 
minute,  between  Cagliari  and  Malta,  on  600  kilometres,  in  the 
English  experiments  of  October,  1854,  from  210  to  270  signals 
in  a  minute  (that  is  6  or  8  words)  were  obtained,  with  currents 
on  a  circuit  of  more  than  3,000  kilometres,  over  the  subterra- 
nean and  submarine  wires  between  London,  Dumfries,  and  Dub- 
lin. The  rapid  increase  of  difficulties  from  the  Cagliari  and 
Bona  line,  which  is  only  260  kilometres,  to  that  of  Cagliari  and 
Malta,  which  is  600,  leads  to  the  conclusion  that  the  same  diffi- 
culties must  be  much  more  considerable  on  a  line  of  3,000. 
The  reflections  which  naturally  arise  from  the  examination 
of  the  facts  in  the  case,  show  to  how  great  a  degree  it  is  neces- 
sary to  study  profoundly  these  questions  of  vital  importance  to 
the  utility  of  great  submarine  lines.  BONELLI." 

The  following  table  contains  the  proximate  velocity  of  an 
electric  current  on  subaqueous  conductors,  based  upon  reliable 
experiments,  instituted  on  submarine  and  subterranean  tele- 
graphs. 


512 


ELECTRIC  CURRENTS. 


VELOCITY  OF  THE  ELECTRIC  CURRENT  ON  SUBAQUEOUS  CONDUCTORS. 

No.  16,  copper  wire.     Calculations  based  upon  Jive  pulsations  per  letter  and  seven 

letters  per  word. 


Miles. 

Time  of  Pulsation. 

Time  per  letter. 

Time  per  word. 

500  

Min.         Sec. 

00     0  yVir 

Min.      Sec. 

00     1  T6A 

Min.      Sec. 

00  11  1%% 

1000  

00     1 

00     5 

00  35 

1100  

00     1^ 

00     6^ 

00  43-Air 

1200  

00    1  TVV 

00     7-roir 

00  54f\{V 

1300  

oo    i  Tw 

00     9  T%- 

1  07-AV 

1400  

oo    2  AV 

00  12  /ft 

1  24-1% 

1500       

00     3 

00  15 

1  45 

1600  

00     3^ 

00  18-!% 

2  10  -Air 

1700   

00    4^- 

00  23  -£Jv 

2  42  T7A 

1800       

00     5^ 

00  28^- 

3  22  T6A 

1900  

00     7  -£* 

00  36  -jW 

4  12  -rW 

2000     

00     9 

00  45 

5  15 

2100  

00  11  JU, 

00  56^ 

6  52^. 

2200  

00       13    Mr 

1  09   85 

8  08  ^ 

2300  

oo  17  Tyv 

1  27 

10  09 

2400   

00       21     Mr 

1  48  Av 

12  39   5° 

2500  

00  27 

2  15 

15  45 

ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH  CONDUCTORS. 


CHAPTER   XXXVII. 

Composition  of  Telegraph  Circuits — Conductibility  of  Metals  and  Fluids — Con- 
ducting Power  of  different  sizes  of  Copper  Wire — Conducting  Powers  of  Tele- 
graph Wires — Advantages  of  Zinc- Coated  Wires — Conductors  composing  a 
Voltaic  Circuit— Strength  of  Telegraph  Wires— Scale  and  Weight  of  Tele- 
graph Wire. 

COMPOSITION    OF    TELEGRAPH  CIRCUITS. 

IN  the  present  chapter  will  be  considered  electric  telegraph 
conductors.  There  are  but  two  questions  necessary  to  be  dis- 
cussed ;  first,  the  conductibility  of  the  metals  and  other  mate- 
rials composing  the  voltaic  circuits ;  and,  second,  the  strength 
and  durability  of  the  metallic  substances  employed  as  compo- 
nent parts  of  the  circuit. 

A  telegraphic  circuit  is  composed  of  iron  wire,  copper  wire, 
mercury,  brass,  tin,  platina,  zinc,  acidulated  water,  and  nitric 
acid.  This  arrangement  contemplates  the  use  of  the  Grove 
battery.  The  Smee,  Danie'll,  Bunson,  and  other  batteries,  are 
sufficiently  near  the  same  organization,  as  to  conducting  ele- 
ments, to  be  considered  as  equivalents.  In  regard  to  the  con- 
ductibility of  metals  there  seems  to  be  some  difference  of  opinion. 
Different  experiments  have  produced  different  results. 

CONDUCTIBILITY    OF    METALS  AND  FLUIDS. 

Some  experiments  instituted  by  M.  Becquerel  produced  the 
results  indicated  in  the  following  table.  The  conductivity  of 
each  metal  is  given  respectively. 

Platinum  wire 16.4 

"   15.5 

..  8.3 


Copper  wire       ... 

100 

Plati 

Gold        «    

93.6 

Iron 

Silver      "        .    . 

73.6 

Lead 

Zinc         " 

.    .    .  28.5 

3 

3 

514 


ELECTRIC    TELEGRAPH    CONDUCTORS. 


The  following  is  the  result  of  some  experiments  mentioned 
in  the  German  works. 


Silver 136 

Gold 113 

Copper 103 

Zinc  ..  .28 


Platinum 22 

Iron 17 

Mercury 2.6 


This  table  is  to  be  understood  thus  :  a  copper  wire  100  feet 
in  length,  offers  as  great  a  resistance  in  the  transmission  of  an 
electric  current,  as  silver  wire,  of  equal  thickness,  136  feet 
long  ;  of  gold  113  feet  long ;  of  iron  17  feet  long,  and  so  on  with 
the  other  metals. 

Mr.  Moses  Gr.  Farmer,  of  Boston,  instituted  thorough  experi- 
ments, and  the  following  were  found  to  be  the  relative  con- 
ductibility  of  the  respective  metals  and  fluids.  The  specific 
resistance  to  the  transmission  of  electric  currents,  compared 
with  chemically  pure  copper  at  ordinary  temperatures,  was,  of 

Copper  wire • 1.00   Tin  wire  ....    6.80 

Silver      "    98 

Gold        "    1.13 

Iron         "    5.63 

Lead        "    10.76 

Mercury 50.00 

Palladium  wire 5.50 

Platinum    " 6.78 

His  experiments  with  fluids  produced  the  following  results  : 

Pure  rain  water, 40,653,723.00 

Water  twelve  parts  and  Sulphuric  Acid  one, 1,305,467.00 

Sulphate  Copper  one  pound  per  gallon, 18,450,000.00 

Saturated  Solution  of  Common  Salt, 3,173,000.00 

Saturated   Solution  of  Sulphate  of  Zinc, 17,330,000.00 

Nitric  Acid  30°  B., 1,606,000.00 


Zinc    "      

Brass "      

German  Silver  wire. 
Nickel  "   . 

Cadmium  "  .. 

Aluminum  "   . 


.  3.70 
.  3.88 
.11.30 
.  7.70 
.  2.61 
.  1.75 


CONDUCTING    POWER    OF    DIFFERENT    SIZES    OF    COPPER     WIRE. 

Experiments  showing  the  relative  resistance  of  Nos.  18  and  16 
copper  wire,  insulated  by  double  covering'  of  gutta-percha, 
and  submerged  in  the  Regent's  Canal,  London. 

No  18  gauge  copper  wire,  covered  with  gutta-percha  to  gauge  No.  7. 
No.  16  gauge  copper  wire,  covered  with  gutta-percha  to  gauge  No.  4. 
An  ordinary  single  needle  instrument  was  employed — connected  to  earth,  as 
usual  in  practice. 

100  miles.  No.  18.  No.  16. 

With  3  pairs  of  plates 29° 39°  deflection  of  needle 

"    6  "          50° 59° 

The  same  instrument  employed,  but  the  needle  slightly  weighted  : 
Battery  of  72  pairs  plates.  No.  18.  No.  16. 

100  miles 23° . .  30° 

90     "     25° 

80     "    26*° 

70    "     28*° 

65    "    .  ..30°.. 


CONDUCTING    POWER    OF    TELEGRAPH    WIRES.  515 

Battery  of  144  pairs  plates  :  No.  18.  No.  16. 

lOOmiles  35° 41° 

90  «  37° 

80  «  38^° 

70  «  40° 

65  "  41° 

Battery  of  plates  :  No.  18.  No.  16. 

100  miles  72  pr.  plates 23° 30° 

100     »      84  26° 

100     «      96  28i° 

100     «    102  30° ^ 

According  to  the  above  experiments  a  wire,  No.  18,  has 
capacity  to  conduct  a  given  voltaic  current  65  miles,  and  No. 
16,  100  miles.  Suppose  the  conductibility  of  iron  wire,  Nos. 
8  and  10,  have  equal  powers  as  Nos.  16  and  18  of  copper, 
respectively ;  on  a  line  of  300  miles  No.  8,  iron  wire,  can  be 
worked  successfully,  but  the  No.  10  could  be  worked  but  195 
miles  ;  or,  if  No.  10  wire  can  work  maximum  300  miles,  No. 
8  could  be  worked  461  miles.  These  facts  clearly  prove  a 
very  great  advantage  in  the  use  of  the  larger  size  wire  for  tele- 
graphic purposes.  This  is  an  important  matter,  and  it  is 
worthy  of  being  very  gravely  considered  by  companies  having 
lines  on  long  routes,  where  long  circuits  are  required.  For  ex- 
ample, suppose  a  line  to  be  900  miles  long,  using  No.  10  wire, 
a  size  common  on  American  lines,  the  practical  circuits  would 
be  about  300  miles  each.  If  the  wire  be  No.  8,  a  circuit  of 
461  miles  can  be  as  effectually  operated,  with  a  battery  of  a 
little  moi<_  intensity  than  that  employed  for  the  300  miles  cir- 
cuit, and,  therefore,  the  line  of  900  miles  can  be  operated  in 
two  circuits  of  450  miles  each.  In  the  use  of  the  larger  wire 
there  will  be  economy,  resulting  from  its  increased  strength. 
There  will  also  be  a  saving  of  expenses  in  three  years,  by  the 
lessening  of  repeating  stations,  sufficient  to  pay  for  the  additional 
cost  of  No.  8  wire  for  the  900  miles  of  line. 

CONDUCTING  POWER  OF    TELEGRAPH  WIRES. 

Considering  the  above-mentioned  facts,  and  others  observed 
in  my  experience,  I  am  convinced  that  the  larger  conductor  is 
the  best  for  telegraphic  purposes,  pecuniarily  and  electrically 
considered.  On  the  Bengal  lines,  No.  1  iron  rods  are  used  for 
conductors,  and  those  lines  are  successfully  worked  in  long  cir- 
cuits. The  philosophy  establishing  the  surface  as  the  part,  on 
or  through  which  the  current  moves,  adds  further  proof  in  favor 
of  the  larger  wire.  In  practical  telegraphing  we  have  had 
many  proofs  establishing  the  advantage  of  full  metallic  surface. 
In  Pittsburg,  and  many  other  cities,  where  great  quantities  of 
coal  are  daily  burned,  the  sulphurous  vapors  arising  from  such 
fuel,  in  a  very  short  time,  corrodes  the  iron  wire,  leaving  bui 


516  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH  CONDUCTORS. 

very  small  metallic  substance  to  serve  as  a  conductor.  These 
corroded  wires  have  frequently  been  replaced  by  new  ones,  and 
the  increased  facility  in  telegraphing  at  once  realized.  To 
remedy  their  rapid  decay,  zinc  coated  wires  have  been  adopted, 
and  their  durability  is  greatly  extended  ;  nevertheless,  in  time, 
they  too  yield  to  the  devouring  elements  ;  the  sulphurous  va- 
pors, passing  over  the  oxyde  of  zinc  covering,  convert  it  into  sul- 
phate of  zinc,  which  being  soluble  in  water,  is  immediately 
dissolved  by  the  rain  and  drops  off.  The  wire  being  thus  de- 
prived of  its  insoluble  armor,  rapidly  corrodes. 

ADVANTAGES  OF    ZINC-COATED  WIRES. 

Many  of  the  American  lines  have  in  use  zinc-coated  wires — 
commonly  but  improperly  called  "  galvanized  " — and  their  use 
has  given  great  satisfaction.  The  advantages  realized  from 
the  use  of  the  zinc-coated  wires,  in  the  perfection  of  the  joints,  are 
sufficient  to  compensate  for  their  general  adoption.  The  econo- 
my to  any  company  resulting  from  this  one  point  of  considera- 
tion is  more  than  can  be  estimated  by  comparative  values. 
Besides  this,  the  wire  for  the  whole  line  is  preserved  in  its  full 
metallic  surface,  and  its  conductibility  is  made  even  and  con- 
tinuous. On  a  line  of  300  miles,  if  one  mile  of  the  line  wire  be 
reduced  in  size  from  that  of  the  other  299  miles,  the  one  mile  of 
faulty  wire  will  be  a  continual  retardation  to  the  flow  of  the 
current  on  the  299  miles  of  good  wire.  The  trials  given  zinc- 
coated  wire  have  established,  beyond  doubt,  very  great  ad- 
vantages in  favor  of  its  use  for  telegraphic  purposes. 

Objections  have  been  made  to  the  use  of  zinc-coated  wire, 
in  the  Southwest,  especially  across  prairies,  where  there  are  no 
trees  to  serve  as  auxiliaries  in  conducting  the  atmospheric 
electricity  to  the  earth.  A  telegraph  wire  traversing  forests 
can  not  be  disturbed  by  atmospheric  electricity,  while  on  the 
other  hand,  when  it  traverses  open  fields,  or  prairies,  it  is  very 
liable  to  serious  interruption  from  that  source.  The  use  of  the 
zinc  coated  wire,  across  these  open  plains,  affords  a  greater 
metallic  surface  for  the  atmospheric  electricity.  If  the  iron 
wire  was  of  equal  size  without  the  zinc,  the  result  would  be 
in  proportion  to  the  conductibility  of  iron  and  zinc.  It  is  not 
the  zinc  that  induces  the  atmospheric  electricity  to  localize 
upon  the  line  wire.  The  conductibility  of  zinc  is  3TV  and  that 
of  iron  is  5-^-  The  zinc,  it  is  true,  has  a  great  surface  or  cir- 
cumference, but  that  additional  surface  does  not  give  it  an 
equal  power  with  the  iron.  It  cannot  be  maintained,  therefore, 
that  the  zinc  is  at  fault  in  the  premises.  If  the  wire  was  cop- 
per, the  interference  would  be  much  greater  than  with  the  iron 


CONDUCTORS    COMPOSING    A    VOLTAIC    CIRCUIT.  517 

and  zinc.  From  these  facts  it  may  be  said,  that  the  better  the 
conductor,  the  greater  the  interruption.  Such  a  conclusion 
may  be  very  true,  but  the  cause  and  effect  must  be  considered 
philosophically.  In  Sardinia,  the  lines  have  been  constructed 
to  meet  the  case.  To  each  pole  is  attached  a  paratonnerre  or 
lightning  rod,  which  conducts  to  the  earth  the  atmospheric 
electricity,  and  they  have  no  interruption  to  retard  the  success- 
ful working  of  the  lines.  It  is  reasonable  to  believe,  that  if 
earth- wires  were  run  from  the  tops  of  the  poles  into  the  moist 
earth,  the  working  of  the  line  wires  would  not  be  disturbed  by 
atmospheric  electricity.  Such  an  arrangement  throughout  the 
line  would  be  expensive,  and  most  likely  never  will  be  tried  in 
America,  although  it  would  be  strictly  conformable  to  estab- 
lished philosophy.  From  the  facts  above  cited,  it  will  be  seen 
that  the  use  of  zinc-coated  wires  is  promotive  of  the  durability 
and  working  of  the  lines,  and  in  no  case  injurious  to  successful 
telegraphing. 

Some  telegraphers  may  insist  upon  the  truth  of  the  question- 
able theory  that  the  brightness  of  the  zinc  tends  to  attract 
atmospheric  electricity.  The  use  of  a  cheap  paint  would  remedy 
that  objection,  and  at  the  same  time  add  to  the  protection  and 
preservation  of  the  wire.  On  making  the  joints,  however,  care 
should  be  taken  to  remove  the  paint  so  as  to  cause  a  perfect 
metallic  contact.  I  am  not  prepared  to  believe,  however,  that 
the  paint  would  be  of  any  advantage.  Dry  paint  serves  as  a 
non-conductor,  and  when  the  wire  is  covered  with  a  film,  the 
whole  becomes  a  Leyden  jar.  The  wire  inside  is  charged  and 
the  dry  paint  acts  as  the  glass  of  the  Leyden  jar,  and  on  the  ex- 
terior is  collected  the  negative  electricity  from  the  atmosphere. 
The  presence  of  this  negative  influence  retards  the  interior  or 
positive  current,  and  thus  the  telegraph  is  disturbed  to  the  ex- 
tent of  the  retardation.  On  ordinary  wires,  covered  with  dry 
oxyde,  the  same  philosophy  must  be  considered.  These  philo- 
sophical considerations  are  worthy  of  attention,  though,  perhaps, 
their  importance  may  not  seem  appreciable  in  practical  tele- 
graphing. 

*    CONDUCTORS    COMPOSING  A  VOLTAIC  CIRCUIT. 

The  conductors  common  to  a  telegraphic  circuit  may  be  con- 
sidered as  1st,  iron ;  2d,  copper  ;  3d,  brass  ;  4th,  zinc ;  5th, 
tin;  6th,  platina ;  7th,  nitric  acid;  8th,  water,  pure  and 
acidulated ;  and,  9th,  the  earth. 

1.  The  principal  conductor  used  by  the  telegraph  is  iron. 
The  size  of  this  conductor  should  be  commensurate  with  the 
length  of  the  circuits  desired. 


518  ELECTRIC    TELEGRAPH    CONDUCTORS. 

2.  The  copper  wire  used,  is  confined   to  the   interior  of  the 
station,  and  they  should  be  fully  equal  in   size  to  the  relative 
c  mductibility   of  the  iron  wire;  thus,  a  copper  wire    may  be 
5T-^nj-  less  in  circumference  than  the  line  iron- wire. 

3.  The  brass  connections  should  be  full,  so  as  to  form  a  con- 
tact with  the  copper  wire  sufficient  to  secure  an  equal  conduct- 
ing capacity  with  the  iron.     Usually  the  connections  with  the 
apparatuses   through  the  brass  binding  screws   or   posts  are 
greatly  at  fault,  not  having  as  much  metallic  contact  as  neces- 
sary. 

4.  The  zinc  metal  in  the  circuit  is  confined  to  the  battery, 
and  that  part  of  the  circuit  is  seldom  at  fault. 

5.  Tin  is  used  for  solder,  and  though  a  better  conductor  than 
iron,  yet  the  amount  of  contact  is  very  often  inferior,  and  far 
more  at  fault  than  any  other  part  of  the  circuit.     By  studying 
the  table  given  by  Mr.  Farmer,  the  telegrapher  can  readily  de- 
termine to  what  extent  he  should  make  the  metallic  contact 
with  the  solder,  especially  in  the  battery. 

6.  The  platina  strips  used  in  the  battery,  and  in  the  key, 
should  be  sufficiently  large  to  give  its  full  ratio  of  conductibili- 
ty  in  the  circuit ;  and ,  also,  to  present  surface  sufficient  to  afford 
contact  with  the  acid,  so  as  to  meet  the  lesser  conductibility  of 
the  nitric  acid  held  in  the  porous  cup. 

7.  The  nitric  acid  is  placed  in  porous  cells,  through  which 
it  penetrates.     It  is  necessary  to  form  a  contact  with  the  pla- 
tina, sufficient  to  give  conducting  medium  equal  to  the  other 
component  parts  of  the  circuit.     It  will  be  observed  that  the 
conducting  power  of  nitric  acid  is  about  260,000  times  less  than 
iron,  and  the  metallic  contact  with  the  fluid  should  be  com- 
mensurate with  that  law. 

8.  The  water  employed  in  the  battery  cells  should  be  acidu- 
lated.    I  have  known  some  operators  to  collect  pure  rain-water 
and  use  it  unacidulated.     Of  course,  as  soon  as  the  nitric  acid 
passed  through  the  porous  cups,  its  conducting  power  was  in- 
creased.    Some  telegraphers  have  supposed  that  the  pure  dis- 
tilled water  was  the  best  for  conducting  purposes  and  for  gene- 
rating electricity.     Many  such  errors  have  been  practised  to  the 
detriment  of  the  working  of  the  telegraph.      The  acidulated 
water,  in  which  the  zinc  is  immersed,  has  about  216,000  times 
less  conducting  power  than  iron,  and  its  contact  with  the  zinc 
should  be  equal  to  the  line  wire. 

9.  The  earth  serves  as  a  half  of  the  circuit.     The  connec- 
tion between  the  earth  and  the  line  should  be  equal  to  the  con- 
ducting power  of  the  wire.     The  earth  wire  should  be  attached 
to  copper  plates,  or  sheets,  to  afford  the  required  surface.     Iron 


STRENGTH  OF  TELEGRAPH  WIRES.  519 

plates  would  answer  if  it  did  not  so  quickly  decay.  Sheet  iron 
electro-plated  with  zinc  or  copper  would  answer  fully  the  pur- 
pose required.  The  earth  plate,  of  whatever  metal  it  may  be, 
should  be  buried  in  moist  earth,  and  the  greater  the  moisture 
the  better  will  be  the  circuit.  The  iron  wire  next  to  and  in  the 
earth,  ought  to  be  coated  with  tin  or  zinc  to  prevent  its  decay. 
I  have,  in  the  foregoing,  briefly  considered  the  component 
parts  of  the  electric  circuit ;  and  the  practical  telegrapher  can 
readily  see  that  he  cannot  too  well  understand  the  philosophy 
of  the  media,  composing  the  conductors  of  the  voltaic  circuit. 
A  uniformity  of  the  conducting  powers  will  always  prove  of  the 
greatest  value  in  the  attainment  of  telegraphic  success. 

STRENGTH  OF  TELEGRAPH  WIRES. 

During  the  winter  of  1858-'9  I  instituted  a  series  of  experi- 
ments testing  the  strength  of  various  sizes  and  qualities  of  iron 
wires.  In  these  I  was  most  liberally  aided  by  Messrs.  Ichabod 
Washburn  &  Co.,  wire  manufacturers  at  Worcester,  Massachu- 
setts. This  old  established  firm  provided  the  various  qualities 
of  wire  and  the  necessary  appliances  and  help  to  enable  me  to 
effect  the  most  thorough  investigation.  The  average  results  of 


Fig 


520  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH  CONDUCTORS. 

the  trials,  as  to  the  strength  of  the  wires,  are  given  in  the 
accompanying  tables.  To  test  the  wire,  an  ordinary  steelyard 
was  employed,  as  represented  by  fig.  1  :  A  is  a  suspended  tim- 
ber, to  which  was  swung  the  steelyard ;  B  is  the  wire  under- 
going the  test ;  c  is  an  upright  timber  ;  D  is  an  iron  rod  fasten- 
ed to  the  joist.  At  the  lower  end  of  the  rod  D  is  an  opening 
through  which  the  beam  is  passed.  This  opening  is  scaled  to 
limit  the  movement  of  the  beam  within  a  foot.  Whenever  the 
wire  stretches  and  lets  the  beam  descend  to  the  lower  end  of 
the  opening,  the  screws  at  c  can  re-adjust  the  scale  so  as  to 
allow  the  weight  to  again  bring  down  the  lever  beam  to  its 
limit.  The  wire  frequently  broke  within  the  clamps,  and  could 
not  be  counted.  Only  the  breaks  that  occurred  at  B  were  re- 
corded. The  averages  of  these  trials  are  given  in  the  table. 
Table  6  shows  some  tests  of  wire  not  as  strong  as  the  wire  of 
the  other  trials.  The  wire  of  each  kind,  viz. :  Swedish 
and  American,  was  from  the  same  qualities  and  the  same 
lot  of  iron.  The  difference  in  the  strength,  is  owing  to  the 
manner  of  drawing.  Messrs.  Washbum  &  Co.  have  attained 
this  superiority  of  strength  by  many  years  of  careful  experi- 
ment. Most  of  the  telegraph  wire  used  in  America  is  manu- 
factured by  these  gentlemen,  and  the  peculiar  wants  of  the 
enterprise  have  been  carefully  studied  and  accommodated  by 
special  arrangements.  It  is  important  for  telegraphers  to  con- 
sider the  peculiar  wants  of  their  line,  and  to  have  the  wire 
manufactured  to  meet  every  contingency.  Mr.  P.  L.  Moen,  of 
the  above-named  firm,  informs  me  that  the  toughness  of  the 
wire  depends  as  much  upon  the  drawing,  as  upon  the  quality 
of  the  metal.  I  have  frequently  visited  their  establishment,  and 
have  been  highly  gratified  to  see  the  great  care  exercised  to 
attain  the  greatest  degree  of  perfection  in  the  manufacture  of 
the  wire  to  meet  the  especial  wants  of  the  telegraph.  The 
telegraphic  enterprise  has  reason  to  rejoice  that  these  gentle- 
men have  done  so  much  and  are  continuing  their  attentions, 
regardless  of  expense,  toward  the  accomplishment  of  every  con- 
sideration, having  in  view  the  perfection  of  the  art  of  telegraph- 
ing, so  far  as  can  be  attained  in  their  specialty. 

The  earlier  lines  of  telegraph  were  constructed  with  annealed 
wire.  No  builder  would  use  ww-annealed  wire,  nor  would  any 
company  have  any  other  kind  employed.  It  was  required  to 
be  well  annealed,  and  the  more  pliable  it  was,  the  more  accept- 
able. The  experiments  given  in  Table  4  show  how  great  was 
the  folly  of  the  earlier  ideas  relative  to  the  use  of  annealed 
wire.  It  cannot  be  denied,  however,  but  what  the  wire  should 
be  slightly  annealed,  so  that  the  joints  can  be  made  with  rea- 


STRENGTH  OF  TELEGRAPH  WIRES. 


521 


sonable  facility.  The  coating  of  the  wire  with  zinc  accom- 
plishes this  desideratum,  and  slightly  anneals  it.  The  differ- 
ence in  the  strength,  between  the  annealed  plain  wire,  as  table 
4,  as  practically  required  some  twelve  years  ago,  and  the  zinc 
coated  annealed  wire,  given  in  the  other  tables,  will  be  seen  to 
be  very  considerable. 

The  trials,  given  in  the  following  tables,  were  made  with 
much  care,  all  under  my  own  direction  and  observation.  They 
are  worthy  of  the  telegrapher's  careful  study : 


Table  1. 

SWEDISH    IRON    WIRE. 

Plain  Iron 

Zinc-Coated 

Plain  Iron 

Zinc-Coated 

No. 

broke  at 

broke  at 

No. 

broke  at 

broke  at 

6  

2,490. 

2,300 

10  

1,430.. 

1,270 

7  

2,370. 

2,176 

11  

1,185.. 

1,030 

8  

2,925 

1  993 

12 

1,020 

...    .  .    921 

g 

..1,748. 

..1,495 

13.. 

.    770.. 

.    665 

Table  2. 


ENGLISH    IRON    WIRE. 


Plain  Iron 

Zinc-Coated                                   Plain  Iron 

Zinc-Coated 

No. 

broke  at 

broke  at 

No. 

broke  at 

broke  at 

6. 

2,050. 

1,945 

10  

.  .  .    960  . 

935 

7. 

1,670. 

1,500 

11  

...    740. 

725 

8. 

1,580. 

1,365 

12  

..    635. 

670 

9. 

1,270. 

1,055 

13  

.  ..    550. 

445 

Table  3. 

AMERICAN    IRON      WIRE. 

Plain  Iron 

Zinc-Coated 

Plain  Iron 

Zinc-Coated 

*0. 

broke  at 

broke  at 

No. 

broke  at 

broke  at 

6. 

2,390. 

2,300 

10  

...1,885. 

1,270 

7. 

2,210. 

2,010 

11  

...1,155. 

1,043 

8. 

1,985. 

1,820 

12     . 

992 

832 

9. 

1,665. 

1,520 

13  

...    885. 

641 

Table   4. 

The  following  table  shows  the  result  of  the  trials  of  the 
strength  of  some  annealed  wire,  taken  from  the  lot  of  the  Eng- 
lish wire  : 


No.  7  broke  at 1,173 

"    8        «       1,030 

"    9  .    815 


No.  11  broke  at 618 

«    12        "  ..410 


Table  5. 

In  1853  I  instituted  some  experiments  at  the  same  establish- 
ment, and  the  following  were  the  average  results : 


522  ELECTRIC    TELEGRAPH    CONDUCTORS. 

No.  10,  zinc  coated,  broke  at 925  Ibs. 

"  "  annealed          " 875  " 

"      Plain  "  "     1,050  « 

"        "  not  annealed    "     1,300  " 

Table  6. 

In  January,  1859,  I  tested,  at  the  same  establishment,  some 
wire  manufactured  for  commercial  purposes  from  the  same 
quality  of  bars,  from  which  were  drawn  the  samples  tested  in 
the  experiments  of  January  and  February,  1859.  It  will  be 
found  to  be  of  much  less  strength  than  the  wire  manufactured 
for  telegraphic  purposes. 

American.  Swedish. 

No.  6 ,1,940 2,020 

7 1,675 1,640 

8 1,550 * 1,430 

SCALE  AND  WEIGHT  OF  TELEGRAPH  WIRE. 

The  mode  of  measuring  wire  has  not  been  uniform  or  based 
upon  any  fixed  standard.  The  two  leading  rules  are  the  Bir- 
mingham gauge  of  England,  and  the  Washburn  gauge  of 
America.  The  former  measures  the  wire  by  passing  it  through 
a  fixed  opening,  between  parallel  lines ;  the  latter,  by  passing 
the  wire  between  steel  bars,  fixed  at  an  acute  angle  resem- 
bling a  very  elongated  v.  The  wire  descends  the  open- 
ing until  its  diameter  rests  against  the  sides  forming  the  isosceles 
triangle,  and  the  points  marked  upon  the  sides,  gives  exactly 
the  size  of  the  wire.  This  gauge  is  a  great  improvement  over  all 
other  forms,  because  the  fractional  can  be  given.  If  the  wire  is 
10^  or  10i  or  10^,  the  Washburn  measure  can  indicate  it  exactly. 

This  novel  improvement  in  measuring  the  diameter  of  any 
sized  wire  is  the  recognized  gauge  of  America,  and  is  known 
as  the  "Washburn  gauge."  The  weight  of  the  wire  accord- 
ing to  this  scale  is  given  in  the  following  table : 

Table  7. 

WEIGHT    OF    IRON    WIRE    PER  TWENTY  FEET,   BY  WASHBURN  GAUGE. 


No.    8  weight 1    Ib.  7  oz. 

9        "    1     "     2 

10  "    14 

11  "    10 

12  "    9 

13  6 


No.  1  weight 4  Ib.  2  oz. 

2  "       3  "    8    " 

3  "       2  "  15    « 

4  "       2"     8    « 

5  "       2  «    5    « 

6  ',       1  «  14    « 

7  "       1  "  10    " 

No.  7  weight  of  iron  wire  per  mile 430  Ibs. 

8  «  « 375 

9  "  "  320 

10  "  "  250 

12  weight  of  copper  wire  per  mile '. 176 

16  "  "  63 

18  «  .  .  38 


STRENGTH  OF  TELEGRAPH  WIRES.  523 

Table  8. 

WEIGHT    AND    MEASUREMENT    OF    ENGLISH    WIRE. 


No. 


No.  of  feet  per  Ib. 
Ft.  in. 

Birmingham                Yards  per  cwt. 
Gauge.                              about 

1  

4 

3  

&  140 

galvanized. 

2 

.     5 

....  &  170 

H 

3     ... 

....     6 

i    210 

it 

4  

....   7 

.....  M  240 

u 

5 

8 

U  275 

H 

6     .    . 

9 

6  

.  M  320 

il 

7 

12 

§.    400 

u 

8 

13 

6.. 

450 

(i 

9 

16 

6  

550 

it 

10     ... 

21 

6  

730 

u 

11 

.  28 

.    950 

U 

12  

..33 

A  1,150 

el 

13  

41 

I  1,420 

« 

14 

55 

gr   1,900 

tl 

15 

..  66 

....     J  2300 

ll 

16     ... 

90 

.  JL  3100 

it 

17  

..17 

7...-  ., 

4,000 

it 

18 

16 

2  

5,200 

ti 

19 

22 

2  

7,000 

tl 

20.. 

..33 

1.. 

..10,500 

4< 

GUTTA-PERCHA   INSULATION, 


OHAPTEK   XXXVIII. 

Application  of  Gutta-Percha  as  an  Insulation — Discovery  of  Gutta-Percha,  its 
Nature,  Qualities,  and  Chemical  Properties. 

APPLICATION  OF  GUTTA-PERCHA  AS  AN  INSULATION. 

ALL  efforts  to  insulate  telegraph  wires  for  submarine  and  sub- 
terranean lines  proved  ineffective  until  the  introduction  of  gutta- 
fercha,  a  substance  of  peculiar  growth  as  hereinafter  described, 
do  not  propose  to  determine  when  it  was  first  applied  to  tele- 
graphing. In  the  year  1847  a  manufactory  of  gutta-percha 
for  the  insulation  of  telegraph  wires  was  established  in  Brook- 
lyn, New- York,  by  Mr.  Samuel  T.  Armstrong,  who  had  ascer- 
tained that  the  substance  was  a  non-conductor  of  electricity. 
Immediately  following  this  scientific  fact,  machinery  was  made 
for  the  application  of  gutta-percha  to  telegraph  wires,  and  a 
trial  of  the  same  was  made  across  the  Hudson  river  in  1848. 
It  was  eminently  successful,  and  at  the  time  Mr.  Armstrong 
was  so  sanguine  of  the  perfection  of  the  insulation,  that  he 
published,  in  the  New- York  Journal  of  Commerce  in  1848,  a 
proposition  to  insulate  and  lay  a  telegraph  cable  across  the  At- 
lantic Ocean  for  the  sum  of  $3,500,000. 

Since  that  time  sub-aqueous  conductors  have  been  verv 
greatly  improved,  and  minds  of  great  power  are  still  at  work 
for  the  perfection  of  submarine  telegraphy. 

The  manufacture  of  gutta-percha  as  an  insulation  was  com- 
menced in  England  about  the  same  time  as  it  was  in  America, 
and  the  establishment  hi  London,  under  the  direction  of  Messrs. 
Statham  &  Co.,  has  done  wonders  in  the  progress  of  the 
art.  They  have  from  the  beginning  exhibited  a  degree  of 
enterprise  not  surpassed  by  any  others  in  the  art  of  telegraph- 
ing. To  London  and  New- York  manufactories  the  telegraphic 
world  is  greatly  indebted  for  the  degree  of  perfection  now 
enjoyed  in  the  use  of  gutta-percha. 

524 


MANUFACTORIES  OF  GUUTTA-PERCHA.  525 

Other  establishments  for  the  manufacture  of  gutta  percha 
have  been  conducted  at  Berlin,  Prussia,  and  at  St.  Petersburg, 
Russia,  but  the  two  most  prominent  are  those  of  Messrs.  Stat- 
ham  &  Co.,  in  London,  and  Mr.  Samuel  C.  Bishop  of  New- 
York.  It  is  peculiarly  fortunate  that  the  telegraph  enterprise 
has  as  promoters  gentlemen  of  such  sterling  worth. 


[Leaf  and  Fruit  of  the  Gutta-Percha  Tree.J 


526  GUTTA-PERCHA  INSULATION. 

GUTTA-PERCHA,    ITS  DISCOVERY,  QUALITIES,    CHEMICAL  PROPERTIES. 

Grutta-percha — the  Malayan  term  given  to  a  concrete  juice 
taken  from  the  Isonandra  gutta  tree — is  indigenous  to  all  the 
islands  of  the  Indian  Archipelago,  and  especially  to  the  Ma- 
layan peninsula,  Borneo,  Ceylon,  and  their  neighborhoods, 
where  are  found  immense  forests  of  the  tree,  yielding  this  prod- 
uct in  great  abundance.  Its  fruit  contains  a  concrete  edible 
oil,  which  is  used  by  the  natives  with  their  food.  The  gutta 
(or  juice)  circulates  between  the  bark  and  the  wood  of  the 
tree,  in  veins  whose  course  is  distinctly  marked  by  black  longi- 
tudinal lines.  The  natives  were  originally  in  the  habit  of 
felling  the  tree  when  they  required  a  supply,  but  have  been 
taught  by  experience  that  the  juice  can  be  obtained  by  cutting 
notches  at  intervals  in  the  trunk,  and  save  the  life  of  the  tree 
for  future  tappings,  as  our  maples  for  successive  years  yield 
their  sap  to  the  sugar  manufacturers.  The  juice  consolidates 
in  a  few  minutes  after  it  is  collected,  when  it  is  formed  by 
hand  into  compact  oblong  masses  of  from  seven  to  twelve  or 
eighteen  inches  in  length  by  four  to  six  inches  in  thickness, 
and  these,  when  properly  dried,  are  what  is  known  as  the  gutta- 
percha  of  commerce. 

It  is  but  a  few  years  since  the  knowledge  of  the  existence  of 
this  ductile  secretion  dawned  upon  the  world.  Dr.  Montgom- 
erie,  an  assistant  surgeon  at  Singapore,  observed  in  the  pos- 
session of  a  native  the  handle  of  a  wood-chopper  of  such  singu- 
lar material  that  it  awakened  his  attention,  and  on  inquiry 
and  examination  he  found  it  to  have  been  made  of  the  juice  of 
this  strange  tree — becoming  plastic  when  dipped  in  hot  water, 
and  when  cold  regaining  its  original  stiffness  and  rigidity. 
Within  this  brief  period  the  exudations  of  these  dense  forests 
have  assumed,  in  America  and  England,  innumerable  forms. 
It  is  singular  indeed  that  there  should  circulate  in  the  veins  of 
the  primeval  forests  of  Malacca  and  the  neighboring  isles,  a 
sap  or  juice  so  long  a  stranger  to  the  civilized  world,  possessing 
such  extraordinary  virtues,  and,  in  so  short  a  period  of  time, 
entering  so  largely  and  variously  into  the  service  of  man,  and 
destined  to  become  his  servant  in  a  greater  variety  of  forms 
than  any  other  material  yet  discovered. 

The  gutta-percha  of  commerce  is  of  a  light  brown  color, 
exhibiting  a  fibrous  appearance,  much  like  the  inner  coating 
of  white  oak  bark,  and  is  without  elasticity.  When  purified 
of  its  woody  and  earthy  substance,  it  becomes  hard  like  horn, 
and  is  extremely  tenacious,  indeed  its  tenacity  is  wonderful. 

Mr.  Burstall,  of  Birmingham,  referring  to  some  experiments 
testing  the  strength  of  tubes  composed  of  this  material,  says : 


PROPERTIES  OF  GUTTA-PERCHA.  527 

"The  tubes  were  three  lourths  inch  bore,  the  material  one 
eighth  thick.  They  were  tested  by  the  "Water  Company's 
proving  pump,  with  its  regular  load  of  250  pounds  to  the 
square  inch ;  afterward  we  added  weight  up  to  337  pounds, 
and  I  wished  to  have  gone  to  500  but  the  lever  of  the  valve 
would  bear  no  more  weight ;  we  were  unable  to  burst  the 
pipe."  Another  gentleman,  Mr.  Andrew  Robertson,  of  Stirling, 
says:  "I  am  of  opinion  that  no  other  material  is  so  well  fitted 
for  the  above  purposes"  (extinguishing  fires  and  watering  the 
streets  in  dry  weather)  "  as  gutta-percha ;  for,  although  our 
pressure  is  perhaps  the  greatest  in  the  kingdom,  being  upward 
of  450  feet,  not  the  slightest  effect  could  be  discovered  on  the 
tube  or  joints,  while  the  same  pressure  on  our  leather  hose 
sends  the  rivets  in  all  directions." 

The  application  of  heat  to  this  crude  material  makes  it  soft 
and  plastic,  and  in  a  temperature  of  about  200  degrees  it  be- 
comes quite  ductile,  when  it  is  capable  of  being  moulded  into 
any  desired  shape,  which  it  will  retain  when  cool.  It  can  be 
dissolved  by  sulphuret  of  carbon,  or  chloroform,  or  if  im- 
mersed for  a  time  in  spirits  of  turpentine.  It  is  repellant  of 
and  completely  unaffected  by  cold  water,  but  is  softened  and 
made  adhesive  by  warm  water.  It  is  a  a  non-conductor  of  heat 
and  electricity  ;  is  proof  against  alkalies  and  acids,  being  only 
affected  by  the  sulphuric  or  nitric  in  a  highly  concentrated 
state  ;  while  the  most  powerful  acetic,  hydrofluoric  or  muriatic 
acids  or  chlorine  have  no  perceptible  effect  upon  its  structure 
or  capabilities.  This  gum  has  qualities  entirely  differing  from 
the  India-rubber.  It  cannot  be  worn  out.  It  can  be  melted 
and  remelted,  and  repeatedly  remoulded  without  changing  its 
properties  for  manufacture  or  losing  its  virtue.  It  is  lighter  than 
rubber,  of  finer  grain,  and.  possesses  certain&repellant  proper- 
ties unknown  to  that  material,  and  is  extremely  tough.  It 
disregards  frost  and  displays  remarkable  acoustic  qualities. 

In  its  crude  state  gutta-percha  has  no  resemblance  what- 
ever to  India-rubber  in  appearance,  nor  are  its  chemical  or 
mechanical  properties  the  same,  nor  does  the  tree  from  which 
it  is  taken  belong  to  the  same  botanical  family,  or  grow  in  the 
same  latitudes  or  soil ;  yet,  from  the  fact  that  it  could  be  dis- 
solved and  wrought  into  water-proof  wares,  many  have  inclined 
to  the  belief  that  the  two  materials  are  identically  or  nearly 
the  same. 

Grutta-percha  when  immersed  in  boiling  water,  contracts  in 
bulk. 

India-rubber  when  immersed  in  boiling  water,  expands  and 
increases  in  bulk. 


528  GUTTA-PERCHA  INSULATION. 

Grutta-percha  juice  is  of  a  dark  brown  color,  and  consolidates 
in  a  few  minutes  after  exuding  from  the  tree,  when  it  becomes 
about  as  hard  as  wood. 

India-rubber  sap  is  perfectly  white,  and  of  about  the  con- 
sistency of  thick  cream ;  when  it  coagulates  it  gives  from  four 
to  six  parts  water  out  of  ten ;  it  may  be  kept  like  milk,  and 
is  frequently  drank  by  the  natives. 

Grutta-percha  first  treated  with  water,  alcohol  and  ether, 
and  then  dissolved  in  spirits  of  tnrpentine  and  precipitated, 
yields  a  substance  consistent  with  the  common  properties  of 
gutta-percha. 

India-rubber  similarly  treated  results  in  a  substance  resem- 
bling in  appearance  gum-arabic. 

Grutta-percha  by  distillation  yields  fifty-seven  and  two  thirds 
per  cent,  of  volatile  matter. 

India-rubber  by  the  same  process  yields  eighty-five  and  three 
fourths  per  cent. 

Grutta-percha  in  its  crude  state,  or  in  combination  with  other 
materials,  may  be  heated  and  reheated  to  the  consistency  of 
thin  paste,  without  injury  to  its  future  manufacture. 

India-rubber,  if  but  once  treated  in  the  same  manner,  will 
be  destroyed  and  unfit  for  future  use. 

Grutta-percha  is  not  decomposed  by  fatty  substances;  one 
application  of  it  is  for  oil  vessels. 

India-rubber  is  soon  decomposed  by  coming  in  contact  with 
fatty  substances. 

Grutta-percha  is  a  non-conductor  of  cold,  heat,  and  electricity, 
and  in  its  natural  state  is  non-elastic,  and  with  little  or  no 
flexibility. 

India-rubber  is  a  conductor  of  heat,  cold,  and  electricity, 
highly  elastic  and  flexible. 

The  specific  gravity  of  gutta-percha  is  much  less  than  that 
of  India-rubber,  in  proportion  as  one  hundred  of  gutta-percha 
is  to  one  hundred  and  fifty  of  India-rubber. 

Chemists  who  have  analyzed  them  vary  a  little  as  to  their 
chemical  proportions,  but  all  agree  that  the  chemical  properties 
and  mechanical  action  of  gutta-percha  and  India-rubber  are 
so  entirely,  distinct  and  dissimilar,  that  they  should  never  be 
classed  under  the  same  head,  chemically  or  mechanically  any 
more  than  commercially. 

M.  Arppe,  a  celebrated  Grerman  chemist,  says  gutta-percha 
differs  in  composition  from  caoutchouc,  and  that  the  products 
of  dry  distillation  of  gutta-percha  are  different  from  those  of 
caoutchouc.  He  considers  gutta-percha  to  be  a  mixture  of 
six  resins,  which  have  been  formed  from  a  carb-hydrogen. 


TELEGRAPH   INSULATION. 


CHAPTEK    XXXIX. 

English  Telegraph  Insulators — The  American,  the  French,  the  Sardinian,  the 
Bavarian,  the  Holland,  the  Baden,  the  Austrian,  the  Seimens  and  Halskie's, 
and  the  Hindostan  Insulators — Tightening  the  wires  in  Asia,  England,  and 
on  the  Continent. 

ENGLISH  TELEGRAPH  INSULATORS. 

IN  Great  Britain  the  telegraph  enterprise  has  been  under  the 
administration  of  gentlemen  skilled  in  the  science  and  the  art. 
Every  arrangement  employed  on  the  lines  in  that  country 
contemplates  permanency  and  perfection  of  operation.  The 
system  of  telegraphing  adopted  in  Great  Britain  does  not  require 
the  same  organization,  in  every  particular,  as  necessary  for  the 
American  lines.  This  remark  may  be  applied  to  the  insulation 
at  the  posts.  On  the  American  lines  stronger  voltaic  currents 
are  employed  in  the  working  of  the  telegraphs,  and  these  cur- 
rents are  continuous.  On  the  English  lines  the  electric  force 
is  weaker  and  non-continuous.  Besides  these  facts,  there  are 
other  reasons  which  might  be  mentioned,  if  necessary,  explain- 
ing the  fact  that  the  telegraphs  of  the  two  countries  are  differ- 
ent, one  from  the  other,  and  that  the  requirements  of  the  one 
are  not  the  same  as  those  of  the  other. 

The  invention  of  an  insulation  received  from  the  telegraph 
veteran,  Cooke,  at  an  early  day,  a  proper  appreciation.  On  the 
8th  of  September,  1842,  he  obtained  a  patent  for  his  particular 
modes  of  suspending  wire  in  the  air,  &c. 

The  modes  described  are  various,  but  the  principal  features 
were  the  causing  of  zones  of  dry  wood  to  exist  between  wire 
and  wire  by  the  means  of  artificial  boxes  or  circular  sheds  like 
umbrellas,  the  tightening  of  wires  by  certain  well-known 
mechanical  means,  the  use  of  compound  twisted  wire,  a  kind 
of  portable  telegraph  instrument  to  be  attached  to  the  wires, 
as  also  the  use  of  wires  suspended  under  the  particular  modes 

529 


530 


TELEGRAPH  INSULATION. 


as  described  and  patented,  if  used  for  the  purposes  of  sending 
currents  of  electricity  to  work  electric  clocks,  or  particular 
kinds  of  apparatus  connected  with  certain  descriptions  of  elec- 
tric telegraphs. 

The  plan  of  causing  zones  of  dry  wood  to  intervene  between 
wire  and  wire  was  tried  and  abandoned.  It  was  succeeded  by 
the  following  method,  which  was  very  extensively  employed  in 
England. 

The  following  figures  will  explain  this  plan :  a  a  are  arms 
of  wood  attached  to  a  post  or  standard  by  means  of  a  bolt 
passing  through  the  porcelain  tubes  y  y.  e  e  are  tubular  insu- 
lators of  porcelain,  affixed  to  the  arms  by  clips  of  iron.  The 
wires  pass  through  the  tubes  e  e>  and  are  thereby  insulated. 
About  every  tenth  post  is  made  stronger  than  the  intermediate 


Fig.  i. 


Fig.  2. 


Fig.  3. 


0)e 
f 

§>* 


ones,  and  strong  cast-iron  ratchet-wheels,  with  barrels,  r  r,  are 
affixed  to  it  for  drawing  up  the  wires.  When  the  wire  has 
been  threaded  through  the  insulators  e  e  on  the  intervening 
poles,  its  end  is  attached  to  these  winders,  and  on  turning  the 
ratchet  wheels  round  by  means  of  a  strong  handle,  the  wire 
may  be  wound  round  these  barrels  and  thus  drawn  up  to  any 
degree  of  tension  desired.  The  ratchet-wheels  and  barrels  on 
each  side  of  the  posts  are  connected  to  each  other  by  bolt  ft, 
and  insulated  from  the  post  by  means  of  the  porcelain  tubes  1 1. 
The  first  plan  of  insulation  adopted  by  Mr.  Cooke  was  to 
cover  each  wire  with  cotton  or  silk,  and  then  with  pitch, 
caoutchouc,  resin,  or  other  non-conducting  materials,  and  to 


ENGLISH  INSULATORS. 


531 


enclose  them,  when  thus  insulated,  in  tubes  or  pipes  of  wood, 
iron  or  earthenware.  The  telegraph  on  the  Great  Western 
Railway  line  was  originally  laid  down  on  this  method.  This 
mode  of  insulation  was,  however,  abandoned  on  the  introduc- 
tion of  the  baked  wood  zones. 

The  insulator  described  in  figs.  1,  2  and  3,  has  been  known 
in  England  as  the  Cooke  Pole  system,  and  fig.  4  represents  the 
insulator  as  fastened  to  the  pole  and  the  wire  run  through  it. 

Fig.  4. 


It  is  formed  like  an  egg,  slightly  flattened  at  each,  end,  and 
about  three  inches  long.  The  wire  had  to  be  run  through  the 
holes,  and  when  once  on  they  could  not  be  separated  from  the 
wire,  except  by  cutting  it  or  breaking  the  insulator.  This 
mode  of  insulation  was  extensively  employed  until  about  1848. 
when  others  were  introduced  and  found  to  be  more  practicable. 

Fig.  5. 


Fig.  5  represents  the  wire  suspended  upon  the  poles  through 
the  above  described  insulator.  The  wire  was  fastened  at 
proper  distances,  the  description  of  which  will  be  hereinafter 
given. 


532 


TELEGRAPH  INSULATION. 


About  1849,  Mr.  Physick  devised  an  insulator  by  which  the 
wire  was  supported  by  a  hook,  the  upper  part  of  which  passed 
through  a  shed  of  earthenware,  and  fastened  by  a  nut  at  the 
top  ;  above  this  mastic  was  laid  to  insulate  the  hook  from  the 
post.  This  was  found  to  be  a  faulty  insulator.  The  vibration 
of  the  wires  and  other  causes  broke  off  the  mastic. 

Fig.  6.  Mr.    Charles  V.  Walker  adopted 

an  insulator  shaped  like  an  hour- 
glass, as  represented  by  fig.  6.  They 
were  made  of  brown  salt-glazed 
stoneware,  and  were  fastened  to  a 
bracket,  as  seen  by  the  figure,  by 
several  turns  of  wire  passed  outside 
the  narrow  part  of  the  insulator, 
and  entirely  unconnected  with  the 
telegraph  wire  within.  The  wire 
threaded  the  insulator.  The  bracket 
is  partially  insulated  from  the  post. 
This  mode  of  insulation  was  a  suc- 
cess, so  far  as  pertained  to  the  work- 
ing of  .the  line,  but  the  hour-glass  shaped  cones  were  liable  to 
break,  and  when  they  were  thus  displaced,  the  wire  had  to  be 
cut  to  thread  on  new  cones.  This  was  objectionable. 

Fig.  7. 


The  next  insulator  adopted  was  that  known  as  Clarke's, 
having  been  patented  by  Mr.  Edwin  Clarke,  the  engineer  of  the 
Electric  Telegraph  Company,  in  1850. 

Fig.  7  represents  the  insulator  with  the  wire  attached  to  it. 
Figs.  8  and  9  are  sectional  views  of  it,  which  I  will  now  ex- 
plain. Letter  A  is  the  arm  to  which  the  insulator  is  bolted  by 


ENGLISH  INSULATORS. 


533 


Fig  8. 


Fig.  9. 


Fig.  10. 


means  of  the  bolt  c,  let  into  the  earthenware  B  at  d.  The 
part  B  supports  the  wire  by  the  slot  e.  Between  the  arm  and 
the  earthenware  is  fixed,  by  passing  over  the  bolt  at  the  hole 
0,  a  zinc  cap  of  the  shape  represented  by  figure  8.  The  in- 
sulator is  about  four  inches  long. 

Fig.  10  represents  the  insulator 
as  fastened  to  the  cross  beam  and 
sectionalized. 

This  form  and  combination  was 
then  followed  by  another  made  of 
glass  and  suspended  from  an  arm 
fastened  to  the  post.  The  object 
of  the  application  of  the  zinc  or 
metal  cap  was  that  the  moisture 
might  condense  on  it  rather  than 
on  the  earthenware 


534 


TELEGRAPH  INSULATION. 
Fig.  12. 


ENGLISH  INSULATORS. 


535 


Mr.  Hightons  adopted  the  plan  represented  by  fig.  11.  The 
wire  was  capped  with  silk  ribbon  for  about  six  inches  on  both 
sides  of  the  point  of  support,  and  covering  about  five  inches  in 
the  centre  of  the  foot  of  ribbon  with  a  piece  of  gutta-percha, 
shaped  like  an  elongated  sphere  ;  the  whole  was  then  varnished 
with  brown  hard  varnish. 

Fig.  12  represents  an  insulator  invented  by  the  Brothers 
Bright,  of  the  Magnetic  Telegraph  Company.  It  is  mounted 
upon  the  pole  or  a  cross-beam  as  seen  in  fig.  13.  The  inverted 
bowl  is  fastened  to  the  beam  by  a  bolt  and  nut,  as  seen  in  fig. 
12.  The  wire  is  attached  to  the  top.  Neither  rain  nor  fog 
form  a  connection  between  the  wire  and  the  pole.  It  is  made 
of  earthenware  or  glass,  very  heavy,  and  about  five  inches 
diameter.  Fig.  13  represents  an  arrangement  for  six  wires. 
In  connection  with  this  mode  of  insulation,  the  brothers  Bright 
devised  the  arrangement  of  the  cross  beams  as  represented  by 
fig.  13,  and  also  by  figs.  14  and  15. 


Fig.  14. 


Fig.  15. 


Fig.  14  represents  the  cross  beams  or  arms  reduced  in  length 
from  the  top.  Fig.  15  represents  the  cone  above.  In  either 
case  when  the  wire  breaks  it  falls  clear,  and  does  not  get  en- 
tangled  with  the  other  wires,  as  is  often  the  case  when  they 
are  on  the  same  perpendicular  line.  Fig.  14  is  a  form  more 
convenient  for  the  erection  or  replacement  of  the  wires.  Fig. 
15  is  a  stronger  combination  than  fig.  14,  the  greater  leverage 
arms  being  nearer  the  centre  of  the  pole. 

There  have  been  various  other  insulators  invented,  and  em- 
ployed to  a  limited  extent  on  the  English  lines,  but  those  in 
general  use  are  described  in  the  foregoing.  Grutta-percha  insu- 
lators were  tried,  but  were  not  successful,  and  other  forms  had 


536  TELEGRAPH  INSULATION. 

to  be  substituted  in  their  place.  The  earthenware  insulator 
has  proved  to  be  the  most  substantial  and  best  in  every  respect 
for  the  purposes  of  insulation. 

AMERICAN  INSULATORS. 

There  is  a  greater  variety  of  insulators  upon  the  American 
telegraphs  than  is  to  be  found  on  the  lines  elsewhere  in  the 
world.  The  enterprise,  from  its  commencement  on  the  "Western 
continent  in  1844,  has  been  in  the  charge  of  "many  men  of 
many  minds,"  and  each  has  been  ambitious  to  excel  the  others. 
This  commendable  spirit  has  been  productive  of  much  good. 
Besides  this  circumstance  attending  the  erection  of  the  lines, 
different  sections  of  America  have  required  an  insulator  pecu- 
liarly adapted  to  their  special  wants.  On  the  other  hand,  how- 
ever, there  have  been  devised  many  kinds  of  insulators  for 
special  sections  of  the  service  which  have  proved  destructive 
to  practical  telegraphing. 

The  first  insulator  used  in  America  was  the  cloth,  saturated 
with  gum-lac,  wound  around  the  wire  at  the  post  contact. 
This  was  on  the  experimental  line,  constructed  in  1843-'44, 
between  Washington  and  Baltimore,  under  the  direction  of 
Professor  Morse.  Copper  wires  were  used,  and  a  cross  board 
was  fastened  at  the  top  of  the  pole.  A  small  notch  was  cut 
in  the  top  edge  of  the  board,  and  the  wire,  covered  with  the 
saturated  gum-lac  cloth,  was  laid  in  the  notch.  Over  this  was 
nailed  a  board,  serving  as  a  roof,  so  that  the  rain  could  not 
have  access  to  the  wire  contact  on  the  perpendicular  edge  of 
the  cross-board. 

Various  plans  were  suggested  for  the  proper  and  better  insu- 
lation of  the  wires.  The  horn  used  for  lightning  rods  was 
tried  and  abandoned.  Finally  the  glass  was  determined  upon 
as  the  only  reliable  means  of  effecting  the  great  desideratum. 
The  question  was  then  as  to  the  form  of  the  glass.  On  this 
the  opinion  of  telegraphers  are  still  at  variance.  Every  new 
man  that  comes  into  power  seems  to  aim  for  a  novel  form  of 
insulation.  This  singular  infatuation  among  telegraphers  I 

Fig.  16.  Fig.  17.  Fig.  18. 


AMERICAN  INSULATORS. 


537 


have  noticed  for  many  years  past,  and  even  at  this  day  I  find 
a  great  diversity  of  opinion  as  to  the  most  acceptable  insula- 
tion. 

In  the  adoption  of  the  glass  insulator  the  form  first  employed 
was  the  ordinary  door-knob.  It  was  found  to  be  a  partial  suc- 
cess, but  the  large  projection  at  the  top  of  the  knob  was  con- 
sidered useless,  and  then  the  shape  represented  by  fig.  16  was 
employed.  The  glass  was  set  on  a  wooden  pin  fixed  in  a  cross 
beam  at  the  top  of  the  pole.  This  form  was  then  improved  as 
shown  by  figs.  17  and  18.  The  wire  was  laid  in  the  grooves 
of  figs.  17  and  18,  and  on  the  projection  in  figure  16.  The 
line  wire  was  then  tied  to  the  glass  with  a  small  wire,  either 
No.  16,  14,  or*  12,  according  to  circumstances  and  the  opinion 
of  the  constructor. 

Fig.  19. 


This  insulator  was  again  improved  by  Mr.  "William  M.  Swain, 
president  of  the  Magnetic  Telegraph  Company.  He  abolished 
the  flange  and  constructed  the  glass  in  the  shape  of  an  egg,  as 
represented  by  the  following  figures. 

Fig.  20  represents  the  form  of  the  glass  with  line  wire  groove 
at  its  centre.  The  lower  end  is  concave  and  the  upper  slightly 
convex.  The  flange  insulator  was  easily  broken,  but  the  egg 
form  cannot  be  broken  by  the  ordinary  service  of  the  telegraph. 
I  have  seen  this  insulator  thrown  as  much  as  a  hundred  yards, 
and  against  brick  houses,  and  not  break.  This  rotund-shaped 
glass  insures  long  service,  as  has  been  demonstrated  by  its  use 
on  a  long  range  of  lines  for  many  years. 

In  the  arrangement  of  this  insulator  Mr.  Swain  did  not  only 
have  in  view  substantiality,  but  also  the  perfection  of  the  insu- 


538 


TELEGRAPH  INSULATION. 


lation  of  the  line  wire  from  earth  currents.     At  numeral  1, 
fig.  21,  the  cone  is  concave.      "When  the  water  collects  upon 


Fig.  20. 


Fig.  21. 


Fig.  22. 


the  upper  part  of  the  insulator  it  does  not  follow  the  glass  to 
the  numeral  1,  but  falls  from  the  centre  projection.  The 
moisture  under  the  drip  forms  globules,  and  breaks  from  the 
cone  at  or  above  1,  as  seen  falling  from  the  flange  of  the  cone, 
fig.  25.  The  point  of  drip,  therefore,  is  not  at  the  lower  end, 


Fig.  23. 


Fig.  24. 


but  above  at  the  centre  projection  as  just  described.  Fig.  26 
represents  the  drip  of  a  house.  The  falling  drop  breaks  the 
rain  and  keeps  dry  the  projection  seen  under  the  eave  of  the 
house.  In  the  same  manner  the  dripping  from  the  above 
described  glass  insulates  the  lower  cone  from  the  rain.  Of 


Fig.  25. 


Fig.  26. 


AMERICAN  INSULATORS. 

course  the  lower  end  of  the  glass  will  not  be  dry,  but  there 
will  be  less  liability  for  a  watery  connection  with  the  earth 
from  the  wire  than  when  the  drip  is  at  the  lower  end  of 
the  glass.  I  have  seen  this  philosophy  illustrated  at  the 
Niagara  Falls.  The  immense  volume  of  water  passes  over 
the  shelf  or  point  of  drip,  and  beneath  the  mass  of  water 
is  a  passage-way  for  travellers,  precisely  as  represented  by  fig. 
26. '  If  the  reader  desires  to  see  this  idea  illustrated,  he  can 
do  so  by  setting  a  teacup  upon  an  upright  pin,  then  fill 
the  cup  with  water  until  it  overflows.  The  water  will  fall 
over  the  rim,  and  the  smaller  end  of  the  cup  will  be  dry. 

Fig  21  represents  the  glass  adjusted  to  the  wire  when  on  a 
right  line ;  fig.  22  when  the  wire  is  oblique,  as  upon  the  side 
of  a  hill,  and  fig.  23  when  the  wire  is  perpendicular  with  the 
post.  In  order  to  prevent  the  glass  from  pulling  off  from  the 
iron  arm,  the  screw  combination  represented  by  fig.  24  was 
adopted.  The  iron  arm  3,  is  cut  so  that  the  teeth  will  serve 
as  a  male  screw.  The  glass  is  made  with  a  female  screw  as 
seen  by  numeral  2.  Fig.  25  represents  the  glass  on  the  arm, 
with  the  line  wire  fastened  to  it  at  an  angle  pulling  the  glass 
upward,  the  teeth  of  the  iron  arm  fitted  into  the  grooves  of  the 
screw  prevents  the  glass  from  being  separated  from  the  iron 
arm. 

The  above  figures  are  engraved  with  so  much  variety  that 
further  explanation  is  unnecessary.  They  have  been  gotten 
up  with  care,  and  they  are  replete  with  demonstrative  philoso- 
phy. 

Fig.  19  represents  the  application  of  these  insulators  to  the 
poles.  The  cross  beam  at  the  top  of  the  pole  has  upon  it  two 
insulators,  set  upon  iron  pins.  Some  lines  have  several  of  these 
cross  beams  on  the  poles  for  the  Fi  27 

use  of  other  wires  ;  others  have 
the  insulators  fastened  to  iron 
arms  driven  into  the  sides  of  the 
poles,  as  seen  below  the  beam 
in  fig.  19.  This  iron  arm  is 
shaped  as  seen  in  fig.  18.  An 
auger  hole  is  bored  into  the 
post,  and  into  it  is  driven  the 
iron  arm  as  seen  by  the  figure. 
An  advantage  is  realized  in  the 
use  of  this  class  of  insulaters,  in  the  fact  that  there  is  not 
much  surface  for  the  wind  to  act  upon.  Many  lines  are  leveled 
to  the  earth  by  the  heavy  storms. 

Among  the  improvements  historic  in  telegraphing  is  the  one 


540 


TELEGRAPH  INSULATION. 


called  the  brimstone  insulator,  represented  by  fig.  27.  Let- 
ters A  A  are  sulphur ;  B  an  iron  arm  to  screw  into  the  auger 
hole  in  the  pole  or  tree,  c  is  an  iron  pendant  to  support  the 
wire  in  the  eccentric  hook  D.  E  E  is  an  iron  casing,  and  is  a 
part  of  B.  The  flange  below  E  E  was  to  prevent  a  watery 
connection  in  times  of  rain,  dew,  or  fog.  These  insulators 
were  extensively  used  on  the  early  lines  constructed  by  Messrs. 
Ezra  Cornell,  John  J.  Speed,  jr.,  and  J.  H.  Wade  of  the  north- 
east and  northwest.  This  combination  of  materials  proved  to 
be  very  defective ;  and  at  an  enormous  expense  they  had  to 
be  removed  from  the  lines  and  others  substituted.  The  losses 
sustained  by  their  use  were  very  great,  almost  producing  the 
ruin  of  some  of  the  companies.  The  reader  may  be  surprised 
to  learn  that  it  proved  so  seriously  fatal,  and  he  may  be  unable 
to  comprehend  why  it  was  not  found  to  be  defective  for  tele- 
graphic service  before  it  had  been  so  generally  applied.  The 
explanation  will  be  readily  understood  when  it  is  remembered 
that  these  various  lines  were  all  being  built  at  the  same  time, 
in  different  directions,  by  different  gentlemen,  contending 
against  rivals  on  the  same  routes.  In  the  course  of  a  few 
weeks  several  hundreds  of  miles  were  constructed.  It  was 
but  a  short  time  before  the  fault  of  the  non-working  of  the 
lines  was  found  to  be  in  the  application  of  the  sulphur.  The 
complete  failure  of  these  insulators  has  prevented  others  from 
attempting  to  use  sulphur  in  connection  with  the  insulation  of 
telegraph  lines  in  America. 


Fig.  28. 


Fig.  28  is  an  iron  insu- 
lator, adopted  by  Mr  F. 
N.  Gisborne  for  the  New- 
foundland telegraph  lines. 
Its  construction  is  similar 
to  that  of  fig.  27,  except 
the  flanges  E  E  are  made 
spherical  so  as  to  better 
protect  the  pendant  from 
watery  connections  in  wet 
weather.  The  inside  of 
the  bell  E  E  was  at  first 
enamelled  with  a  thick 
coat  of  glass.  The  white 
space  seen  in  the  figure 
was  then  filled  with  lead  to  hold  the  pendant  c.  The  insulator 
thus  arranged  proved  to  be  defective.  The  enamel  soon  wore 
off  by  the  vibrating  of  the  wire  in  the  wind,  and  the  lead 
coming  in  contact  with  the  iron,  a  metallic  connection  was 


AMERICAN  INSULATORS. 


541 


formed  with  the  earth  whenever  the  pole  was  wet,  or  through 
the  sap  when  the  insulator  was  fixed  into  a  tree.  To 
remedy  this  fault  Mr.  Grisborne  applied  vulcanized  rubber  in 
the  place  of  the  lead.  In  this  latter  form  the  insulator  has 
proved  to  be  a  success. 

The  first  insulator  con-  Fig.  29. 

structed  so  as  to  hold  the 
wire  by  suspension,  on  the 
American  lines,  was  de- 
vised by  Col.  John  J.  Speed, 
jr.,  and  used  on  the  line 
from  Detroit  to  Dearborn, 
Michigan,  in  1849.  Fig. 
29  represents  the  form 
adopted.  It  was  made  of 
a  cast  iron  casing,  with  a 
cap  c  to  serve  as  a  roof. 
The  glass  was  in  two  pieces,  indicated  by  A  A.  The  pendant 
B  supported  the  wire.  The  insulator  was  considered  very  good, 
but  expensive.  This  insulator  was  subsequently  improved  by 
moulding  the  glass  in  a  cylindrical  form,  and  fastening  the 
pendant  through  the  glass  with  a  nut  at  the  top.  The  glass 
thus  arranged  was  fitted  into  a  cast  iron  cylinder,  with  a 
moveable  iron  cap.  There  were  objections  to  the  use  of  the 
iron.  The  next  insulator  was  a  cylindrical  glass  fitted  in  an 
auger  hole  bored  into  the  cross  beam.  The  glass,  when  fitted 
into  it,  was  held  in  its  place  by  a  wooden  pin,  driven  through 
the  cross  arm,  fitting  also  in  a  notch  made  on  the  side  of  the 
glass.  This  form  of  insulation  has  been  extensively  used  on 
the  central  range  of  lines,  running  from  New- York  to  the  "West, 
and  has  answered  as  a  good  insulation. 

Fig.  30  represents  an  insulator  very  exten- 
sively used  on  the  lines  constructed  by  Mr. 
Henry  O'Rielly.  It  is  made  of  glass,  porcelain,' 
or  earthenware ;  the  former  was  found  to  be 
preferable.  It  was  about  five  inches  long  and 
two  inches  across,  the  groove  being  made  so  that 
the  wire  could  not  get  out  of  the  glass  when 
subjected  to  an  upward  strain,  which  is  often  occasioned  by  the 
location  of  one  pole  lower  than  the  others.  The  hole  through 
the  glass  is  round  and  at  each  end  enlarged,  forming  a  funnel 
or  flange.  The  wire  lays  upon  the  centre  of  the  glass,  touch- 
ing not  more  than  an  eighth  of  an  inch.  The  projections  seen 
on  the  sides  at  each  end  are  also  on  the  under  side.  The  top 
is  flat.  The  pole  is  cut  so  that  the  insulator  will  lay  in  it,  as 


Fig.  30. 


542 


TELEGRAPH  INSULATION. 


Fig:  31. 


seen  in  fig.  31.  An  auger-hole  the  size  of  the 
glass  is  bored  through  the  pole  about  two 
inches  from  the  end.  With  a  chisel  the 
wood  about  the  auger  hole  is  cut  out,  which 
leaves  a  mortised  opening  for  the  insulator, 
as  seen  in  fig.  31.  Letter  A  is  the  insulator, 
with  the  flange  opening ;  u  is  the  projecting 
head ;  c  the  groove  or  hole  for  the  wire  ,  D 
one  of  two  small  boards  nailed  on  the  top 
of  the  pole  to  form  a  roof.  When  trees  were 
used  on  the  route  of  the  line,  a  bracket  was 
tree,  as  represented  in  fig.  32,  excepting  that 
is  not  shown  in  the  figure.  This  insulator 


attached  to  the 

the  board  roof 

allowed  the  wire  to  rend  through,  so  that  whenever  a  tree  fell 

upon  the  line,  communication  was  not  interrupted.    When  the 


Fig.  32. 


wire  is  first  stretched  it  is  taut,  but  in  a  short  time  it  becomes 
slack  by  expansion,  and  whenever  a  tree  falls  upon  the  line 
the  wire  is  not  broken  but  carried  to  the  earth  with  the  tree. 
If  the  wire  does  not  touch  the  moist  earth,  the  telegraph  con- 
tinues to  work  without  interruption.  If,  however,  the  wire  is 
imbedded  in  the  earth,  communication  will  be  stopped  until 
the  wire  is  elevated.  In  forest  provinces  the  open  insulator 
has  been  found  indispensable.  In  open  countries  it  has  not 
been  considered  of  any  advantage. 


AMERICAN  INSULATORS. 


543 


Fig.  33. 


Fig.  33  represents  another  combina- 
tion for  insulation.  It  was  adopted  by 
Messrs.  O'Rielly,  Kendall,  Tanner, 
Shaffner,  and  others,  and  was  consider- 
ed on  its  introduction  as  the  most  per- 
fect for  the  purposes  in  view.  A  is  the 
telegraph  pole.  B  an  iron  roof  about 
four  inches  wide  and  six  inches  long 
from  point  of  connection  with  c  c,  from 
which  point  it  is  reduced  to  an  arm  the 
same  in  size  as  c  c  c.  The  part  through 
the  pole  is  round  and  about  one  and  a  half  inches  in  diameter. 
D  is  a  wedge  or  key  to  hold  c  c  c  in  the  pole.  E  is  the  insu- 
lator made  in  the  form  of  fig.  30,  but  only  two  and  one  half 
inches  long.  The  glass  insulator  E  is  set  in  the  arm  cc.  The 
projections  at  the  ends  and  the  weight  of  the  wire  hold  it  in 
the  arm.  B,  the  iron  roof,  mentioned  above,  covers  the  glass,  so 
that  the  rain  cannot  make  a  connection  with  the  earth.  These 
insulators  were  well  approved  and  extensively  employed,  but  in 
a  few  months  they  had  to  be  taken  off  and  others  substituted 
for  them.  They  proved  to  be  more  disastrous  than  the  brim- 
stone insulators.  They  brought  ruin  on  every  line  that  used 
them.  The  glass  E  would  easily  break,  and  then  the  wire 
resting  on  the  iron  arm  c  c  c  gave  the  current  an  earth  circuit 
whenever  the  poles  were  damp ;  and  if  trees  were  used  the 
sap  carried  off  the  voltaic  current.  It  was  found  impracticable 
to  work  successfully  a  line  one  hundred  miles  with  them. 

It  is  impossible  for  the  reader  to  comprehend  the  sad  results 
that  fell  upon  the  lines  that  used  this  insulator.  Many  thou- 
r sands  of  dollars  were  lost  in  the  constant  repair  and  loss  of 
business.  They  had  to  be  removed  from  every  line  that  used 
them.  The  telegraphers  of  the  Northwest  ever  keep  in  sad 
remembrance  the  brimstone  insulator,  and  the  telegraphers  of 
the  Southwest  will  never  forget  the  painful  history  of  the  iron 
insulator. 


Fig.  34. 


Fig  35. 


Fig.  36. 


544  TELEGRAPH  INSULATION. 

Among  the  open  insulators  successfully  employed  on  the 
Southwestern  lines  was  the  cylinder  form,  invented  by  Mr.  John 
Yandell,  and  first  adopted  by  Messrs.  Shaffner  and  McAfees  on 
their  Southern  line,  and  by  Messrs.  Shaffner  and  Yeitch  on 
their  Western  line.  Fig.  34  represents  the  side  view  of  the 
glass  cylinder.  A  the  flange  projecting  one  quarter  of  an  inch. 
B  is  the  body  of  the  insulator,  made  conical,  or  one  quarter  of 
an  inch  larger  at  the  flange  end  than  at  the  other.  Fig.  35 
represents  an  end  view.  A,  the  flange,  is  eccentric  to  the  body 
B.  Letter  D  is  the  groove  for  the  wire  to  be  placed  through, 
c  is  the  hole  or  bed  for  the  wire.  The  opening  at  each  end 
is  enlarged  and  funnel-shaped.  The  notch  below  A  is  for  the 
nail.  To  apply  this  insulator  it  is  necessary  to  employ  two 
different-sized  augers.  The  first  must  be  the  size  of  the  flange, 
which  bores  a  hole  not  more  than  half  an  inch  deep.  The 
other  auger,  the -size  of  B,  fig.  34,  is  then  employed,  commen- 
cing with  a  centre  eccentric  to  the  flange.  When  the  hole  is 
thus  bored,  with  a  saw  a  groove  is  cut  from  the  side  of  the 
pole,  as  seen  at  letter  D,  fig.  36.  p  is  the  pole,  cut  tapering 
or  in  the  shape  of  a  roof.  A  is  the  insulator.  D  is  the  open- 
ing through  which  the  wire  is  carried  to  the  groove  of  the 
insulator.  When  the  wire  is  in  its  place,  the  glass  is  turned 
as  seen  in  fig.  36.  A  nail  is  then  driven  into  the  pole  at  the 
notch.  The  object  of  the  nail  and  the  eccentric  flange  is  to 
prevent  the  glass  from  falling  out  of  the  pole  and  to  keep  the 
groove  upward  as  seen  in  the  figure.  In  order  to  employ 
trees  on  the  route  of  the  line,  a  bracket  is  made  in  which  is 
fitted  the  glass  as  above  described.  This  insulator  has  been 
modified  by  Mr.  J.  D.  Caton  and  used  on  his  extensive  range 
of  lines  in  the  West.  He  abandoned  the  flange  and  adopted 
the  plain  cylinder,  and  with  the  nail  only  the  glass  is  held  in 
the  pole. 

Fig.  37.  To  a  limited  extent  the  insulator  represented  by 
fig.  37  has  been  employed.  It  consists  of  two  rec- 
tangular pieces  of  glass  ;  in  each  is  a  semi- cylindrical 
groove,  in  which  is  laid  the  wire.  In  the  figure  the 
>vhite  part  represents  the  two  pieces  of  glass,  one  laid 
above  the  other.  They  are  fitted  into  a  bracket  and 
a  small  board  is  nailed  to  the  bracket  to  serve  as  a  roof.  The 
whole  is  attached  to  the  post  or  to  a  tree. 

The  House  lines  have  had  in  successful  use  the  insulator 
represented  by  fig.  38.  It  consists  of  a  glass  cap  about  six 
inches  in  length  and  four  inches  in  diameter,  having  a  coarse 
screw-like  surface  cut  inside  and  out.  This  glass  cap,  indi- 
cated by  the  numeral  2,  is  screwed  and  cemented  into  a  bell- 


AMERICAN  INSULATORS. 


545 


shaped  iron  cap  marked  1,  from  three  to  four  Fig.  38. 

pounds  in  weight,  projecting  an  inch  below 
the  lower  edge  of  the  glass,  protecting  it  from 
being  broken ;  this  is  then  fitted  with  much 
care  to  the  top  of  the  pole,  marked  3,  and  is 
covered  with  paint  or  varnish.  The  line  wire 
is  fastened  to  the  top  of  the  cap  by  the  pro- 
jecting iron  points,  and  the  whole  of  the  iron 
cap  is  thus  in  the  circuit,  as  the  iron  wire  is 
not  insulated.  To  prevent  the  deposit  of 
moisture,  the  glass  is  covered  by  a  varnish  of 
gum-lac  dissolved  in  alcohol,  and  the  rim-like 
form  of  the  glass  is  to  cause  any  moisture  to 
be  carried  to  the  edge  and  there  drop  off. 

The  insulator  represented  by  fig.  39  has  been  in  use  for  some 
years  on  the  Boston  Fire  Alarm  telegraph,  and  has  proved  to  be 
a  success.  The  cast  iron  cap  is  represented  by  the  black  line 
in  the  section.  This  is  lined  throughout  with  glass,  by  the 
operation  of  blowing,  or  with  porcelain.  The  shank  is  then 
introduced  with  a  hot  mass  of  glass  or  any  fused  or  semi-fused 
material,  by  which  it  is  firmly  fixed  in  its  place.  This  is  rep- 
resented by  the  shaded  portion.  -pig.  39. 
Between  the  lower  edge  of  the 
cap  and  shank,  in  the  section, 
there  are  four  inches  of  glass  sur- 
face. The  re-entering  angle  of 
the  lower  part  of  the  cap  protects 
the  glass  within  from  missiles,  and 
is  calculated,  in  a  storm  of  wind 
and  rain,  to  drive  the  latter  down- 
ward and  thus  preserve  the  insu- 
lation. The  wires  pass  over  the 
top  of  the  insulator.  The  shank, 
which  should  be  longer  than  is 
represented,  screws  into  a  bracket 
or  the  ridge-pole  of  a  house. 

The  insulator  represented  by  fig.  40  is  called  Batchelder's 
hard  rubber  insulator.  Hard  india-rubber  has  been  used  for 
the  insulation  of  telegraph  wires  for  several  years  past,  and 
has  served  successfully  during  the  heat  of  summer  and  the 
extreme  cold  of  winter.  The  seasons  have  not  affected  it. 
This  substance  does  not  soften  at  a  lower  temperature  than 
300°  F. ;  it  is  much  stronger  than  glass,  it  does  not  absorb 
moisture,  nor  does  the  dew  collect  upon  its  surface  as  readily 
as  upon  glass  or  porcelain.  The  figure  represents  the  insulator 

35 


546 


TELEGRAPH  INSULATION. 


in  its  full  size.  A  is  a  wooden  bloclt,  in  which  are  the  holes 
F  F,  converging  together  toward  the  back,  so  that  the  spikes 
which  pass  through  them  are  dovetailed  to  the  post.  The  cir- 
cular cavity  B  is  about  two  inches  in  diameter  and  two  inches 
in  depth,  within  which  the  lower  part  of  D  c  is  protected  from 
rain  and  moisture.  A  hole  is  bored  in  the  block  the  proper 
size  for  the  reception  of  D  c.  The  hard  rubber  c  covers  the  iron 
rod  or  pendant  D,  so  that  there  can  be  no  metallic  or  other  con- 
ducting connection  with  the  earth.  The  hard  rubber  cannot 

Fig.  40. 


be  broken  from  the  iron  other  than  by  a  hammer  or  some  great 
force,  greater  than  befalls  a  telegraph  insulator.  The  line 
wire  is  laid  in  the  hook  D,  which  has  its  flanges  at  angles  to 
hold  the  wire  taut.  This  insulator  has  been  very  extensively 
used,  and  particularly  in  the  Northern  States. 

Fig.  41  represents  an  insulator  used  on  several  lines  with 
satisfactory  results.     It  is  made  of  white  flint.     The  material 


AMERICAN  INSULATORS. 


547 


is  anti-porous,  is  vitrified  throughout,  and  is  considered  as  per- 
fect for  insulating  purposes  as  glass.  It  is  very  hard  and  diffi- 
cult to  be  broken,  and  it  has  resisted  bullets  and  other  missies 
thrown  at  it  by  mischievous  persons.  The  form  adopted  has  been 
regarded  as  advantageous  in  preventing  the  gathering  of  lines 
of  water.  The  corrugations  separate  the  watery  accumulations. 

Fig.  41. 


Fig.  42. 


Fig.  43. 


548 


TELEGRAPH  INSULATION. 
Fig.  44.  Fig.  45. 


154 


The  insulator  is  either  fitted  to  an  iron  or  to  a  wooden  pin, 
driven  into  the  poles  or  to  the  cross-beams. 

The  four  sectional  drawings  represent  different  forms  adopted. 
The  first  two  are  arranged  for  the  line  wire  to  be  fastened  to 
the  top  of  the  insulator  with  wire  ties  or  small  wedges.  The 
latter  two  are  shaped  so  that  the  line  wire  can  be  fastened  to 
the  side  by  tie  wires. 

In  1849,  at  Erie,  Pennsylvania,  Col.  Speed,  of  the  North- 
west, devised  an  insulator  with  a  wooden  shield  covering  the 
glass,  having  in  view  its  protection.  At  that  time  it  was  but 
little  used.  A  few  years  afterward  the  wooden  shield  insulator 
was  again  introduced  with  improvements  of  different  kinds. 
Fig.  46  represents  the  most  improved  form,  which  is  known  as 
the  Wade  insulator,  having  been  gotten  up  and  extensively  used 
on  the  lines  in  the  Northwest  under  the  direction  of  Mr.  J.  H. 


Fig.  46. 


Fig.  47. 


FRENCH    INSULATORS. 


549 


"Wade.  It  is  considered  the  best  insulator  used  on  the  Ameri- 
can lines.  It  is  cheap  and  very  durable.  Fig.  46  is  a  sectional 
view  of  the  different  parts.  A  is  a  wooden  pin  one  and  a  quar- 
ter inches  in  diameter,  saturated  with  coal  tar  and  pitch ;  B 
is  the  glass,  four  and  one  half  inches  long  and  two  and  one 
quarter  inches  in  diameter  outside ;  c  is  a  wooden  shield  four 
and  one  half  inches  in  diameter  outside,  and  six  and  one  half 
inches  long,  saturated  with  coal  tar  and  pitch.  D  is  a  groove 
turned  around  the  shield  for  a  tie  wire,  with  which  the  line  wire 
is  fastened.  Fig.  47  represents  the  arrangement  of  this  insulator 
on  the  pole  by  a  wooden  pin,  on  cross  beams  or  by  a  bracket. 

Fig.  48  represents  a  similar  insulator,  Fi    48 

manufactured  by  Messrs.  Chester,  of 
New- York  city,  p  is  the  post ;  B  the 
bracket ;  s  the  wooden  shield,  and  G 
the  glass.  The  manner  of  fastening  to 
the  post  is  shown  by  the  figure. 

The  Wade  insulator  is  used  extensive- 
ly on  the  telegraph  lines  in  the  North- 
west, and  it  is  believed  by  those  who 
have  tried  it,  to  have  many  advantages 
over  all  others.  The  wooden  shield, 
when  dry,  is  a  non-conductor,  and  when 
painted  or  saturated  with  coal  tar  it 
remains  dry.  The  glass  is  protected 
and  seldom  breaks.  It  is  strong,  and  is 
calculated  to  give  long  service.  Mr. 
Wade  has  had  great  experience  in  tele- 
graphing, and  he  has  tried  many  kinds 
of  insulators  on  his  lines,  and  he  is  of 
opinion  that  this  insulator  has  proved 
to  be  more  perfect  than  any  other  heretofore  employed  on  the 
American  telegraphs.  Expert  telegraphers  concur  in  the  above 
opinion. 

Porcelain  and  earthenware  insulators  have  not  been  used  on 
the  American  lines.  Baked  clay,  enamelled,  was  tried,  but 
the  vibrations  of  the  wire  soon  wore  through  the  enamel  and 
the  porous  clay  absorbed  water,  and  they  then  served  as  con- 
ductors. Nothing  but  the  materials  herein  stated  have  been 
found  to  answer  the  purposes  of  insulation. 

FRENCH  TELEGRAPH  INSULATORS. 

On  the  French  telegraph  lines  the  bell-shaped  insulator  has 
been  in  general  use.  Figs.  49  and  50  represent  this  insulator. 
In  fig.  49  a  side  and  front  view  is  given  as  it  is  fastened  to  the 
pole.  Fig.  50  are  sectional  views  of  the  same.  It  is  made  of 


550 


TELEGRAPH  INSULATION. 


Fig.   49. 


porcelain  or  glass,  and  it  is  moulded  with  two  side  pieces  or 
ears,  through  each  of  which  is  a  hole  traversed  by  a  screw 
about  three  inches  long,  which  fastens  the  insulator  to  the  post. 
The  line  wire  is  held  by  the  hook  suspended  from  the  interior 
of  the  bell.  The  iron  hook  is  fastened  by  sulphur  into  the 
highest  part  of  the  cavity,  as  seen  in  fig.  50. 

Fig.  51  represents  an  insulator  used  on  the  early  lines  in 
France.  A  slot  was  made  in  the  insulator,  in  which  was  placed 
the  line  wire,  and  then  the  insulator  was  fastened  to  the  post. 
Fig.  52  represents  another  form,  through  which  there  was  a 
hole  for  the  line  wire.  It  had  to  be  threaded  on  the  wire  and 
then  fastened  to  the  post  as  seen  in  the  figure.  This  was 


Fig.  61. 


Fig.  52. 


Fig.  54. 


called  the  ring  or  eye  insulator.  They  have  been  considered 
as  inferior  to  the  bell  form,  and  are  only  used  at  obtuse  angles 
on  the  line.  On  the  lines  examined  by  me  in  France,  I  saw 
but  few  of  these  insulators  in  use.  Fig.  53  is  another  form  of 
insulation.  The  line  wire  is  fastened  to  the  bell-formed  porce- 
lain by  being  wound  around  it  and  tied  by  another  wire.  Each 
bell  or  porcelain  insulator  is  fastened  to  an  iron  arm  with 
cement.  Fig.  54  represents  another  form.  The  line  wire  is 
wound  around  the  grooved  drum  or  cylinder. 

The  insulator  most  commcn  in  France  is  that  represented  by 
fig.  49.     They  are  fastened  on  each  side  of  the  pole.     I  have 


THE  SARDINIAN  INSULATOR. 


551 


seen  as  many  as  twelve  wires  on  the  same  line  of  poles.  They 
were  but  a  few  inches  apart.  In  the  working  of  these  wires 
no  difficulties  were  experienced.  It  must  be  borne  in  mind 
that  in  France  the  battery  current  is  not  constantly  on  the  line. 
If  the  wires  were  continually  charged,  as  they  are  in  America, 
it  is  possible,  and  very  probable  that  the  wires  arranged  as  above 
described,  would  be  more  or  less  subjected  to  cross  or  induced 
currents  as  experienced  on  many  of  the  duplicate  wire  lines 
of  America. 

THE   SARDINIAN  INSULATOR. 

Fig.  55  represents  the  insulation  now  used  on  the  Sardinian 
telegraph  lines.  It  is  made  of  glass,  earthenware,  or  porcelain, 
generally,  however,  of  the  latter.  It  is  made  with  a  circular 
groove  around  its  middle,  in  which  Pig  55 

is  placed  an  iron  clamp,  and  the  i 

clamp  or  staple  is  fastened  to  a  per- 
pendicular wooden  beam.  An  iron 
hook,  in  which  is  fastened  the  line 
wire,  is  cemented  to  the  interior  of 
the  porcelain.  This  hook,  enlarged, 
is  represented  by  the  letter  A  to  the 
right  and  at  the  top  of  the  figure. 
To  this  hook  is  attached  a  binding 
screw,  which  holds  the  line  wire. 
The  perpendicular  beams  are  fast- 
ened to  the  posts  above  and  below 
with  iron  bolts,  fastening  between 
the  beam  and  the  post  large  porce- 
lain cylinders,  as  seen  in  the  figure. 
By  this  arrangement  it  is  intended 
to  have  a  double  insulation,  and  I 
have  been  informed  that  it  fully 
accomplishes  the  end  contemplated. 
In  order  to  further  perfect  this  in- 
sulation, it  is  proposed  to  place  over 
the  porcelain  a  cap  to  serve  as  a  roof.  Each  pole  has  its  top 
covered  with  a  wooden  or  zinc  cap,  and  to  each  too  is  attached 
a  lightning  rod  as  seen  in  the  figure.  It  consists  of  a  large 
iron  wire,  made  sharp  at  top  and  extending  above  the  post 
about  six  inches.  It  is  conducted  down  the  post  into  the  earth. 
Lightning  rods  similar  to  the  above  are  also  used  upon  some  of 
the  lines  in  Holland.  The  extent  of  their  usefulness  has  not 
yet  been  determined.  The  earth  connections  have  been  fre- 
quently found  to  be  imperfect.  If  the  rods  be  connected  with 


552 


TELEGRAPH  INSULATION. 


moist  earth,  commensurate  with  their  conduct  ibility,  there  can 
be  no  doubt  as  to  their  efficiency  in  preserving  the  line  from 
much,  if  not  all  of  the  annoyance  resulting  from  atmospheric 
electricity. 

THE  BAVARIAN  INSULATOR. 

Fig.  56  represents  the  insulator  used 
on  the  Bavarian  lines.  It  is  a  glass  bell, 
fitted  and  cemented  to  an  iron  arm, 
which  is  screwed  to  the  post  as  seen,  in 
the  figure.  To  the  top  of  the  glass  is 
cemented,  in  small  openings,  two  cast- 
iron  projections,  through  which  are  two 
holes.  The  line  wire  is  laid  on  the  top 
of  the  glass  between  the  iron  projections, 
and  then  two  wedges  are  driven  through 
the  holes  in  opposite  directions,  which 
securely  binds  the  wire  and  prevents  it 
from  moving  upon  the  insulator.  The 
iron  arms  are  fastened  on  the  sides  of 
___  the  post.  Sometimes  one  bolt,  with 
nuts  at  each  end,  fasten  an  arm  on  each  side,  but  the  metallic 
connection  between  the  two  arms  might  prove  to  be  disadvan- 
tageous to  the  working  of  the  line.  In  damp  weather  cross 
currents  will  pass  from  one  wire  to  the  other. 


THE  HOLLAND  INSULATOR. 


Fig.  57. 


On  the  line  from  Amsterdam 
to  the  Hague,  in  Holland,  is 
used  the  insulator  represented 
by  fig.  57.  It  is  made  of  glass, 
with  an  iron  bolt  cemented  at 
the  top  and  fastened  to  a  cross- 
beam by  a  nut  screwed  to  the 
upper  end  of  the  bolt.  To  the 
interior  is  cemented  an  iron  pen- 
dant for  supporting  the  wire. 
This  insulator  has  proved  its 
usefulness. 


THE  BADEN  INSULATOR. 


The  insulator  represented  by  fig.  58  is  used  on  the  Baden 
lines,  extending  from  Manheim  on  the  Rhine,  via  Carlsruhe  to 
Kehl  and  Strasbourg.  The  insulator  is  composed  of  earthen- 
ware, cemented  on  the  top  of  the  pole  by  plaster-of-paris,  as 


AUSTRIAN  AND  PRUSSIAN  INSULATORS. 


553 


seen  by  the  sectional  fig.  58.    The  Fig-  58. 

wire  is  twisted  around  the  neck 
of  the  cap.  When  more  than  one 
wire  is  used  on  the  route,  the  in- 
sulators are  fixed  to  brackets  or 
iron  arms. 

On  the  line  from  Frankfort  to 
Castel,  opposite  Mayence,  I  no- 
ticed, in  1854,  the  wire  was  insu- 
lated with  a  covering  of  india-rubber,  fixed  in  a  notch  at  each 
pole.  Over  the  notch  was  fastened  a  piece  of  tin  to  serve  as 
a  roof. 

THE  AUSTRIAN  AND  PRUSSIAN  INSULATORS. 

Fig.  59  represents  an  insulator  used  on  some  of  the  Austrian 
lines.  The  post  T  is  tapered  to  a  point  c,  about  two  inches  in 
diameter  at  top,  and  the  tapered  part  above  c  is  about  six  inches 
long.  A  porcelain  cap  or  inverted  cup  is  fitted  to  the  tapered 
end.  On  the  top  of  the  cap  at  e  there  is  a  small  groove  or  hole 
#,  in  which  the  conducting  wire  b  b  is  fastened. 

Fig.  60. 


The  Prussian  telegraph  lines  are  remarkable  for  their  perfec- 
tion as  to  construction,  and  particularly  in  regard  to  the  effi- 
ciency of  their  insulation.  Fig.  60  represents  the  mode  of 
insulating  heretofore  employed  on  many  of  the  lines  in  Prus- 
sia and  Hanover.  The  cap  is  made  of  porcelain,  four  and  one 
half  inches  high,  three  and  one  half  inches  wide  below,  and 
one  half  an  inch  thick.  These  caps  are  fitted  to  iron  arms  as 


554 


TELEGRAPH  INSULATION. 


seen  in  the  figure,  and  the  line  wire  is  fastened  to  the  cone 
with  tie  wires.  On  the  top  of  the  pole  is  fitted  an  iron  or 
earthen  covering,  through  which  projects  the  iron  pin  for  the 
upper  insulator.  In  its  use  it  has  proved  to  be  a  good  insulator, 
though  the  porcelain  is  very  liable  to  be  broken.  When  the 
insulating  cap  breaks,  the  wire  remains  suspended  to  the  iron 
arm,  and  during  wet  weather  the  line  is  interrupted  in  its 
working.  These  annoyances  have  been  frequent,  and  to 
remedy  them  other  contrivances  have  been  invented. 

SEIMENS  AND  HALSKIE*S  RUSSIAN  INSULATOR. 

Until  the  year  1852,  the  insulators  used  on  the  continent 
were  made  of  glass,  porcelain,  or  burnt  clay.  At  that  time 
Messrs.  Seimens  &  Halskie  proposed  the  bell-shaped  insulator, 
protected  by  an  iron  shield.  Those  then  in  use  were  fragile 
and  easily  broken,  even  after  they  had  been  placed  upon  the 
poles.  Many  of  them  would  crack  and  absorb  water,  which 
gave  a  conductor  for  the  electric  current,  the  means  of  passing 
from  the  wire  to  the  earth,  or  to  the  next  wire  on  the  same 
line  of  poles.  These  cross  currents  were  very  great  hinderances 
to  the  successful  working  of  the  lines,  and  it  naturally  became 

Fig.  61. 


a  matter  of  very  great  importance  to  remedy  the  evil  with  all 
the  speed  possible.  To  this  end  Messrs.  Seimens  &  Halskie, 
gentlemen  distinguished  for  their  great  telegraphic  skill,  applied 
their  ingenious  minds  to  the  perfection  of  an  insulator  that 
would  more  substantially  subserve  the  purposes  of  the  tele- 
graphic service.  After  various  improvements  in  the  form  and 
insulating  properties  of  materials,  and  their  combinations,  those 


SEIMENS  AND  HALSKIE7S  INSULATOR. 


555 


hereinafter  mentioned  were  tried  and  proved  eminently  suc- 
cessful. It  has  been  estimated  that  at  least  twenty-five  per 
cent,  of  the  former  insulators  had  to  be  annually  renewed.  This 
breakage  occasioned  not  only  a  great  Fig.  32. 

expense  for  their  replacement  with  new 
insulators,  but  heavy  losses  were  sus- 
tained by  the  lines  not  being  able  to 
transmit  the  necessary  business  of  the 
government,  nor  that  which  was  offered 
on  commercial  affairs. 

Fig.  61  represents  the  common  in- 
sulator now  used  on  the  Prussian  and 
Russian  telegraph  lines.  Letter  G  is 
a  cast  iron  body,  p  is  the  china,  glass 
or  porcelain  insulator  fitted  into  the 
iron  bell.  D  is  the  wire  supporter 
fastened  into  the  insulating  material. 
The  insulator  p,  and  the  iron  supporter 

Fig.  63. 


\ 


o 


D,  are  fastened  in  their  respective  places  by  a  mixture  of  sul- 
phur and  colcathar,  which  makes  a  good  cement,  and  firmly 
binds  the  respective  parts  to  each  other.  The  three  views, 
figs.  61  and  62,  are  sufficient  to  represent  its  construction 


556 


TELEGRAPH  INSULATION. 


without  further  explanation.     Fig.  62  represents  the  top  view 
and  the  curvature  that  fits  to  the  post.     The  nail  or  screw  holes 
Fig.  64.  are  marked  by  the  dotted  lines.     Be- 

sides this  form  of  insulator,  another  is 
employed  for  holding  the  wire  taut 
upon  the  poles.  Fig.  63  represents 
the  contrivance,  commonly  known  as 
a  SpankofT,  or  tightening  apparatus. 
The  figs.  61  and  62  are  the  same  in  form 
and  make,  excepting  the  wire  sup- 
port D  of  fig.  63  has  the  klemmhacken, 
B  B.  The  wire  is  drawn  taut,  and 
then  B  B  holds  it  tight  and  does  not 
permit  it  to  slip  through  or  become 
loose  or  sagging.  If  the  wire  is  cut 
between  two  of  these  insulators,  it  can 
only  be  slack  for  that  particular  section, 
and  it  does  not  extend  to  the  sections  beyond  the  spankofFs. 
They  are  usually  placed  on  the  line,  one  for  each  half  mile,  and 
sometimes  at  a  less  distance. 

I  have  seen  these  insulators  on  the  Grerman  and  Russian  lines, 
and  wherever  they  have  been  employed  the  telegraph  worked 
with  the  most  complete  success  so  far  as  pertained  to  the  insu- 
lation. The  glass  p,  securely  insulates  the  iron  supporter  D, 
from  the  cast-iron  bell  G,  and  the  flange  mouths  of  G  and  p 
prevent  the  collection  of  water  whether  in  times  of  rain  or  of 
fog. 

Fig.  64  represents  the  top  view  and  the  curvature  that  fits 
to  the  post.  The  nail  or  screw  holes  are  also  shown. 

This  insulator  has  proved  to  be  the  most  perfect  as  to  insu- 
lation and  permanency  used  on  the  continental  telegraph  lines. 
It  cannot  be  broken  from  the  post,  and  it  is  capable  of  sus- 
taining a  far  greater  weight  than  the  wire  which  it  suspends. 
It  is  used  on  the  Russian  lines,  and  comports  fully  with  the 
otherwise  substantial  structure  of  those  northern  telegraphs. 

THE  HINDOSTAN  INSULATOR. 

On  the  Hindostan  lines,  Dr.  O'Shaughnessy,  Surgeon  of  the 
Royal  Bengal  army,  adopted  a  novel  process  of  insulation, 
peculiarly  applicable  to  the  lines  of  that  country. 

The  post  is  tapered  so  as  to  be  two  and  a  half  inches  in 
diameter  at  the  small  end,  and  three  inches  in  diameter  at 
seven  inches  from  the  top.  The  wood  is  to  be  roughened  with 
a  chisel  so  as  to  hold  the  cement  by  which  the  cap  is  to  be 
attached. 


THE  HINDOSTAN  INSULATOR.  557 

The  cap  is  of  wrought  iron,  galvanized,  eight  and  a  half 
inches  high,  ten  and  a  half  inches  in  circumference  above, 
twelve  and  a  half  inches  in  circumference  below,  its  lower 
edge  or  rim  everted  to  thirteen  and  a  half  inches,  closed  above, 
and  perforated  to  permit  the  passage  of  a  screw  bolt  four  inches 
long  and  one  half  inch  in  diameter.  Two  strong  metal  studs, 
three  fourths  of  an  inch  in  diameter,  and  one  inch  long  are 
riveted  on  the  cap,  one  at  each  side  of  the  screw,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  preventing  lateral  motion  of  the  bracket  to  be  afterward 
applied. 

The  cap  being  inverted,  the  cement  is  thus  applied.  Three 
parts,  by  weight  of  fine,  clean  and  perfectly  dry  sand,  with 
one  part  by  weight  of  the  best  pine  rosin,  are  melted  in  an  iron 
pot  and  well  incorporated  by  stirring.  The  consistence  should 
be  that  of  thick  mud.  Enough  of  this  cement  to  occupy  half 
an  inch  of  the  cap  should  be  poured  in  and  allowed  to  cool, 
which  takes  about  five  minutes. 

The  post  is  now  inverted,  and  its  small  end  placed  on  the 
hardened  cement,  so  that  a  clear  space  of  half  an  inch  remains 
between  the  wood  and  the  cap  all  round.  Melted  cement  is 
now  poured  in  so  as  to  fill  this  space  up  to  the  brim  As 
the  cement  cools,  it  contracts  slightly,  so  as  to  become  concave. 
The  post  must  be  kept  perfectly  steady  while  the  cement  is 
cooling  and  setting,  which  occupies  about  five  minutes.  It  is 
now  ready  to  receive  the  bracket. 

The  quantity  of  cement  used  for  each  cap  is  one  pound  four- 
teen ounces. 

Fig.  65.  Fig.  66. 


The  bracket  (fig.  66)  is  of  oak,  eleven  inches  long,  four 
broad  and  three  deep,  perforated  in  the  centre  for  the  passage 
of  the  cap  screw,  also  perforated  at  one  and  a  half  inches  from 
the  end  for  the  passage  of  the  binding  screws  for  the  attach- 
ment of  the  iron  rods,  and  having  on  its  lower  surface  two 
cavities,  one  inch  deep,  three  fourths  inch  wide,  to  r  ceive  the 
studs  of  the  cap.  On  the  upper  surface  a  circular  hollow  is 
sunk  at  each  end,  one  half  inch  deep  and  one  and  one  half 
inch  in  diameter,  to  receive  the  necks  of  the  porcelain  insulators, 
subsequently  described. 


558  TELEGRAPH  INSULATION. 

The  bracket  is  now  placed  on  the  cap  so  that  the  studs  sink 
into  the  holes  to  receive  them,  and  the  nut  is  firmly  screwed, 
down  so  as  to  countersink  in  the  substance  of  the  bracket. 

The  post  is  now  ready  to  be  mounted  in  the  screw  pile ;  but 
it  is  more  convenient  to  describe  in  this  place  the  application 
of  the  insulators  to  be  used  on  the  final  completion  of  the  double 
line. 

Fig.  67  Fig.  68. 


The  insulators,  (fig.  68)  are  of  brown  stoneware,  glazed,  and 
consist  of  two  pieces.  The  larger,  of  the  form  shown  in  sec- 
tion in  the  cut,  is  three  inches  high,  including  the  neck  ;  two 
and  one  half  inches  in  diameter  above ;  the  neck  one  and  one 
half  inches  diameter,  perforated  vertically  to  allow  the  passage 
of  a  half-inch  screw,  traversed  by  a  groove  three  fourths  of  an 
inch  wide  and  one  inch  deep,  to  receive  the  telegraph  rod,  and 
hollowed  out  internally,  so  that  after  it  is  in  it's  place,  and  its 
binding  screw  secured,  the  cavity  may  be  filled  with  the  melted 
cement  previously  described. 

The  insulators  are  placed  in  the  brackets  as  shown,  and  their 
binding  screws  put  in  loose,  ready  to  be  used  when  the  line 
rods  are  set  in  their  position. 

The  line  binding  screws  are  five  inches  long,  of  one  half 
inch  iron,  galvanized.  They  clasp  the  lines  securely  in  their 
place. 

These  insulators  are  not,  however,  to  be  used  on  the  line  in 
the  second  stage.  This,  it  is  to  be  remembered,  affects  only 
the  erection  of  a  single  line,  for  which  the  metal  cap  insulator 
is  sufficient ;  but  in  this  case  the  bracket  requires  to  be  sur- 
mounted by  a  piece  of  wood  two  inches  thick,  fastened  by 
screws,  and  grooved  on  its  surface.  Into  this  groove,  precisely 
over  the  centre  of  the  post,  the  line  rod  is  placed.  It  requires 
no  binding  screw  in  this  stage  of  the  operations,  but  a  second 
piece  of  wood  should  be  cleated  down  on  the  first  after  the  rod 
has  been  placed. 


MANNER  OF  TIGHTENING  WIRES  IN  ASIA.  559 


TIGHTENING  THE  WIRES  IN  ASIA. 

As  a  part  of  the  insulating  appliance,  I  will  here  explain  the 
manner  of  tightening  wires  on  the  Asiatic,  European,  and 
African  telegraphs.  That  of  the  latter,  however,  is  the  same 
as  adopted  in  France. 

On  the  Hindostan  lines  the  following  is  the  process  adopted 
for  tightening  the  wires  : 

Whenever  a  strong  tree  is  available,  it 
can  be  made  use  of  in  the  straining  ope- 
ration, if  it  be  necessary  to  strain  on  one 
of  the  line-posts,  four  strong  props  should 
previously  be  applied,  to  prevent  its  being 
drawn  out  of  the  ground.  The  post  is  on 
no  account  to  be  notched  for  the  props,  but 
a  cast-iron  clamp  is  to  be  screwed  round 
the  post,  against  which  the  props  may  lean. 
A  post,  the  collar,  and  two  of  the  props, 
are  shown  in  the  accompanying  cut,  fig.  69. 

The  operation  of  straining  is  very  greatly  facilitated  by  the 
use  of  temporary  intermediate  props.  As  the  flying  line  will 
afford  a  large  supply  of  bamboos  or  other  light  timber,  these 
may  be  used  crossed,  like  "shears,"  or  the  supports  of  lines  for 
drying  linen.  The  greater  the  number  of  these  employed, 
the  easier  is  the  straining,  and  the  less  is  this  liable  to  injure 
or  dislocate  the  permanent  posts. 

When  required,  it  is  best  performed  by  the  erection  of  a 
temporary  but  very  substantial  straining  post  of  saul  or  teak 
timber,  seven  or  eight  inches  square.  One  of  these,  placed  on 
a  truck  with  four  wheels,  should  accompany  each  party.  The 
beam  is  twenty-two  to  twenty-four  feet  high,  shod  by  a  screw 
pile  six  feet  long,  and  has  two  grooves  at  top  four  inches  deep, 
to  receive  loosely  two  double-eye  bolts,  each  twelve  inches  long, 
of  half-inch  galvanized  iron.  The  post  is  erected  under  the 
lines  at  a  place  convenient  for  the  erection  of  the  scaffolding, 
and  at  the  lowest  part  of  the  line  to  be  braced  up.  The  post 
is  screwed  six  feet  in  the  ground,  and  its  top  rises  between  the 
two  line  rods,  which  are  then  firmly  clamped  to  the  post  by 
two  powerful  screws,  which  pass  through  it  from  side  to  side. 
The  screw  clamps  are  four  inches  apart,  and  a  wedge  of  iron 
is  driven  in  between  to  aid  in  preventing  the  slipping  of  the  rod. 

A  platform  or  scaffold  of  loose  poles  and  boards  is  now  erected 
about  the  post  to  support  the  workmen  and  the  straining 
apparatus.  The  post  rises  above  and  between  the  rods  to  the 
height  which  the  line  is  to  be  when  braced  tight  up. 


560 


TELEGRAPH  INSULATION. 


A  straining  screw  and  vice,  shown  in  detail  in  the  cut,  fig. 
70,  are  now  secured  on  the  post  below  the  eye-bolts  by  the  iron 
arm,  and  both  line  rods  are  seized  in  the  jaws  of  the  double 
vice,  which  is  then  screwed  up  by  the  winch,  thus  bracing  the 
wires  two  feet.  The  jaws  of  the  stationary  vice,  through  which, 
previously  loosened,  the  rods  have  moved  freely,  are  now  tightly 
screwed  together,  so  as  to  retain  the  rods  while  the  main  screw 
and  moveable  vice  are  loosened  and  returned  for  another  journey. 

Fig.  70. 


The  portions  of  the  rods  between  the  moveable  arm  and  the 
post  are  now  in  loose  loops  between  the  post  clamps  and  the 
stationary  vice.  By  relaxing  one  of  the  post  side-screws,  the 
loop  may  be  brought  up  so  that  it  can  be  cut  in  the  centre 
between  the  side-screws,  and  each  end  be  passed  through  the 
eye-bolt  resting  on  the  groove  at  the  top  of  the  post. 

A  second  journey  of  the  bracing  screw  should  now  be  made, 
the  portion  of  the  rod  gained  secured,  and  the  apparatus  turned 
in  the  opposite  direction  to  strain  on  the  other  side.  This 
alternate  straining  should  be  carried  on  till  the  line  is  braced, 
so  that  the  lowest  part  subject  to  the  strain  shall  be  sixteen 
feet  clear  above  the  ground. 

Temporary  props  being  now  placed  under  the  lines  near  the 
straining  post,  this  is  removed.  The  ends  of  the  rods  are 
turned  into  hooks  on  the  eye-bolts,  and  an  ingot  of  zinc  is  care- 
fully cast  over  each  hook,  in  the  manner  already  pointed  out. 

The  temporary  props  and  scaffolding  are  now  to  be  taken 
away.  This  straining  operation  is  to  be  performed  as  sparingly 
as  possible.  Moderate  curves  on  the  line  are  not  objectionable. 
All  that  straining  is  required  for  is  to  elevate  the  lowest  part 
above  sixteen  feet  from  the  ground.  The  application  of  the 
straining  apparatus  once  in  a  mile  will  be  amply  sufficient.  • 


TIGHTENING  WIRES  IN  ENGLAND.  561 

During  the  straining,  men  should  look  carefully  along  the 
posts,  half  a  mile  at  least  at  each  side,  to  prevent  any  locking 
of  the  rods  on  the  insulators,  or  distortion  of  the  brackets  and 
caps.  When  the  bracing  is  complete,  the  screw  bolts  on  the 
insulating  caps  should  be  screwed  tightly  up,  and  melted 
cement  poured  into  the  cavity  ;  finally,  a  layer  of  cement  one 
inch  thick  should  be  poured  all  over  the  top  of  the  bracket. 

TIGHTENING  WIRES  IN  ENGLAND. 

On  the  English  telegraph  lines  the  wires  are  tightened  at 
winding  posts  placed  at  convenient  distances,  usually  about  a 
half  mile  apart.  An  iron  bolt  passes  through  the  post,  but 
clear  of  the  wood,  having  at  each  end  a  winder,  as  shown  in 
the  figure,  consisting  of  a  grooved  drum  with  a  wheel  and 
ratchet  attached.  The  winder  heads  are  kept  away  from  the 
posts  by  earthen  collars,  through  which  the  bolt  passes.  The 
winder  and  bolt  being  of  galvanized  iron,  constitute  a  continu- 
ation of  the  metal  circuit,  and  the  current  passes  on  through 
them,  as  shown  in  the  upper  wire.  But  as  the  joints  of  the 
winder  may  corrode  or  form  bad  contacts,  and  as  dust  may 

Fig.  71. 


accumulate  round  the  collars  and  form  a  receptacle  for  water, 
it  has  been  found  better  to  use  the  winder  merely  as  a  winder ; 
to  insulate  it  altogether  from  the  wire ;  and  to  provide  a  side 
path  to  take  the  current  onward  from  one  side  of  the  post  to 
the  other.  This  plan  is  shown  in  the  second  wire.  The  pulley, 
like  appendage,  or,  as  it  is  called,  the  shackle,  consists  of  an 
earthen  ring  furnished  with  two  hooks ;  the  connections  of  one 

36 


562  TELEGRAPH  INSULATION. 

of  which  pass  round  the  ring,  and  those  of  the  otner  through 
its  centre,  so  that  the  hooks  are  effectually  insulated  from  each 
other,  and  no  current  can  pass  from  one  to  the  other.  The 
wire  is  cut,  and  the  shackles  are  inserted  one  on  each  side  of 
the  post,  so  that  the  post  is  now  doubly  cut  out  of  the  circuit. 
A  thin  wire  is  then  soldered  over  from  the  outside  of  each 
shackle,  and  along  this  wire  the  current  can  pass.  The  posts 
are  placed  at  every  quarter  of  a  mile.  Half  the  number  of 
wires  are  wound  at  each  post,  and  the  other  half  pass  on  to 
the  next,  being  sustained  on  this  post  as  they  pass  by  an  arm 
at  the  back.  Each  wire,  therefore,  is  wound  in  half  mile 
lengths.  The  lengths  are  made  up  of  pieces  of  wire  looped 
and  bolted  together,  with  a  short  wire  soldered  over  the  joint. 
Similar  apparatus  is  used  at  bridges  and  tunnels  ;  but  is  sup- 
ported by  the  masonry  instead  of  by  standard  poles.  The 
points,  visible  above,  are  connected  with  the  earth  by  a  wire  to 
protect  the  poles  from  lightning. 

TIGHTENING  THE  WIRES  IN  FRANCE. 

The  winding  apparatus  used  on  the  French  lines  is  repre- 
sented by  figs.  72  and  73.  The  latter  is  a  porcelain  or  earthen- 
ware support  fastened  to  the  post.  The  section  to  the  left  is  a 
front  view  showing  the  screw  heads  and  the  cross-bar  run 

Fig.  72. 


Fig.  73. 


through  it.  The  section  to  the  right  is  a  side  view  and,  the 
lower  part  shows  the  oblong  opening  for  the  cross-bar  seen  ex- 
tending through  the  section  on  the  left.  The  lower  part  of 
the  section  to  the  right  is  imperfect.  Fig.  72  represents  the 
metallic  binding  apparatus.  At  each  end  is  a  revolving  drum, 
with  a  ratchet  attachment.  The  section  to  the  right  has  two 


TIGHTENING  WIRES  IN  FRANCE.  563 

iron  arms  or  bars  ;  the  one  to  the  left  has  hut  one.  The  two 
sections  are  made  in  separate  pieces,  and  are  united  by  fitting 
the  arm  of  the  section  to  the  left  between  the  two  arms  of  the 
section  to  the  right.  They  are  held  fast  by  cross-pins,  keys,  or 
screw-bolts.  These  arms  are  fitted  through  the  oblong  hole 
seen  in  the  sections  of  fig.  73.  The  line  wire  is  attached  to 
the  respective  drums  at  the  ends  of  fig.  72.  A  crank  is  ap- 
plied to  the  projecting  heads  of  the  drums,  and  the  wire  is 
then  wound  around  them,  and  the  ratchet  catch  holds  the  drum, 
preventing  it  from  turning  back.  The  voltaic  current  is  con- 
ducted from  wire  to  wire  through  the  iron  work  of  the  figure. 

In  order,  however,  to  make  the  circuit  more  reliable,  some- 
times a  wire  is  run  from  one  side  to  the  other,  as  seen  in  fig. 
71.  There  are  other  contrivances  used  in  Europe  for  the 
tightening  of  wires,  but  sufficient  has  already  been  given  to 
explain  the  mode,  the  objects  and  purposes  of  this  process  in 
telegraphing. 

On  the  Grerman  lines,  a  similar  contrivance  has  been  used 
for  the  tightening  of  the  wires.  The  mechanisms  for  tighten- 
ing the  wires  have  generally  been  disconnected  from  the  line, 
only  applied  for  the  special  purpose  at  the  special  time. 


PARATONNERRE,  OR  LIGHTNING  ARRESTER 


CHAPTEB    XL. 

Lightning  on  the  Telegraph — Highton's  Paratonnerre — Reid's  American  Para- 
tonnerre — Various  Apparatuses  on  American  lines — Attachment  of  Para- 
tonnerres  at  River  Crossings — Incidents  of  Lightning  striking  the  Line — 
Steinheil's,  Fardley's,  Meisner's,  Nottebohn's,  Breguet's,  the  French,  and 
Walker's  Paratonnerres. 

LIGHTNING    INTERRUPTING    THE    TELEGRAPH. 

EARLY  after  the  establishment  of  the  electric  telegraph,  its 
operation  was  found  to  be  materially  interfered  with  by  atmo- 
spheric electricity.  So  great  and  so  frequent  were  the  inter- 
ruptions that  it  commanded  at  once  the  study  of  the  ingenious 
telegrapher  to  devise  an  efficient  remedy  for  the  serious  evil. 
In  Europe  contrivances  were  invented  and  successfully  applied. 
The  rapid  spread  of  the  American  lines  presented  opportunities 
for  witnessing  the  effect  of  atmospheric  electricity  in  different 
latitudes  and  longitudes.  Lines  traversing  several  hundred 
miles,  north  and  south,  were  subjected  to  repeated  and  almost 
constant  interruptions.  The  adjustment  of  the  apparatus  had 
to  be  changed  from  moment  to  moment.  In  the  transmission 
of  a  word,  it  was  qurfe  common  to  change  the  adjustment  for 
each  letter.  The  hand  had  to  be  on  the  adjusting  screw  nearly 
all  the  time.  In  some  seasons  such  impediments  are  experienced 
at  the  present  day,  and  it  is  not  supposed  to  be  possible  to 
overcome  the  difficulties  in  question.  The  sudden  charge  of 
the  wires  with  electricity,  commonly  termed  lightning,  fre- 
quently proves  to  be  of  serious  consequence  not  only  in  the 
working  of  telegraph  lines,  but  also  in  its  destruction.  It  has 
been  very  destructive  to  the  apparatus,  sometimes  totally 
destroying  it,  and  at  other  times  it  has  temporarily  rendered 
ineffective  the  electro-magnet. 

In  America,  the  lightning  has  been  more  fatal  with  the 
telegraph  lines  than  has  been  experienced  in  Europe.  In 

564 


LIGHTNING    AND    THE    TELEGRAPH. 


565 


England  it  has  been  occasionally  very  destructive,  and  many 
of  the  wire  coils  or  bobbins  have  been  torn  to  pieces  by  it. 

Among  other  circumstances,  Mr.  Highton,  a  distinguished 
telegraph  electrician,  has  related  the  following  : 

The  lightning  struck  the  line,  and  traversed  it  through  one 
of  the  stations,  and  in  its  passage  it  did  considerable  damage, 
and  especially  to  the  telegraph  instrument  at  the  station,  fusing 
some  of  the  metal  work  therein.  It  thence  proceeded  by  the 
telegraph  wires  to  the  ground  at  the  next  station,  Thrapston,  a 
distance  of  more  than  eight  miles.  At  this  station  also  con- 
siderable damage  was  done  to  the  telegraph  instrument ; 
several  of  the  wires,  and  some  of  the  metal- work,  were  fused. 


Fig.  i. 


Fig.  2. 


Fig.  1  is  a  top  view  of  part  of  the  telegraph  apparatus  at  the 
Oundle  station  of  the  London  and  Northwestern  Railway. 
The  strips  of  brass  G  and  H  were  in  metallic  communication 
with  the  wires  on  the  line.  The  strip  K  was  in  communica- 
tion with  the  ground  at  Oundle.  The  strips  G  and  H  were 
separated  from  K  by  an  interval  of  about  one-tenth  of  an 
inch.  A  flash  of  lightning  was  intercepted  by  the  wires  on 
the  line,  and  conveyed  to  this  point ;  but,  although  the  strips 
G  and  H  had  metallic  communication  with  the  earth  at 
Thrapston  and  Peterborough,  yet  the  resistance  offered  to  the 
discharge  along  these  directions  was  such  as  to  cause  a  large 
portion  of  the  electric  fluid  to  shoot  through  the  interval 
between  G  K  and  H  K,  and  to  fuse  the  metals,  and  produce 
the  effects  shown  at  G,  H,  i,  and  K.  The  upper  bridge-strip 
i,  K,  and  the  portion  of  H  under  it,  have  both  been  melted, 
and  are  now  firmly  united  together  by  the  molten  metal.  The 
strip  G  had  its  surface  fused,  and  the  strip  i  was  melted  also. 
The  wood  is  scorched  from  L  to  M.  There  is  also  a  melted 
spot  at  N,  on  which  another  portion  of  the  apparatus  rested. 


566  PARATONNERRE,    OR    LIGHTNING    ARRESTER. 

Fig.  2  is  a  front  view  of  one  of  the  coils  of  the  telegraph 
instrument  at  the  Thrapston  station  of  the  London  and  North- 
western Railway. 

This  coil  was  burnt  and  fused  on  the  1st  of  August,  1846, 
by  the  same  flash  of  lightning  which  damaged  the  apparatus 
shown  in  fig.  1,  although  it  was  more  than  eight  miles  distant 
therefrom !  The  lightning  was  conveyed  along  the  wires  of 
the  telegraph.  The  small  wires  in  this  coil  were  fused  together, 
and  the  silk  and  cotton  burnt  off,  as  shown  at  L  and  M. 

Fig.  3  is  a  back  view  of  the  other  coil  in  the  telegraph  instru- 
ment at  the  Thrapston  station.  Damages  similar  to  that  in 
.fig.  2,  will  be  observed  at  N  and  o.  The  fine  wires  were  all 
melted  together,  and  the  silk  and  cotton  burnt  off. 


Such  occurrences  as  the  above  have  been  frequent  in  both 
Europe  and  America,  and  to  avoid  them  or  to  prevent  the 
damaging  of  the  telegraph  apparatus,  divers  contrivances  have 
been  from  time  to  time  applied.  In  the  year  1846,  Mr.  Highton 
successfully  employed  the  following  arrangement : 

A  portion  of  the  wire  circuit,  say  for  six  or  eight  inches, 
is  enveloped  in  bibulous  paper  or  silk,  and  a  mass  of  metallic 
filings  in  connection  with  the  earth  is  made  to  surround  such 
covering.  This  arrangement  is  placed  on  each  side  of  a  tele- 
graph instrument  at  a  station.  "When  a  flash  of  lightning 
happens  to  be  intercepted  by  the  wires  of  the  telegraph,  the 
myriads  of  infinitesimally  fine  points  of  metal  in  the  filings 
surrounding  the  wire  at  a  station,  and  having  connection  with 
the  earth,  at  once  draw  off  nearly  the  whole  charge  of  lightning, 
and  carry  it  safely  to  the  earth.  This  arrangement  at  once 
prevents  any  damage  to  the  telegraph  instrument.  Not  a  coil 
under  Mr.  Highton's  charge  has  been  fused  where  this  plan  has 
been  adopted.  The  cheapest  method  is  as  follows  :  Line  a 
small  deal  box,  say  six  or  twelve  inches  long,  with  a  tin  plate, 
and  put  this  plate  in  connection  with  the  earth  ;  fill  this  box 
with  iron  filings,  and  then  surround  the  wire  (before  it  enters 
a  telegraph  instrument)  with  bibulous  or  blotting  paper,  as  it 
runs  through  the  centre  of  the  box.  All  high-tension  electricity 
collected  by  the  wires  will  at  once  dart  through  the  air  in  the 
bibulous  paper  to  the  myriads  of  points  in  the  iron  filings,  and 
thence  direct  to  the  earth,  and  thus  the  telegraph  instrument 
will  be  rendered  incapable  of  being  damaged  even  during  the 
most  fearful  thunder-storms  that  may  occur. 


DESCRIPTION    OF    REID'S    PARATONNERRE 


567 


REID7S    PARATONNERRE. 

Early  in  the  year  1846,  Mr.  James  D.  Reid,  an  expert  tele- 
grapher at  Philadelphia,  devised  a  contrivance  for  arresting  the 
lightning.  This  gentleman  had  opportunities  of  witnessing 
the  effect  of  the  most  severe  thunder-storms  upon  the  wires. 
Many  times,  when  the  heavens  without  seemed  to  be  free  from 
storm,  his  apparatus  gave  signs  of  heavy  lightning,  miles 
distant.  These  charges  sometimes  were  sudden  and  destruc- 
tive. The  frequency  of  such  accidents  caused  Mr.  Reid  to 
perfect  the  following  arrangement,  which  was  applied  with  the 
most  complete  success.  The  Franklin  Institute  of  Philadelphia 
awarded  to  Mr.  Reid  a  silver  medal  in  consideration  of  the  dis- 
tinguished service  thus  rendered  in  the  advancement  of  the 
telegraphic  science.  Mr.  Reid  describes  the  apparatus  as 
successfully  employed  on  the  telegraph  lines  by  him,  as 
follows,  viz. : 

Description. — K  and  M  are  pillars  of  brass,  secured  upon  a 
wooden  platform,  six  inches  apart. 

The  wire  marked  L  leads  to  the  telegraph  machinery  of  an 
office. 

The  wire  marked  N  leads  to  the  earth,  and  is  used 
lightning-rod,  and  of  large  size. 

Fig.  4. 


as  a 


D  D  is  a  beam  of  brass,  swung  over  the  brass  pillars  named, 
in  or  near  the  centre,  by  two  pivot  screws,  of  one  of  which, 
E  represents  the  head. 

j  and  G  are  adjustable  screws  on  the  extremities  of  the 


5f)8  PARATONNERRE,    OR    LIGHTNING    ARRESTER. 

moveable  beam,  and  so  adjusted  that  only  one  point  of  one 
screw  can  touch  one  of  the  brass  pillars  at  a  time.  Thus,  when 
j  is  down,  there  is  no  metallic  contact  at  G,  and  vice  versa. 

H  is  an  adjustable  spring,  which  not  only  has  to  overcome 
the  equipoise  of  the  brass  beam,  producing  metallic  contact  at 
j,  but  resists  the  ordinary  magnetism  of  a  battery  current, 
passing  through  the  magnet  marked  B,  when  that  magnet  is 
placed  in  the  circuit  of  a  telegraph  line. 

c  c  are  the  faces  of  the  magnet  and  armature,  the  latter 
being  affixed  to  the  moveable  beam  D. 

In  placing  this  apparatus  into  use,  the  air  wire,  as  it  is 
usually  called,  or  wire  coming  in  from  the  line,  is  connected 
to  the  wire  of  the  magnet  B,  marked  A,  which  is  coarse,  that  is, 
number  sixteen,  silk  or  cotton  covered  wire. 

The  circuit  is  continued  by  connecting  the  other  terminating 
wire  of  the  coil  of  the  magnet  to  the  moveable  beam  D,  which 
being  brought  in  contact  with  the  brass  pillar  K,  at  the  point 
of  the  adjusting  screw  j,  leads  to  the  wire  marked  L,  which 
connects  immediately  with  the  machinery  of  the  office. 

During  all  ordinary  circumstances,  the  apparatus  thus 
described  remains  quiescent,  the  spring  H  being  so  adjusted 
that  the  current  of  the  line  has  no  effect  in  moving  the  beam, 
by  the  production  of  magnetism  at  c. 

When,  however,  a  flash  or  charge  of  atmospheric  electricity 
enters  the  office,  it  having  to  pass  through  the  magnet  coils  B, 
before  reaching  the  office  machinery,  magnetism  sufficient  is 
instantaneously  produced  to  overcome  the  power  of  the  spring 
H,  separate  the  connection  at  j,  and  establish,  for  an  instant, 
connection  at  G,  where  the  atmospheric  electricity  is  at  once 
discharged. 

No  sooner  has  this  been  effected  than  the  spring  H  imme- 
diately restores  the  connection  of  the  line. 

This  apparatus  has  been  proved  on  many  occasions,  and 
once,  during  the  existence  of  a  severe  storm,  before  a  com- 
mittee of  the  Franklin  Institute  at  the  telegraph  office  in  Phil- 
adelphia. 

The  objection  urged  against  it,  that  the  exceeding  rapidity 
of  the  progress  of  the  fluid  would  prevent  the  apparatus  from 
changing  its  direction,  as  contemplated  by  it,  and  which 
appeared  to  have  a  reasonable  basis,  has  no  reality  in  the 
experiment.  Communication  has  been  maintained  among 
most  violent  storms  thereby,  when  adjacent  magnets  were 
destroyed. 

The  following  is  the  manner  in  wjdch  it  was  arranged  at 
the  exhibition  in  the  Chinese  Museum,  in  1846.  The  vases 


AMERICAN    PARATONNERRES. 


569- 


were  intended  as  an  additional  means  of  discharging  the  wild 
electricity  of  the  atmosphere.  To  explain : 

The  vases  were  filled  with  water,  acidulated  slightly  with 
sulphuric  acid. 

The  wires  from  the  line  on  the  one  side,  and  from  the 
machinery  of  the  office  on  the  other,  as  well  as  those  leading 
from  each  side  of  the  apparatus  which  was  placed  between 
the  jars,  were  of  good  large  size. 

On  the  contrary,  the  wire  made  to  traverse  the  water  in  the 
spiral  form,  shown  in  the  sketch,  was  of  the  finest  description. 

Fig.  6. 


This  small  wire,  if  immersed,  would  at  once  be  melted  by  the 
passage  of  an  electric  flash.  Immersed,  however,  it  was  hoped 
that  the  fluid  would  use  the  acidulated  water  as  part  of  the 
circuit,  decomposing  it  in  part,  and  being  itself  partially  decom- 
posed, and  tamed  by  explosion  at  the  surface. 

This,  I  have  no  doubt,  it  did  to  some  extent,  but  deeming 
the  apparatus  sufficient  without  them,  I  never  subjected  them 
to  careful  trial. 

If  lightning  could  be  made  to  discharge  itself  on  the  surface 
of  a  body  of  water,  it  would  be  an  easy  mode  of  drawing  off 
this  grand  enemy  of  magnets,  and  of  the  regular  operation  of 
the  lines. 

VARIOUS    AMERICAN    PARATONNERRES. 

Various  other  contrivances  have  been  resorted  to  by  the  tele- 
graphers of  America  to  effect  the  protection  of  the  apparatus, 
and  many  of  them  have  operated  with  success.  One  of  these 
was  the  employment  of  a  very  small  copper  wire,  about  three 
feet  long,  placed  in  the  line  circuit  before  the  electro-magnet. 
"Within  an  eighth  of  an  inch  of  the  large  line  wire,  an  earth 
wire  was  placed.  When  thus  arranged,  the  lightning  would 
burn  the  small  wire  and  leap  to  the  earth  wire,  and  thus  pass 
off.  Sometimes  the  earth  wire  was  surrounded  spirally  with 


570  PARATONNERRE,    OR    LIGHTNING    ARRESTER. 

the  smaJ  insulated  copper  wire.  I  never  knew  of  any  of  the 
apparatus  to  be  burnt  when  thus  protected.  There  was,  how- 
ever, a  disadvantage  in  the  insertion  of  the  small  wire  in  the 
line  ;  it  served  as  a  resistance  or  hinderance  to  the  flow  of  the 
voltaic  current. 

Some  lines,  both  in  Europe  and  America,  have  used  a  pro- 
tector made  of  two  brass  plates,  with  saw-teeth  edges,  screwed 
to  a  wooden  base,  so  that  the  teeth  would  nearly  touch.  One 
of  the  plates  is  in  the  line  circuit,  and  the  other  is  connected 
with  the  earth.  Between  the  brass  plates  and  the  coils  or 
bobbins  is  placed  a  very  small  copper  wire,  less  in  size  than 
the  wire  around  the  coils.  The  lightning  enters  the  office, 
passes  through  the  brass  plate,  and  burns  the  small  wire.  The 
plus  charge  passes  off  to  the  earth  wire,  the  saw-teeth  serving 
as  attractive  points  for  the  lightning  to  leave  the  brass  plate 
and  pass  off  to  the  earth.  This  arrangement  has  served  quite 
successfully. 

Another  form  of  paratonnerre  has  been  used  on  some  of  the 
lines,  called  the  "  brush  protector."  It  is  made  in  the  follow- 
ing manner:  A  piece  of  leather,  about  four  inches  long  and 
two  inches  wide,  is  pierced  with  small  wires,  making  a  brush. 
The  leather  is  then  fastened  to  a  brass  plate,  so  that  the  wires 
under  the  leather  will  touch  the  brass.  Another  plate  with 
the  wire  brush  attached  is  placed  so  that  the  teeth  of  small 
wires  will  almost  touch  those  of  the  other.  One  of  the  brass 
plates  is  in  the  line  circuit,  and  the  other  is  connected  with 
the  earth.  When  the  lightning  strikes  the  line,  it  passes  from 
the  wire  teeth  of  the  one  brush  to  the  other,  and  thence  to  the 
earth. 

The  preceding  form  of  paratonnerre  has  not  been  in  very 
general  use,  and  in  fact  all  others  have  been  superseded  in 
America  by  the  following  arrangement.  This  ingenious  con- 
trivance was  gotten  up  by  Mr.  Charles  T.  Smith,  an  expe- 
rienced and  distinguished  telegrapher  of  America.  Mr.  Smith 
having  been  engaged  in  manipulating  the  telegraph  in  different 

Sarts  of  America,  he,  at  an  early  day,  found   it  necessary  to 
evise  an .  arrangement  to  parry  off  the  continual  presence  of 
atmospheric  electricity,  and  to  that  end  he  invented  the  para- 
tonnerre represented  by  fig.  6. 

Fig.  6  represents  the  circular  form  adopted  by  Mr.  Thomas 
Hall  of  Boston.  Many  lines  use  the  same  appliance  in  an 
elongated  form.  The  arrangements  consist  of  two  brass  plates 
separated  by  a  thin  piece  of  silk  or  paper.  The  upper  plate  is 
in  the  line  circuit ;  the  wires  are  attached  to  one  of  the  brass 
binding  posts ;  the  earth  wire  is  attached  to  the  under  plate. 


PARATONNERRES    AT    RIVER    CROSSINGS.  571 

Between  the  plates  are  placed  two  narrow  strips  of  paper. 
When  the  lightning  strikes  the  line,  it  enters  the  upper  brass 
plate  and  passes  to  the  under  one,  and  in  its  passage  through 
the  paper  it  burns  many  small  holes.  The  plates  are  about 

Fig.  6 


two  and  a  half  inches  diameter  and  one  sixteenth  of  an  inch 
thick  ;  they  are  fastened  to  a  small  board,  as  seen  in  the  figure, 
and  the  board  is  attached  to  the  wall  or  to  the  table  in  the 
station.  This  form  of  paratonnerre  is  in  universal  use  on  the 
American  lines,  and  it  has  proved  to  be  the  most  perfect  in  the 
attainment  of  the  desideratum. 

ATTACHMENT    OF    PARATONNERRES    AT    RIVER    CROSSINGS. 

A  similar  arrangement  as  the  above  has  been  placed  on  each 
side  of  river  crossings,  to  preserve  the  cables  from  destruction 
by  lightning.  I  have  had  several  cables  destroyed  by  light- 
ning. On  one  occasion,  the  line  wire  was  struck  by  lightning 
about  a  mile  distant  from  the  cable.  Several  of  the  poles  were 
torn  to  pieces.  The  current  passed  on  to  the  cable,  and  then 
from  the  conducting  wire  to  the  water,  cutting  a  longitudinal 
incision  through  the  gutta-percha  some  ten  feet  long,  as  clear 
as  if  done  with  a  razor.  At  another  time,  I  found  the  gutta- 
percha  very  much  swelled,  rough  and  porous  ;  and  at  another 
time,  the  gutta-percha  was  pierced  with  countless  numbers  of 
openings  like  pin-holes. 

On  an  examination  of  a  cable  that  had  been  worked  during 
the  whole  summer,  but  had  finally  failed,  I  found  the  coating 
of  gutta-percha  destroyed  as  to  its  capacity  for  insulation. 
The  inner  coating  was  parched  dry  and  easily  broke ;  the 
second  and  third  coverings  were  also  brittle,  and  on  bending 
the  cable  the  gutta-percha  would  break.  A  few  feet  of  the 


572  PARATONNERRE,    OR    LIGHTNING    ARRESTER. 

cable  was  thus  injured,  and  the  remainder  was  found  to  be 
perfect. 

In  the  above  cases  the  lightning  produced  different  results, 
though  all  were  fatal  to  the  working  of  the  line.  Too  much 
pains  cannot  be  taken  by  the  telegrapher  to  protect  the  river 
crossings,  whether  over  masts  or  through  submarine  cables. 
The  destruction  of  the  conductor  in  either  case  occasions 
serious  losses  to  the  lines  and  a  very  great  inconvenience  to 
the  public.  It  cannot  be  denied  but  what  many  cases  of 
injury  to  the  apparatus  in  the  offices  and  to  many  crossings 
are  justly  chargeable  to  neglect,  but  many  have  been  the  result 
of  incompetency  of  the  telegrapher  in  charge  of  that  special 
department.  On  the  other  hand,  it  is  to  be  admitted  that 
many  have  been  the  cases  where  the  ingenuity  of  man  has 
failed  to  devise  the  proper  protection  in  the  premises.  That 
mysterious  agent  manifests  itself  sometimes  in  such  power 
that  no  contrivance  known  in  the  arts  can  stay  its  wild  and 
fearful  flight  between  the  heavens  and  the  earth. 

INCIDENTS    OF    LIGHTNING    STRIKING    THE    LINE. 

In  1850,  I  witnessed  a  very  remarkable  incident  that  took 
place  at  St.  Louis.  The  telegraph  wire  crossed  over  the  Mis- 
sissippi river  from  a  mast  some  185  feet  high  placed  on  Bloody 
Island.  On  the  city  side,  a  shot  tower  some  180  feet  high  from 
the  water  was  used.  Dark  and  heavy  clouds  mantled  the 
whole  heavens,  and  the  storm  seemed  to  be  near  the  telegraph 
line ;  the  wind  was  powerful,  and  my  attention  was  directed 
to  the  line,  fearing  the  mast  would  yield  to  the  storm.  In  an 
instant  the  wire  between  the  mast  and  the  shot  tower  was 
struck,  and  simultaneously  elongated  drops  of  blue  flame  fell 
to  the  water.  The  scene  was  sublime ;  the  deed  was  done. 
Providence,  through  his  mysterious  ways,  in  less  time  than  the 
twinkling  of  the  eye,  dealt  a  lamentable  blow  upon  the  tele- 
graph. A  station  was  speedily  established  on  the  opposite  side 
of  the  river ;  a  ferry  was  used,  and  a  messenger  carried  the 
dispatches  from  the  city  to  the  opposite  station. 

In  the  same  year,  while  at  a  small  village,  about  twelve 
o'clock  at  night,  I  happened  to  be  looking  out  of  the  window, 
watching  an  approaching  storm.  Darkness  was  complete.  A 
ball  of  fire  fell  from  the  heavens  and  struck  the  wire.  Around 
the  edges  of  the  rotund  flame  there  appeared  a  blue  ring ;  in 
an  instant  the  ball  divided  and  spread  to  the  right  and  to  the 
left.  Next  morning  the  apparatus  at  the  station  was  badly 
injured ;  the  relay  magnet  was  burnt,  and  the  cores  of  the 
spools  or  bobbins  were  much  fused.  About  three  feet  of  the 


STEINHEIL  S    PARATONNERRE. 


573 


ribbon  paper  was  burnt.  The  fire  stopped  at  the  rollers  of  the 
apparatus ;  no  other  injury  was  done.  The  station  was  about 
one  fourth  of  a  mile  from  the  place  where  the  ball  fell  upon 

Fig.  7. 


the  wire.  Whether  or  not  the  ball  lightning  did  the  injury  in 
the  station  I  am  unable  to  say,  but  I  presume  it  did.  The 
end  of  the  earth  wire  was  a  little  burnt ;  the  wires  in  the 
station  were  properly  adjusted  for  the  night. 


STEINHEII/S    PARATONNERRE. 


In   1846  Dr.  Steinheil  constructed  the  following  arrange- 
ment for  the  Austro-Grer  manic  telegraph  lines. 


The  wire  a  a  passes  over  the  station  house  in  which  the 
telegraph  instruments  are  placed,  as  seen  in  the  figure.     On 


574  PARATONNERRE,    OR    LIGHTNING    ARRESTER. 

top  of  the  house  is  fastened  an  arrangement  consisting  of  two 
copper  plates  p'  p,  to  each  of  which  the  wire  is  attached  ;  the 
wire  on  the  right  being  fastened  to  the  middle  of  the  right-hand 
plate,  and  the  wire  on  the  other  side  fastened  to  the  left-hand 
plate.  These  copper  plates  are  about  six  inches  in  diameter, 
and  between  them  is  laid  a  thin  piece  of  silk  cloth,  so  adjusted 
that  there  can  be  no  metallic  connection  between  them.  They 
are  held  in  a  vertical  position,  as  seen  in  the  figure  on  the  roof 
of  the  station-house,  by  means  of  insulated  supports,  and  they 
are  protected  from  the  weather  by  means  of  a  small  roof 
covering  not  placed  in  the  figure. 

By  this  means  the  large  metallic  circuit  is  interrupted  or 
made  incomplete,  the  silk  between  the  plates  serving  as  a  non- 
conductor. From  the  brass  plate  p,  the  line  wire  b  is  extended 
down  to  the  telegraph  apparatus,  and  after  traversing  the  coils 
or  bobbins,  it  returns  at  h',  and  is  fastened  to  the  plate  p7. 
When  the  line  is  charged,  the  voltaic  current  passes  over 
the  wire  to  the  plate  p ;  thence  .over  b  to  the  apparatus ; 
thence  over  b'  to  plate  px;  and  thence  over  the  line  to  the 
next  station.  Atmospheric  electricity  will  not  pursue  the 
same  course.  It  will  not  follow  the  wires  b  b'  except  in  a 
very  small  quantity.  It  passes  from  one  plate  to  the  other, 
traversing  the  silk  cloth,  and  then  it  follows  the  wire  until  it 
becomes  dissipated  through  proximate  conductors  to  the  earth. 

The  atmospheric  electricity  that  passes  over  the  wires  b  b' 
and  through  the  apparatus  is  but  little,  and  can  do  no  damage. 
I  was  informed  at  many  of  the  telegraph  stations  in  Germany 
that  this  form  of  paratonnerre  has  proved  to  be  a  perfect  pro- 
tection to  the  apparatus. 

FARDLEY'S  PARATONNERRE. 

In  the  summer  of  1847,  Mr. 
Fardley  constructed  a  para- 
tonnerre on  a  stretch  of  fifty-six 
miles  of  line  in  the  form  repre- 
sented by  fig.  9. 

A  short  distance  from  the 
station-house  the  line  wire  was 
divided  into  two  parts,  D  DX, 
and  on  one  side  of  the  station 
was  placed  a  post,  upon  the 
top  of  which  the  tw*>  divided 
ends  of  the  line  wire  were 
brought  within  one  fiftieth  of 
an  inch  of  each  other.  This 
place  of  separation  was  covered 


MEISNER'S    PARATONNERRE. 


575 


Fig.  10. 


with  a  small  roof.  On  each  side  of  the  post  were  two  small 
copper  wires  p  jt/,  about  twenty  feet  long,  which  connected 
the  line  wire  with  the  apparatus  T  in  the  station-house.  By 
this  arrangement  the  lightning  charge  traversing  the  line  over- 
leaped the  small  separation  at  o,  and  passed  beyond  the  station, 
and  did  not  go  over  the  longer  route  through  the  apparatus. 
During  the  most  severe  storms,  no  further  injury  was  done  at 
the  stations  than  the  burning  of  the  small  wires  p  p,  pf  p'. 
When  a  plus  charge  traverses  p,  it  enters  apparatus  B,  inside 
of  the  telegraph  station,  which,  when  thus  charged,  serves  to 
detach  the  receiving  apparatus  T. 

MEISNER'S  PARATONNERRE. 

On  the  5th  of  May,  1846,  Mr.  Meisner,  of  Grermany,  was 
noticing  the  telegraph  wires,  and  he  saw  the  electricity  leap 
from  the  line  to  the  earth  wire  in  the  station,  burning  the  fine 
wire  of  the  magnet  coils.  This  circumstance  led  him  to  con- 
struct an  arrangement 
in  all  the  stations  of 
the  ducal  Brunswick 
state  telegraph,  for  the 
purpose  of  protecting  / 
the  operators  and  the  ' 
apparatuses.  Figure 
10  represents  one  of 
them. 

The  naked  wire  of 
the  line  is  insulated 
on  the  poles  by  porce- 
lain, shaped  as  bells,  and  it  enters  the  ground  near  each 
station.  It  is  insulated  with  gutta-percha,  and  drawn  through 
tubes  of  lead  or  iron.  Fi  ~ 

This  subterranean  sec- 
tion, L,  is  conducted 
through  the  foundation 
of  the  house,  and  thence 
to  the  telegraph  room, 
where  it  is  fastened  to 
the  copper  plate  A,  which  is  eight  inches  long,  four  wide,  and 
one  eighth  of  an  inch  thick.  From  this  copper  plate  A  pro- 
ceeds a  fine  insulated  wire,  /,  to  the  telegraph  apparatus 
through  the  voltaic  battery,  and  thence  through  the  wire  E, 
traversing  the  copper  plate  B  B,  and  then  with  the  wire  e  to 
the  earth,  or  onward  toward  the  next  station.  Fig.  11  is  a 
sectional  view  of  both  plates  as  screwed  to  the  common  base  ; 


576  PARATONNERRE,    OR    LIGHTNING    ARRESTER. 

each  is  insulated  from  the  other.  The  screws  n  n  n  n^  passing 
through  their  respective  holes,  are  insulated  with  silk,  ivory  or 
some  other  non-conductor  ;  this  arrangement  is  fastened  to  the 
apparatus  table  or  to  the  wall,  with  screws,  as  represented  at 
each  end  of  the  figures.  The  two  insulated  fine  wires,  /  and  E, 
are  insulated  from  each  other,  and  connect  with  the  apparatus 
through  the  ordinary  binding  screws.  The  voltaic  current 
traverses  the  whole  route  of  the  wires,  but  the  lightning  cur- 
rent enters  plate  A  and  leaps  to  plate  B,  and  thence  to  the 
earth,  or  on  to  the  next  station,  until  dissipated  in  the  air. 
The  plates  A  and  B  were  fastened  near  together,  but  did  not 
touch.  Voltaic  electricity  must  have  a  metallic  conductor, 
consummating  a  continuous  and  complete  circuit.  The 
smallest  break  in  the  conductor  will  arrest  the  flow  of  the 
current  and  its  generation  by  the  battery  organization.  Not 
so  with  atmospheric  or  static  electricity  ;  it  traverses  a  con- 
ductor until  it  reaches  the  spot  where  it  can  pass  off  into  the 
earth ;  it  leaps  from  one  conductor  to  another,  from  plate  A  to 
plate  B.  There  are  no  known  laws  demonstrating  the  limit  as 
to  distance  the  atmospheric  current  will  leap.  A  tri-cuspidated 
charge  will  be  more  energetic  and  will  pass  over  a  greater 
space  to  reach  the  earth  than  the  ordinary  heat  lightning 
flash. 

Mr.  Meisner  invented  another  contrivance  for  the  arresting 
of  atmospheric   electricity.      Fig.  12  represents  the  arrange- 
Fi    -  ment  as  placed  on  the 

line  from  the  Bruus- 
wick  station  to  Ve- 
chelde.  The  line  wire 
L  entered  the  station 
and  was  fastened  to 
the  copper  bar  A,  and 
from  the  bar  by  /  to 
the  apparatus,  and 
then  through  E  to 
copper  bar  B,  and  by 
e  to  the  earth,  or  on 
to  the  line  wire  be- 
yond the  station.  The  bars  A  and  B  are  fastened  to  a  wooden 
base  and  separated  at  their  points  by  a  very  small  space.  The 
voltaic  current  traverses  the  wires,  but  the  lightning  passes 
from  the  point  of  A  to  the  point  of  B,  and  thence  to  the  earth, 
or  on  to  the  station  beyond. 

The  reader  will  observe  that  the  contrivances,  figs.  6,  8,  10, 
and  12,  are  different  one  from  the  other,  but  at  the  same  time 


PARATONNERRE.  577 

the  philosophy  of  each  is  the  same.  The  American  para- 
tonnerre, fig.  6.  passes  the  current  immediately  to  the  earth  ; 
Steinheil's  carries  it  on  to  the  next  station,  though  it  is  certain 
to  be  dissipated  from  the  wire  within  a  few  miles,  and  perhaps 
none  of  the  plus  charge  will  ever  reach  the  next  station  in 
course.  Mr.  Meisner  made  the  base  of  his  contrivance  a  part 
of  his  circuit  to  the  earth  or  of  the  line.  The  American  im- 
provement on  Steinheil's  plan,  fig.  8,  would  lead  the  wire  a  a 
b  to  the  apparatus,  and  thence  to  the  earth,  or  on  to  the  next 
station,  but  not  by  way  of  plate  p7.  From  plate  p/  the  Ameri- 
can plan  is  to  conduct  a  wire  immediately  to  the  earth,  and 
no  other  wire  would  be  connected  with  plate  px.  The  same 
remarks  may  be  applied  to  the  arrangements  invented  by  Mr. 
Meisner.  In  the  use  of  fig.  10,  arranged  as  above  described, 
the  American  telegrapher  attaches  the  line  wire  L  to  plate  A, 
and  by  I  through  the  apparatus,  and  then  it  is  extended  on  to 
the  next  station.  An  earth  wire  is  fastened  to  plate  B  ;  this 
completes  the  arrangement,  as  represented  by  fig.  6.  In  this 
combination  the  voltaic  current  traverses  the  line  wire,  through 
the  magnet  coils,  and  thence  on  to  the  next  station  or  to  the 
earth,  as  desired  by  the  telegrapher.  The  lightning  will  not 
pass  through  the  fine  wire  of  the  magnet,  but  will  leap  from 
plate  A  to  plate  B.  If  the  line  is  extended  through  the  office 
to  the  next  station,  a  paratonnerre  will  have  to  be  placed  for 
the  line  on  each  side  of  the  apparatus  in  the  station. 


The  director-general,  Nottebohn,  of  the  Prussian  govern- 
ment lines,  devised  a  novel  combination  for  a  paratonnerre. 
Fig.  13  represents  the  arrangement  employed  in  the  stations 
of  the  Prussian  telegraphs. 

Between  the  two  pointed  copper  or  brass  cones,  u  q,  is  a 

Fig.  13. 


double   pointed  copper  marked  o  &,   with  its    points  nearly 
touching  the  points  of  u  and  q.     The  copper  piece  o  k  is  con- 

37 


578 


PARATONNERRE,    OR    LIGHTNING    ARRESTER. 


nected  with  the  earth  by  means  of  the  large  copper  rod  or 
wire  E.  The  pointed  cones  u  q  connect  respectively  with  the 
line  wires  L  .  and  L  .  .  and  with  the  wires  I'  Z/x,  which  lead  to 
the  apparatus.  The  voltaic  current  from  the  distant  station 
enters,  for  example,  through  the  wire  L  .  of  cone  u,  thence  by 
the  wire  I'  to  the  apparatus,  and  thence  through  Zx/  to  the  cone 
q  and  line  wire  L  .  .  On  the  other  hand,  the  current  may 
come  from  line  L  . .  and  traverse  the  metallic  circuit  composed 
of  q  I",  the  apparatus  /  u  and  L  .  The  voltaic  electricity  fol- 
lows the  metallic  circuit,  but  the  lightning  seeks  its  course  to 
the  earth  through  the  diamond- shaped  copper  o  k.  This  com- 
bination, in  principle  is  the  same  as  fig.  6,  employed  on  the 
American  lines.  I  am  unable  to  say  which  of  the  two  are  the 
best  for  the  purposes.  On  the  American  lines,  the  flat  plates 
are  found  to  be  perfect  in  the  protection  of  the  telegraph  appa- 
ratuses. Mr.  Nottebohn  informed  me  that  the  above  device 
answered  fully  the  objects  in  view,  and  that  he  had  never 
known  of  its  failing  to  successfully  preserve  the  instruments 
of  a  station.  The  flash  from  cone  to  cone  was  observed  on 
many  occasions  when,  at  the  locality,  there  was  not  a  cloud  to 
be  seen. 

BREGUET'S  PARATONNERRE. 

On  the  French  telegraph  lines  a  different  mechanism  is  used 
for  the  preservation  of  the  apparatuses  of  the  stations.  At  an 
early  day  in  the  history  of  French  telegraphy,  the  distin- 

Fig.  14. 


guished  Breguet  invented  an  arrangement  represented  by  fig. 
14.  This  paratonnerre  is  composed  of  copper  or  brass  plates, 
L  E  and  i/,  with  edges  like  saw  teeth,  as  seen  in  the  figure. 
The  line  wires  are  fastened  at  L  i/.  Between  the  plates  L  L  is 


THE    FRENCH    PARATONNERRE. 


579 


another  plate  E,  with  saw-teeth,  fastened  so  that  the  teeth  of 
the  two  former  almost  touch  the  teeth  of  plate  E.  From  p  p' 
the  wires  I  I'  run  and  connect  with  the  telegraph  apparatus. 
The  wires  /  I  are  connected  to  the  plates  L  i/  by  means  of  the 
binding  posts  p  PX.  The  middle  plate  E  is  connected  with  the 
earth  by  a  large  copper  wire  e.  The  voltaic  current  follows 
the  metallic  circuit  i/  /',  the  apparatus  /  and  L,  or  vice  versa. 
The  atmospheric  electricity  escapes  through  the  plate  E  and 
wire  e  to  the  earth. 


Fig,  15. 


THE    FRENCH    PARATONNERRES. 

Fig.  1  /!»  represents  a  form  used  on  the  French  railway  lines. 
It  is  composed  of  a  small  wooden  plate  M  N,  upon  which  are 
placed  binding  screws,  B  and  c,  from 
two  and  a  half  to  three  inches  apart. 
A  very  fine  iron  or  platina  wire, 
fixed  at  its  two  extremities  in  two 
copper  posts,  and  placed  in  a  glass 
tube,  connects  these  two  binding 
screws  or  posts. 

The  upper  part  B  communicates 
with  the  line  A;  the  lower  part  c 
communicates  with  the  wire  of  the 
station  D.  The  current  coming  from 
the  line  must  traverse  the  fine  wire 
B  c,  so  that  if  the  electric  discharge 
is  strong  enough,  this  wire  will  melt 
and  interrupt  '  the  communication 
between  the  line  and  the  apparatus. 

In  front  of  the  upper  binding 
screw  B  is  a  metallic  piece,  E,  com- 
municating with  the  earth.  Copper  points  placed  in  front 
permit  the  electricity  accumulated  on  the  line  wire  to  pass 
into  the  earth  whenever  the  small  wire  is  burnt. 

It  sometimes  happens  that  the  wire  contained  in  the  glass 
tube  is  volatilized  by  the  effect  of  the  discharge,  and  is  precip- 
itated against  the  tube  so  as  to  form  a  sort  of  conducting 
lining.  The  glass  tube,  however,  is  frequently  dispensed  with, 
as  the  sole  object  of  its  use  is  to  protect  the  wire  which  it  con- 
tains. "When  the  wire  is  melted  by  the  electric  discharge,  it 
must  be  replaced  in  order  to  re-establish  electric  communica- 
tion. The  French  are  of  the  opinion  that  these  paratonnerres 
should  be  placed  as  much  as  possible  outside  the  station-houses, 
in  order  that  the  line  may  be  completely  separated  from  the 


580 


PARATONNERRE,    OR    LIGHTNING    ARRESTER. 


Fig.  16. 


interior  of  the  station  house  after  the  fusion  of  the  small 
platina  wire. 

Fig.  16  represents  a  different  form,  and  is  considered  more 
advantageous,  particularly  in  making  the  line  wire  commu- 
nicate with  the  earth  when  the  fine  wire  has  been  broken. 
This  paratonnerre  consists  of  a  rod  M  N,  formed  in  three  parts 
of  copper,  A  c,  D  G  and  H  B.  The  extreme  parts  A  c  and  H  B  are 

separated  by  ivory  disks,  G  H 
and  c  D,  from  the  middle  one, 
which  bears  a  bulge  part  E  F. 
A  very  fine  silk  covered  wire 
is  fixed  on  one  side  to  the 
upper  part  M,  which  unscrews, 
and  the  other  part  is  fastened 
to  a  little  screw  at  the  lower 
extremity  N.  This  wire  is 
coiled  around  the  rod.  The 
extreme  portions  of  the  rod, 
B  H  and  A  c,  are  in  communi- 
cation only  by  means  of  this 
covered  wire.  The  middle 
part  does  not  communicate 
with  the  two  others  except 
when  the  silk  covering  of  the 
wire  is  removed.  The  rod 
traverses  three  globular  sup- 
ports, P,  R,  and  Q.  By  means 
of  screws  the  contact  of  these 
supports  with  the  three  por- 
tions AC,  E  F,  and  H  B  is  se- 
cured. 

The  first  support,  p,  com- 
municates with  the  wire  of 
the  line  L  ;  the  second,  R,  with  the  earth ;  and  the  third,  Q, 
with  the  wire  of  the  apparatus. 

When  an  atmospheric  discharge  melts  the  fine  wire,  or 
merely  burns  off  its  silk  covering,  a  communication  is  estab- 
lished between  the  line  and  the  earth.  When  this  fusion  has 
taken  place,  the  rod  is  either  replaced  by  another  in  readiness, 
or  else  another  silk  covered  wire  is  coiled  around  it.  The  con- 
dition of  these  rods  may  always  be  known  by  noticing  whether 
the  current  passes  between  the  two  extreme  portions,  and  not 
between  one  of  them  and  the  middle. 

A  front  view  of  this  form  of  paratonnerre  is  represented  in 
fig.  17.  The  line  wire  is  attached  to  the  button  L.  At  u  is  a 


THE    FRENCH    PARATONNERRE. 


r,si 


Fig.  17. 


communicator  which  puts  in  communication  this  wire  either 
with  the  strip  N,  or  with  the  strip  x  Y  z,  or  finally  with  the 
copper  plate  w,  which  is  in  communication  with  the  earth 
wire. 

In  the  first  case,  the  current  of  the  line  must  traverse  the 
wire  of  the  paratonnerre ;    in  the 
second,  it  goes  directly  to  the  appa- 
ratus ;  and,  in  the  third,  it  goes  to 
the  earth. 

Whenever  the  weather  is  stormy, 
this  latter  communication  ought 
always  to  he  established.  The 
plates  w  and  L  are  furnished  with 
points,  the  use  of  which  is  the  same 
as  that  of  the  paratonnerre  herein- 
before described.  When  there  is  a 
prospect  of  a  storm,  the  spring  of 
the  commutator  u  should  be  placed 
upon  the  strip  x  Y,  but  if  the  silk 
covered  wire  surrounding  the  rod 
MN  is  laid  bare  at  certain  points, 
the  current,  instead  of  traversing 
the  wire  of  the  apparatus,  which 
offers  a  great  resistance,  goes  di- 
rectly to  the  earth  by  means  of  the 
support  R.  In  order  to  prevent  all 
communication  between  the  plate 
x  Y  z  and  the  earth,  the  rod  must 
be  removed. 

Attempts  have  been  made  in 
France  to  avoid  this  inconvenience, 
by  giving  to  the  paratonnerre  the 
following  form,  which  has  been 
recently  adopted  on  some  of  the 
lines  (fig.  18). 

This  apparatus  consists  of  a  little 
vertical  column,  at  the  base  of 
which  are  attached  three  little  copper  binding  screws.  At  T, 
the  wire  of  the  earth  is  connected  ;  at  L,  the  line  wire  ;  and  at 
A,  the  wire  of  the  telegraph  apparatus. 

The  binding  screw  L  communicates  with  the  axis  H  of  a 
three-pronged  commutator,  which  can  be  moved  by  means  of 
the  lever  or  arm  K.  The  plate  A  represents  "  with  paraton- 
nerre" B  represents  "  earth"  and  c  represents  "  without 
paratonnerre" 


A 


PARATONNERRE,    OR     LIGHTNING     ARRESTER. 


Fig.  18. 


The  branches  of  the  commutator  may  press  upon  little 
metallic  plates,  abed.  The  axis  of  the  commutator  commu- 
nicates only  with  the  middle  branch;  the  two  others  are 
formed  of  a  single  piece,  and  are  insulated  by  an  ivory  disk. 

The  fine  silk  covered  wire 
is  placed  in  the  interior  of 
the  little  metallic  case  z. 
The  extremities  of  the 
silk  covered  wire  being 
laid  bare,  are  fastened  by 
screws  in  the  two  other 
little  pieces  M  and  N. 

The  following  commu- 
nications are  established 
by  means  of  wires  or  me- 
tallic straps  fastened  be- 
hind the  plate.  L  with 
p  p'  and  H  ;  a  with  N  ;  b 
with  M  ;  d  with  the  lever 
A  ;  c  with  u  ux ;  and  z 
with  T. 

1st.  When  the  rod  R  of 
the  paratonnerre  is  over 
the  letter  c,  representing 
"  without  paratonnerre" 
the  middle  branch  of  the 
commutator  presses  upon 

the  plate  d,  as  represented  by  the  figure.  The  current  coming 
from  the  line  to  the  button  L,  traverses  the  copper  plate  fur- 
nished with  points  p  p7,  and  passes  from  the  centre,  H,  of  the 
commutator  to  the  button  d,  whence  it  goes  to  the  screw  post 
A,  and  to  the  apparatus. 

2d.  If  the  rod  K  is  placed  above  the  letter  A,  representing 
"  with  paratonnerre"  the  three  branches  of  the  commutator 
will  be  upon  the  three  plates,  a,  &,  and  d.  The  current,  after 
having  traversed  the  plates  p  p7,  arrives  by  means  of  the 
middle  branch  to  the  point  b  and  to  the  copper  piece  M.  It 
traverses  the  wire  of  the  paratonnerre  at  z,  proceeds  from  N  to 
the  button  a,  follows  the  two  extreme  branches  of  the  commu- 
tator, and  passes  from  a  to  the  screw  below,  lettered  A.  If  an 
electric  discharge  melte  the  little  wire,  the  line  becomes  in 
communication  with  the  earth  by  means  of  the  copper  piece  z, 
in  which  the  little  wire  is  placed. 

3d.  In  the  third  position  of  the  rod  K,  the  middle  branch 
presses  upon  the  plate  c,  which  communicates  with  the  earth 


WALKER'S  PARATONNERRE. 


583 


by   means  of  the   rod   u  u',  the   plate   z,    and  the   binding 

screw  T. 

/ 

WALKER'S  PARATONNERRE. 

In  writing  upon  the  subject  of  atmospheric  electricity  in 
relation  to  its  interference  with  the  operation  of  the  electric 
telegraph,  Mr.  Charles  Y.  Walker,  one  of  the  most  distinguished 
telegraph  electricians  in  England,  says  : 

"  It  is  a  well-known  property  of  ordinary  charges  of  electricity 
to  expand,  so  to  speak,  and  to  occupy  the  outside  surface  of 
conducting  bodies.  If  an  ice-pail  or  metal  vessel  be  insulated 
on  glass  legs,  and  a  brass  ball  hanging  to  a  silk  thread,  be 
employed  to  carry  a  charge  of  electricity  from  a  common 
electrical  machine  to  the  inside  of  the  vessel,  it  will  part  with 
all  its  charge  the  moment  the  two  metals  touch  ;  and,  on  now 
applying  a  test  instrument  to  the  inside  of  the  ice-pail,  no 
electricity  can  be  found  there  ;  the  charge  appears  to  have 
vanished.  But,  on  presenting  it  to  the  outside,  the  charge  is 
discovered  there  in  its  full  quantity.  I  thence  considered  that, 
whatever  arrangement  I  should  insert  in  the  course  of  the  con- 
ducting wire,  I  might  very  advantageously  place  this  arrange- 
ment inside  a  stout  metal  cylinder,  in  good  communication 
with  the  earth ;  so  that  the  charge,  in  that  part  of  its  course 
should  be  in  all  but  contact  with  the  earth  connection,  and 
further  facilitated  in  its  escape  by  having  the  latter  on  its 
outside. 

Fig.  19  represents  the  lightning  conductor  very  nearly  in 
full  size.  A  is  a  brass  cylinder,  one  six- 
teenth of  an  inch  thick  (shown  in  section 
in  the  figure),  in  perfect  metallic  commu- 
nication with  the  earth  by  the  stout  wire 
E,  and  insulated  from  the  conducting  wire 
by  a  disk  of  boxwood  #,  and  a  boxwood 
bobbin  b  b.  The  arrows  show  the  direc- 
tion of  the  charge  from  the  line  wire  c  to 
the  telegraph,  to  which  it  is  screwed  by 
the  end  d.  The  ends  of  the  bobbin  closely 
fit  the  inner  surface  of  the  cylinder ;  but 
it  is  slightly  grooved  in  its  course  to  re- 
ceive two  or  three  layers  of  a  silk  covered 
copper  wire  g-,  finer  than  any  elsewhere 
to  be  found  in  the  instrument ;  the  wire 
is  in  the  circuit,  commencing  at  the  thick 
brass  wire  e,  and  terminating  below  at  d, 
and  is  in  very  close  proximity  to  the  earth, 


584  PARATONNERRE,    OR    LIGHTNING    ARRESTER. 

— closer,  in  fact,  than  any  other  wire  or  piece  of  metal  in- 
side the  instrument  or  the  office.  The  wire  e  is  further  fur- 
nished with  two  nuts,  /,  fitted  with  points,  made  by  gauge  to 
approach  almost  within  hairsbreadth  of  the  cylinder.  The 
boxwood  terminations  a  and  d  are  also  capped  with  brass  disks ; 
from  the  upper  disk,  points  approach  the  earth-cylinder  ;  and 
from  the  lower  end  of  the  earth-cylinder,  points  are  presented 
to  the  disk.  The  object  of  the  coil  g*,  of  very  fine  wire,  is, 
that,  from  its  tenuity  and  from  its  juxtaposition  to  the  earth- 
cylinder,  it  shall  have  a  better  chance  of  being  burned,  in  an 
extreme  case,  than  either  the  wire  of  the  bell  coil  or  that  of 
the  needle  coil.  The  use  of  the  points  does  not  require  any 
explanation. 

The  first  set  of  these  conductors  were  placed  at  Tunbridge 
Wells  station  ;  and  not  many  weeks  had  elapsed  before  a  light- 
ning flash  entered  the  station,  and  it  behaved  with  the  appa- 
ratus as  I  had  been  led  to  expect.  It  passed  safely  through 
the  stout  wire  E,  and  immediately  on  arriving  at  the  fine  wire 
g-,  it  darted  off  to  the  cylinder,  and,  by  its  explosion,  singed 
the  silk  and  exposed  the  wire  where  I  have  placed  a  black 
spot,  near  A.  In  this  case  the  flash  was  moderate,  and  the 
wire  was  not  burned. 

It  went  a  step  further,  and  another  of  its  features  was  called 
into  requisition,  on  8th  August,  1849.  During  the  night  a 
violent  thunder-storm  occurred,  the  effects  of  which  were  espe- 
cially manifested  on  the  Ashford  end  of  the  Ramsgate  branch. 
Three  poles,  unprotected  by  lightning- wires,  were  splintered  at 
Chartham,  about  two  miles  beyond  Chilham ;  and  the  light- 
ning entered  both  Chilham  and  Ashford  stations,  and,  by  its 
snappings  and  explosions,  very  much  alarmed  all  on  duty. 
When  all  was  over,  it  was  found  that  at  Chilham,  where  there 
were  no  lightning  conductors,  the  wire  of  the  bell-coil  was 
burnt,  and  of  both  the  electrometer  coils,  and  other  severe 
explosions  occurred  about  the  apparatus :  one  of  the  No.  16 
size  copper  wires  was  burnt  and  broken.  At  Ashford  there 
were  lightning-conductors  on  the  two  instrument  wires,  but 
not  on  the  bell-wire  (a  few  days  previously  the  bell-coil  had 
been  saved  by  the  lightning-conductor  being  burned  ;  the  latter 
was  brought  away  to  be  examined,  and  had  not  been  replaced). 
It  was  now  found  that  the  Ashford  electrometer  coils,  both  of 
which  had  conductors,  were  saved ;  the  fine  wire,  »•,  of  the 
lightning  conductor  being  burnt  by  the  explosion  in  both  cases, 
but  the  bell-coil,  which  was  unprotected,  was  visited  by  the 
discharge  and  burned. 

Lightning  flashes  occasionally  disturb  the  polarity  of  the 


WALKER'S  PARATONNERRE.  585 

needles,  and  even  demagnetize  them.  This  is  much  more  the 
case  with  the  rhomboidal  and  the  short  needles  than  it  is  with 
the  long  ones ;  and  the  former  have  been  found  demagnetized 
even  while  furnished  with  these  protectors  ;  but  in  the  storm 
above-mentioned,  while  the  magnetism  of  the  unprotected 
needles  at  the  Canterbury  station  was  disturbed,  that  of  the 
protected  needles  at  Ashford  was  undisturbed.  I  have  some* 
times  been  half  induced  to  think  whether  the  intense  and 
momentary  atmospheric  charge  may  not  act  so  violently  and 
irresistibly  on  the  magnetism  in  the  needle,  that  it  deflects 
it  more  rapidly  than  the  metal  can  follow,  and  that  the  conflict 
thus  caused  by  the  vis  inertice  of  the  metal  may  overthrow  the 
magnetic  arrangement  of  the  particles  of  steel.*  In  like  man- 
ner, it  may  be  conceived  that  the  loss  of  magnetism  occurring 
in  the  ordinary  use  of  the  instrument  may  be  mainly  due  to 
the  incessant  jars  the  needles  receive  as  they  strike  against  the 
stops  by  which  their  beats  are  limited." 

It  has  often  happened  on  the  American  telegraph  lines  that 
the  lightning  has  entered  the  station,  and  burnt  much  of  the 
wire  surrounding  the  electro-magnets.  I  have  frequently  seen 
the  iron  cores  partially  fused,  and  the  brass  parts  melted  at 
their  corners.  Such  accidents  were  of  frequent  occurrence  in 
the  earlier  days  of  telegraphing.  Then  we  did  not  have  the 
beautiful  contrivances  practically  and  successfully  applied  at 
the  present  day.  It  was  often  the  case,  too,  that  the  electro- 
magnet cores  were  permanently  magnetized,  which  occasioned 
much  difficulty  in  the  reception  of  messages.  On  the  English 
lines  the  needles  suspended  in  the  spools  require  to  be  perma- 
nently magnetized,  and  the  atmospheric  electricity  has  fre- 
quently, demagnetized  them.  On  the  American  lines  the  iron 
cores  of  the  magnets  require  to  be  free  from  all  permanent 
magnetism,  and  the  lightning  has  on  many  an  occasion  perma- 
nently magnetized  them.  We  are,  however,  making  rapid 
strides  in  the  comprehension  of  this  strange  and  mysterious 
phenomenon. 

The  telegraph  lines  in  southern  latitudes  are  much  inter- 
rupted by  atmospheric  electricity  in  ordinary  quantities.  Some 
of  the  lines  have  two  wires,  one  above  the  other.  When  the 
wires  are  thus  arranged,  the  atmospheric  electricity  will 
principally  charge  the  upper  wire.  This  I  discovered  at  a 
river  crossing  some  years  ago  ;  I  had  placed  over  the  masts 
two  wires,  one  above  the  other.  The  upper  wire  was  nearly 
always  more  or  less  charged,  and  the  under  wire  seldom 
charged.  Where  a  line  has  two  wires  upon  it,  one  above  the 
other,  it  will  be  found  best  to  make  the  under  one  the  through 


586  PARATONNERRE,    OR    LIGHTNING    ARRESTER. 

or  long  circuit  wire,  and  the  upper  one  the  short  circuit  or 
local  wire.  When  thus  operated,  the  plus  electricity  of  one 
section  of  the  country  will  not  disturb  the  circuit  in  another. 
The  local  dispatches  can  be  forced  through  with  batteries  of 
greater  quantity  current  on  the  short  circuits  ;  and,  besides, 
the  local  line  circuits  can  be  divided  without  interrupting  the 
transmission  of  dispatches  between  places  far  distant  from 
each  other.  In  warm  climates,  electricity  seems  to  exist  in 
large  quantities  in  the  air,  and  it  is  this  kind  of  electricity  that 
retards  the  transmission  on  the  wires.  The  flash  of  a  storm  is 
over  in  a  moment,  but  the  other  seems  to  be  sluggish  and 
stationary,  until  conducted  to  the  earth  by  the  rain  or  the  dews. 

For  the  information  of  practical  telegraphers  not  conversant 
with  the  subject-matter  herein  discussed,  I  will  add  a  tew 
instructions  in  regard  to  the  restoration  of  the  electro-magnet, 
when  permanently  magnetized  by  heavy  charges  of  atmo- 
spheric electricity.  Suppose,  for  example,  the  line  extends 
from  A  to  B,  with  the  batteries  on  the  line  directed  in  their 
organization  from  the  former  to  the  latter  station.  The  voltaic 
current  traverses,  first  the  right-hand  spool,  and  then  the  left- 
hand  spool  of  the  electro-magnet.  The  above  represents  the 
normal  positions  of  the  batteries  and  the  electro-magnets.  In 
case  the  cores  of  the  magnets  become  permanently  charged 
with  magnetism,  it  is  important  and  indispensably  necessary 
to  expel  it  from  the  cores  immediately,  as  the  art  of  telegraph- 
ing solely  depends  upon  the  instantaneous  magnetizing  and 
demagnetizing  of  the  electro-magnets  by  the  opening  and 
closing  of  circuits,  and  thus  putting  on  or  taking  off  the  voltaic 
current  of  the  batteries  on  the  line.  To  restore  the  cores  to 
their  original  condition,  it  is  necessary  to  reverse  the  course  of 
the  electric  current  through  the  spools,  so  that  it  will  pass 
first,  through  the  left-hand  coil,  and  then  through  the  right- 
hand  spool.  To  accomplish  the  end  more  rapidly,  a  current  of 
quantity  electricity  may  be  passed  through  the  spools  for  a  few 
hours,  traversing  the  magnets  from  left  to  right.  If  the  iron 
cores  are  moveable  from  the  coils,  as  many  of  the  magnets  are 
now  manufactured,  it  will  be  better  to  heat  them  to  a  slight 
red,  and  then  allow  them  to  cool  slowly.  This  process  will 
expel  the  permanent  magnetism,  and  restore  the  iron  to  its 
original  susceptibility  of  magnetic  action. 

If  the  telegrapher  will  carefully  study  the  details  and  illus- 
trations in  this  chapter,  he  cannot  fail  to  be  fully  equal  to  any 
emergency  of  his  station,  so  far  as  pertains  to  the  wild  and 
restless  lightning,  let  it  come  with  whatever  power  it  may 
from  any  zone  that  girdles  the  earth's  surface. 


SUBTERRANEAN  TELEGRAPHS. 


CHAPTER    XLI. 

Subterranean  Lines  in  Americaj  Prussia,  Russia,  Denmark,  and  France — Lines 
in  Great  Britain — Underground  Lines  in  Hindostan — Mode  of  Testing  Sub- 
terranean Telegraphs — Repairing  the  Insulated  "Wires. 

SUBTERRANEAN     LINES     IN    AMERICA,    PRUSSIA,    RUSSIA,    DENMARK, 
AND    FRANCE. 

IN  America  we  have  had  comparatively  little  experience  in 
subterranean  telegraphy.  That  which  we  have  had  has  been 
confined  to  short  distances,  not  exceeding  one  or  two  miles, 
and  then  in  connection  with  air  lines.  We  cannot,  therefore, 
give  any  information  from  the  practical  experience  of  American 
telegraphy.  The  experimental  line  authorized  by  the  Congress 
of  the  United  States  was  attempted  to  be  laid  in  lead  pipes. 
The  line  was  laid  in  the  earth  nine  miles  from  Baltimore,  and 
it  proved  a  failure.  The  wires  were  No.  16  copper,  covered 
with  cotton  and  shellac,  drawn  through  the  lead  pipes.  When 
the  underground  process  was  abandoned,  the  wires  were  pulled 
out  and  placed  on  poles,  and  the  line  was  thus  completed  in 
the  month  of  May,  1844,  under  the  direction  of  Prof.  Morse. 

In  Europe  there  have  been  constructed  many  subterranean 
lines,  some  of  which  have  proved  eminently  successful,  and 
others  total  and  costly  failures. 

Prussia  was  among  the  foremost  to  lay  down  subterranean 
telegraph  wires.  They  were  insulated  with  gutta-percha  and 
covered  with  a  leaden  pipe,  fitting  close  thereto.  These  wires 
were  buried  in  the  earth  about  twenty  inches  or  two  feet  deep. 
After  they  had  been  laid  a  few  years,  much  difficulty  was  ex- 
perienced in  working  them,  and  repairs  became  necessary  con- 
tinually. The  interruptions  following  this  necessity  for  con- 
tinual examination  of  the  buried  wires  became  annoying  and. 
very  expensive.  The  government  had  all  the  telegraphs  placed 
upon  poles,  abandoning  the  subterranean  lines. 

587 


588  SUBTERRANEAN  TELEGRAPHS. 

While  at  Berlin,  in  1854,  through  the  kindness  of  the  ad- 
ministration of  the  telegraphs,  I  was  present  at  the  examination 
of  the  subterranean  wires  then  being  substituted  by  the  pole 
lines.  These  wires  had  been  laid  under  the  gutters  along  the 
curbstones  of  the  sidewalks.  The  leaden  covering  or  pipe 
had  been  in  several  places  eaten  away  by  the  acids  of  the 
earth,  originating,  no  doubt,  from  the  slops  conducted  from  the 
houses  into  the  streets.  The  gutta-percha  insulation  had  been 
destroyed,  and  on  bending  it  would  fall  to  pieces,  leaving  the 
copper  conducting  wire  exposed.  It  was  the  opinion  of  those 
in  authority  that  the  gutta-percha  had  been  improperly  manu- 
factured, and  that  the  leaden  covering  had  not  been  placed 
around  it  with  sufficient  care  to  give  the  necessary  protection. 

About  the  same  time  Russia  established  a  subterranean  line 
of  two  wires  from  St.  Petersburg  to  Moscow,  along  the  railway. 
Like  the  Prussian  lines,  they  failed  from  time  to  time,  and  the 
government  was  compelled  to  abandon  the  underground  wires 
and  erect  another  on  poles.  The  effect  on  the  subterranean 
wires  was  found  to  be  the  same  as  was  discovered  in  Prussia. 
Besides,  the  retardation  of  the  electric  current  was  sensibly 
felt  between  St.  Petersburg  and  Moscow,  a  distance  of  some 
four  hundred  miles. 

In  the  city  of  St.  Petersburg  and  for  the  telegraph  to  Cron- 
stadt,  some  twenty  miles  long,  the  wires  are  laid  in  the  earth, 
with  extraordinary  care  and  protection  from  the  salines  of  the 
earth.  During  my  visits  to  Russia  in  1854-'57,  I  never 
heard  of  any  complaint  against  the  working  of  the  lines  laid 
through  the  cities. 

In  Denmark  the  first  lines  were  laid  in  the  same  manner 
precisely  as  the  Prussian  lines,  and  like  results  were  experien- 
ced there.  In  1854,  the  line  across  the  island  of  Zealand,  from 
Copenhagen  to  Corsor,  was  placed  upon  poles.  It  was  during 
my  visit  to  Copenhagen,  in  the  summer  of  1854,  that  I  ob- 
served the  retardation  of  the  voltaic  current  on  underground 
lines,  which  had  been  made  known  by  Prof.  Faraday.  There 
were,  therefore,  two  obstacles  in  the  way  of  successfully  work- 
ing the  subterranean  lines,  namely,  the  non-insulation  of  the 
wires  and  the  retardation  of  the  electric  current  when  being 
transmitted  from  station  to  station,  the  philosophy  of  which  is 
considered  elsewhere  in  this  book. 

In  Paris,  the  subterranean  lines  insulated  with  gutta-percha 
and  lead  were  at  an  early  day  abandoned.  By  authorization 
of  the  Emperor,  I  was  permitted,  in  1854,  to  examine  the  de- 
tails of  the  telegraphs  in  France,  and  I  was  informed  that  the 
subterranean  lines  had  been  unsuccessful.  Subsequently,  and 


SUBTERRANEAN    LINES    IN    GREAT    BRITAIN. 


589 


in  1857,  I  witnessed  the  laying  of  some  subterranean  wires 
along  the  Champs  Elysees.  Trenches  were  dug  about  four  feet 
deep  and  about  three  feet  wide.  At  the  bottom  a  small  trench 
about  twelve  inches  wide  and  ten  inches  deep  was  dug,  for  the 
wires  to  be  placed.  There  were  about  thirty  wires  drawn 
taut,  some  two  inches  apart,  along  and  in  this  smaller  trench, 
sustained  by  boards  temporarily,  and  until  the  trench  was 
filled  with  asphalt  and  very  dry  gravel,  as  adopted  in  Hin- 
dostan,  and  hereinafter  explained.  This  gave  a  solid  mass  of 
composition  around  the  wires.  I  have  been  informed  that  the 
wires  proved  to  be  perfectly  insulated.  They  were  covered 
with  cotton  and  shellac.  The  process  was  expensive,  and  it 
yet  remains  an  experiment. 

SUBTERRANEAN    LINES    IN    GREAT  .  BRITAIN. 

In  Great  Britain  a  very  large  number  of  lines  have  been  laid 
underground,  the  greatest  extent  of  which  has  been  by  the 
Magnetic  Telegraph  Company.  These  subterranean  lines  ex- 
tend over  England,  Scotland  and  Ireland,  and  they  work 


with  an  efficiency  and    durability  fully 
the  expectations  of  the  company 

Fig.  i. 


ith 


Upon  the  lines  of  this  company  magneto-electricity,  de- 
scribed elsewhere  in  this  work,  is  employed.  Some  telegraphers 
are  of  the  opinion  that  this  species  of  electricity  is  more  service- 
able on  underground  lines  than  that  which  is  generated  by  the 
ordinary  chemical  voltaic  batteries. 

In  a  communication  from  the  now  Sir  Charles  T.  Bright, 


590 


SUBTERRANEAN  TELEGRAPHS. 


the  engineer  of  the  above-named  company,  and  under  whose 
direction  a  very  large  range  of  subterranean  lines  have  been 
constructed,  I  have  been  informed  that  the  chief  part  of  the 
underground  lines  laid  by  him  have  been  in  troughs  of  kreosoted 
Baltic  timber,  with  a  lid  of  galvanized  roof  iron,  overlapping 
the  groove  by  half  an  inch  on  each  side  of  the  gauge  No.  14  in 
thickness. 

It  is  drawn  with  six  wires,  but  in  some  places  ten  are  laid. 

The  line  from  Manchester  to  London,  the  first  laid,  has  a 
wooden  lid  instead  of  the  iron  lid  afterward  introduced.  The 
district  is  easy  of  access  by  railway  the  entire  distance,  and 
the  roads  well  attended  to  by  the  road  surveyors  (county,  not 
telegraph  officers),  who  inform  the  company  of  any  work, 
&o.,  to  be  done  on  the  line  of  the  wires. 

The  wires  on  this  line,  ten  in  number,  are  covered  with  a 
serving  of  tarred  jute  as  an  additional  protection,  especially 
while  laying,  the  expense  being  nearly  covered  by  the  saving 
in  labor  and  carriage,  in  having  the  wires  all  together  in  a  rope, 
and  wound  on  the  same  drum. 

A  full  size  section  is  given  at  fig.  2.     The  two  plans  are 

Fig.  2. 


under  the  ordinary  high  road ;  but  through  the  paved  streets 
of  towns,  where  the  roads  are  often  opened  for  laying  gas  and 


SUBTERRANEAN    LINES  IN  GREAT  BRITAIN.  591 

water  pipes,  drains,  &c.,  and  where,  from  the  nature  of  the 
ground,  the  full  depth  of  the  trench  cannot  be  made,  the  wires 
are  laid  in  cast-iron  pipes. 

The  proportion  of  street  work  is  generally  about  three  miles 
out  of  every  hundred,  but  on  some  lines  considerably  more. 
Between  London  and  Manchester  there  are  twenty-one  and  a 
half  miles  laid  in  iron  pipes  out  of  two  hundred. 

Street  wires  used  to  be  drawn  through  solid  gas  piping  of 
about  three  inches  diameter,  the  pipes  being  laid  first,  and  the 
insulated  wires  drawn  through  afterward.  In  doing  this  the 
insulating  material  was  frequently  injured ;  sometimes  the 
wires  were  broken  inside  the  gutta-percha,  or  other  insulating 
material,  by  the  force  necessary  to  pull  them  through,  and  oc- 
casionally they  were  drawn  so  tight  that,  on  the  slight  settle- 
ment of  the  ground,  usual  after  the  line  has  been  laid  a  short 
time,  some  of  the  wires  broke  inside  the  insulating  material, 
occasioning  great  difficulty  and  expense  in  detecting^  the  fault. 

The  great  proportion  of  the  faults,  however,  were  only  abra- 
sions of  the  insulating  material ;  and  though  at  the  time  the 
wires  passed  with  all  appearance  of  perfection  through  the 
ordeal  of  testing,  and  the  streets  were  closed,  and  the  pave- 
ment reinstated,  before  long  the  defects  became  so  manifest  as 
to  interfere  with  the  working  of  the  apparatus,  and  the  streets 
had  to  be  re-opened,  and  the  wires  tested  through,  length  by 
length,  for  the  fault. 

The  wires  required  jointing  at  every  other  drawing  point, 
and  these  points  frequently  proved  defective,  particularly  in 
the  old  varnished-cotton  method  of  insulation  and  others,  prior 
to  the  use  of  gutta-percha. 

"  In  1852,"  says  Mr.  Bright,  "  having  considerable  lengths  of 
street  work  to  lay,  I  gave  a  good  deal  of  attention  to  the  sub- 
ject, and  determined  on  having  the  pipes  cast  longitudinally 
in  two  pieces,  so  that  the  wires  could  be  laid  in  the  under 
lengths,  and  the  upper  lengths  then  attached,  instead  of  draw- 
ing, or  threading  them  through  solid  pipes.  I  was  the  better 
able  to  carry  this  out  through  the  introduction  of  gutta-percha, 
rendering  the  exclusion  of  moisture  for  the  interior  of  the  pipes 
of  less  moment.  I  tried  various  forms,  rectangular,  half-rec- 
tangular, with  an  arched  lid,  semi-cylindrical,  with  a  flat  sole, 
&c.,  but  the  form  I  found  most  generally  useful  and  convenient, 
was  that  having  the  upper  and  under  half  exactly  similar, 
making  together  a  round  pipe.  I  have  the  pipes  cast  in  six- 
foot  lengths,  and  about  two  inches  internal  diameter,  the  sub- 
stance being  three  eighths  of  an  inch  ;  the  sides  fitting  together 
without  any  flange,  but  fixed  by  small  bolt  and  nut  fastenings 


592  SUBTERRANEAN    TELEGRAPHS. 

through  semi-circular  lugs  projecting  about  one  and  a  half 
inches  from  the  side ;  one  pair  of  lugs  being  about  nine  inches 
from  the  faucet,  and  another  pair  two  feet  from  the  spigot  end. 

A  pipe  of  these  dimensions  is  cheaper  than  the  old  three  - 
inch  solid  pipe,  and  more  generally  useful,  the  halves  being 
convenient  for  fixing  to  walls,  viaducts,  &c.,  over  wires  need- 
ing good  protection  in  such  places ;  and,  from  its  circular  form 
and  smallness,  it  is  very  difficult  to  break,  as  a  pick-axe,  or 
other  tool,  cannot  easily  strike  it  full. 

The  process  of  laying  in  the  wires  is  rendered  much  more 
expeditious  and  economical  by  the  use  of  half  pipes.  The 
under  halves  of  the  pipes  are  laid  down  in  the  trench,  and  then 
a  large  drum,  on  which  the  insulated  wires  are  wrapped,  is 
rolled  along  over  the  trench,  and  the  wire  is  paid  off  easily 
and  rapidly  into  its  place — the  upper  parts  of  the  pipes  put  on 
afterward,  and  secured  in  their  places  by  means  of  screws 
through  small  flanges,  left  outside  for  the  purpose. 

So  well  has  this  mode  succeeded,  that  in  Liverpool  the 
whole  lengths  of  the  streets,  from  Tithebarn  railway  station  to 
the  office  in  Exchange-street  east,  were  laid  down  in  a  single 
night  (eleven  hours),  and  in  Manchester,  the  line  of  streets 
from  the  railway  station  in  Salford  to  Ducie-street,  by  the 
Manchester  Exchange,  in  twenty-two  hours.  This  was  the 
whole  time  occupied  in  opening  the  trenches,  laying  down  the 
telegraph  wires,  and  re-laying  the  pavement. 

Mr.  Reid  has  invented  an  ingenious  modification  of  the  half 
pipe,  of  the  rectangular  form,  which  he  has  patented,  and 
which  we  have  used.  Mr.  Henley  also  has  improved  on  the 
circular  half  pipe  where  it  is  intended  only  for  subterranean 
work,  which  he  has  also  patented  ;  but  both  of  them  have  top 
and  under  lengths  differently  shaped,  and  I  find  my  original 
plan  preferable  for  general  purposes.  All  the  telegraph  com- 
panies have  adopted  the  two-piece  pipe  in  place  of  the  solid 
round  pipe,  except  the  old  company.  The  depth  of  trench  is 
two  feet,  but  all  obstacles,  as  drains,  &c.,  are  passed  under. 

I  have  had  no  experience  in  laying  underground  wires  with 
single-covered  gutta-percha,  having,  in  common  with  all  tele- 
graphic engineers  in  this  country  considered  the  occasional 
small  flaws  and  air  bubbles  which  occur  in  single  wire,  and 
which  are  covered  and  made  good  by  the  second  coating,  a  bar 
to  its  use,  except  about  stations,  &c.,  where  it  is  not  in  close 
contact  with  the  earth,  and  may  be  readily  examined. 

1  do  not  think  wire,  covered  with  hemp  only,  could  ever  be 
laid  so  as  to  preserve  good  insulation,  equally  with  that  coated 
properly  with  gutta-percha. . 


SUBTERRANEAN    LINES    IN    GREAT    BRITAIN.  693 

The  wires  through  the  streets  of  towns  used,  prior  to  the  in- 
troduction of  gutta-percha,  to  be  coated  with  a  double  serving 
of  cotton,  varnished,  tarred,  and  enclosed  in  a  leaden  tube, 
which  was  passed  through  cast-iron  three-inch  piping.  The 
wires  were  continually  getting  defective  after  being  laid  some 
little  time,  and  we  have  only  been  able  to  have  underground 
wires  of  any  length  in  a  good  state  of  insulation  since  the 
adoption  of  gutta-percha,  and  that  only  within  the  last  five 
years.  Before  that,  the  art  of  coating  wires  had  not  reached 
its  present  high  state  of  practice  ;  and  in  one  of  its  first  trials, 
in  the  most  important  lengths  of  street  wires  in  London,  it 
proved  in  a  few  months  to  be  an  utter  failure. 

The  cost  of  laying  varies  very  much  according  to  the  hard- 
ness of  the  roads,  the  price  of  labor,  the  season  at  which  the 
work  is  done,  &c. ;  for  six  wires,  according  to  the  plan  shown 
in  fig.  1,  a  line  along  the  old  mail  road  varies  from  ;£180  to 
d£200.  The  price  of  gutta-percha  has  changed  so  much  as  to 
make  estimates  very  little  to  be  depended  on  for  a  long  time. 
For  ten  wires,  according  to  the  plan  with  wooden  lid  shown  by 
fig.  2,  and  covered  with  hemp,  the  cost  may  be  set  down  at 
about  ^£230  per  mile — this  is  on  hard  Macadamized  roads. 

I  should  never  lay  less  than  four  wires  under  ground ;  the 
proportionate  expense  of  cutting  the  trench,  and  for  troughing, 
&c.,  being  about  the  same  for  one  as  for  ten,  unless  the  scarcity 
of  timber  be  much  reduced,  the  expediency  of  which  I  doubt. 

Wires  laid  without  some  protection  cannot  be  depended  on 
very  long,  unless  in  a  very  favorable  country.  "We  have  had 
to  relay  a  line  from  Manchester  to  Liverpool,  which  was  origin- 
ally laid  without  protection,  though  sunk  to  a  good  depth.  A 
line  of  two  wires  laid  from  Dumfries  to  Stranraer,  in  Wigton- 
shire,  by  a  now  defunct  company,  has  never  been  worked,  and 
never  will  be. 

The  depth  of  the  trench  is  two  feet.  In  towns,  and  where 
gas  and  water  pipes,  &c.,  are  laid,  more  according  to  the  level 
of  the  mains  and  service  pipes,  which  we  keep  under  in  all 
cases. 

Where  the  road  is  rocky  we  blast  out  about  a  foot  deep,  an8 
lay  the  wires  on  iron  pipes,  packing  up  the  trench  with  the 
shale  and  earth.  We  have  had  a  great  deal  of  rock  crossing 
Shap  Fell ;  on  the  road  from  Liverpool  to  Carlisle  we  had  a 
considerable  length  of  solid  rock  ;  on  the  London  line  about 
Stoney  Stratford,  on  that  from  Dumfries  to  Grlasgow,  near 
Abington,  and  through  the  Deloin  Pass,  and  a  good  deal  in 
Ireland. 

Our  wires  are  in  every  case,  as  yfet,  laid  along  the  old  mail 

38 


594 


SUBTERRANEAN  TELEGRAPHS. 


roads,  which  have  been  so  carefully  made  and  kept  in  repair 
throughout  the  kingdom  for  years  past ;  we  do  not  therefore 
ever  pass  through  marshes,  as  the  road  would  always  pass  over 
anything  of  the  sort  with  a  bridge  or  viaduct.  We  have  no 
telegraphs  in  England  "  across  country"  without  regard  to 
roads.  For  the  same  reason,  we  have  no  upheaving  of  the 
roads  from  frost ;  they  are  all  too  old  and  firmly  set  for  any  such 
disturbance.  The  only  danger  at  all  of  the  sort  that  I  appre- 
hend is  the  settling  of  the  roads  in  some  places  in  the  colliery 
districts,  from  seams  of  coal  mines  passing  under  the  roads. 

Our  mail  roads  always  cross  by  bridges,  and  our  wires  are 
laid  over  them,  frequently  close  over  the  parapet,  about  six 
inches  deep  (as  the  crown  of  the  bridge  is  generally  shallow, 
to  avoid  -much  raise  of  the  level  of  the  road),  enclosed  in 
wrought  iron  solid  pipes,  about  an  inch  in  diameter,  by  three 
sixteenths  in  substance,  which  are  threaded  over  the  wires  for 
the  short  distance  required." 

The  old  Electric  Telegraph  Company  has  employed  for  its 
subterranean  lines,  to  a  considerable  extent,  glazed  earthen 
pipes  of  the  best  stoneware,  three  inches  in  diameter.  They 
cost  about  d£60  per  mile,  and  in  the  opinion  of  some  tele- 
graphers are  preferable  to  the  iron  pipes.  They  afford  all  the 
mechanical  protection  required,  and  are  totally  indestructible 
by  corroding  agents  of  any  kind.  Giazed  earthenware  pipes 
are  also  employed  on  the  Hindostan  lines,  such  as  figs.  3,  4  and 

5.  Like  these  patterns  have 
been  prepared  troughs  of  ordi- 
nary brick  clay.  The  rectan- 
gular or  tubular  shape,  open  at 
the  side,  is  to  be  preferred  where 
hydraulic  cements  are  procura- 
ble. The  closed  tubes,  or  pipes 
requiring  the  wire  to  be  drawn 
through,  are  not  to  be  used  when 
the  other  forms  can  be  procured, 
in  the  opinion  of  telegraphers 
generally.  A  very  simple,  cheap 
and  effective  protection  is  af- 
forded by  common  tiles  of  the 
shape  shown  in  figs.  6,  7,  and  8.  They  are  grooved  along  the 

Fig. 


Eig.  3. 


SUBTERRANEAN  TELEGRAPHS  IN  HINDOSTAN.  595 

Fig.  7. 


'•'"•••' -L'-1J 


Fig  8. 


centre,  and  applied  break-joint  fashion.  Fig.  6  represents  the 
wire  enclosed  in  the  trough.  Figs.  7  and  8  show  how  the 
pieces  are  put  together.  The  pieces  are  laid  as  represented, 
and  fastened  with  cement  or  mortar.  The  gutta-percha  insu- 
lated wire  should  be  covered  with  spun  yarn  or  tape  saturated 
with  tar. 

Besides  the  use  of  earthenware  pipe,  slate  protectors  have 
been  suggested. 

Wooden  troughs,  made  of  good  and  durable  timbers,  pickled 
in  sulphate  of  copper  or  chloride  of  zinc  solution,  have  been 
considerably  used. 

SUBTERRANEAN  TELEGRAPHS  IN  HINDOSTAN. 

An  underground  line  of  twelve  miles  has  been  laid  in  Hin- 
dostan  from  Calcutta  to  Bishtapore,  in  a  peculiar  manner,  and 
with  perfect  success.  Dr.  O'Shaughnessy  describes  the  con- 
necting of  this  line  thus : 

"  For  these,  twelve  miles  the  line  is  made  of  round  rod  iron, 
three  eighths  inch  diameter,  made  up  from  separate  lengths  of 
13  feet  6  inches  each,  welded  together  end  to  end.  This  was 
first  done  at  the  iron  bridge  works  at  Alipore,  so  as  to  form 
lengths  of  200  feet.  These,  in  bundles  of  ten  rods,  were  car- 
ried on  men's  shoulders  along  the  road,  laid  end  to  end,  and 
welded  up  by  a  party  of  native  blacksmiths,  with  a  portable 
forge  in  charge  of  a  European  sergeant.  A  mile  daily  was 
thus  done  with  ease. 

The  rod  being  supported  on  bamboo  stakes,  three  feet  above 
the  ground,  was  next  coated  with  two  layers  of  Madras  cloth, 
saturated  with  melted  pitch,  softened  with  a  due  admixture  of 
tar,  so  as  to  form  a  flexible  coating  when  cool.  These  coatings 
were  applied  in  spiral  bands,  each  2£  inches  wide,  wound 
round  like  a  surgeon's  bandage,  and  overlapping  each  other  in 
opposite  directions,  so  as  to  give  four  layers  of  a  pliable  insu- 
lating envelope,  quite  impervious  to  water  and  saline  matters, 
and  not  liable  to  decay  or  to  attacks  of  white  ants  or  vermin  of 
any  kind. 

This  coating  was  applied  by  a  native  tindal  (boatswain)  with 
twenty  lascars  (sailors),  at  the  rate  of  2,000  feet  daily. 


596 


SUBTERRANEAN  TELEGRAPHS. 


To  protect  the  rod  still  further,  chiefly  from  mechanical 
injury,  it  was  finally  laid  in  a  row  of  thin  roofing  tiles,  of  semi- 
cylindrical  form  (the  koprile,  of  Bengal).  These  were  half 
filled  with  a  melted  mixture  of  three  parts  dry  sand  and  one 
part  rosin  by  weight,  and  when  laid,  the  whole  was  filled  up 
with  the  same  melted  mixture.  When  cold,  the  mass  is  as 
hard  as  brick  or  sandstone,  and  perfectly  impermeable  to  water 
when  well  prepared. 

The  sand  used  for  this  purpose  must  be  sifted  to  free  it  from 
particles  of  straw,  leaves  and  sticks  ;  next  thoroughly  washed, 
to  remove  clay  and  saline  matter ;  thirdly,  dried  perfectly  over 
a  furnace  of  iron  plates,  heated  by  a  strong  fire.  When  quite 
dry  and  cool  it  is  stored  in  barrels  for  use. 

The  rosin  and  sand,  weighed  in  separate  bags  of  10  pounds 
rosin  and  "80  pounds  sand,  are  sent  on  the  road  and  melted  in 
iron  bowls  (kuroys],  on  temporary  fireplaces  by  the  roadside, 
the  mixture  is  thoroughly  incorporated  during  the  melting  of 
the  rosin,  and  poured  on  the  tiles  from  iron  ladles  with  long- 
handles.'' 

MODE  OF  TESTING  SUBTERRANEAN  TELEGRAPHS. 

Having  now  explained  the  different  modes  of  laying  a  wire 
underground  and  insulating  it  for  telegraphic  service,  I  will  add 
a  few  explanations  in  regard  to  the  mending  of  the  gutta-percha 
insulated  wires,  and  the  testing  of  the  line  to  discover  faults  in 
Fig.  9.  the  conductors.  Fig.  9  represents  a  test- 

box,  made  of  iron  plates,  resembling  when 
screwed  together  a  mile  post.  The  small 
door  is  fastened  with  a  lock.  The  line 
wires,  at  given  distances,  for  example, 
every  mile,  more  or  less,  are  brought  into 
these  test-boxes,  where  they  can  be  ex- 
amined and  the  place  of  difficulty  ascer» 
tained,  whether  to  the  right  or  to  the  left. 
Fig.  10  represents  the  wire,  insulated  with 
gutta-percha,  separated  ready  to  be  tested. 
The  flat  pieces  above  are  brass,  and  fastened  below  to  the 
copper  wire,  covered  by  the  gutta-percha.  Fig.  11  represents 
the  two  wires  fastened  together  by  the  double  screw  at  the 
top  of  the  figure.  The  projecting  nipples  seen  in  fig.  10, 
fit  in  the  holes  seen  in  the  respective  pieces,  which,  together 
with  the  double  screw  in  fig.  11,  unite  the  wires  tightly.  In 
order  to  prevent  the  brass  pieces  from  oxydating,  or  from 
causing  an  earth  circuit,  a  gutta-percha  cap  is  fitted  on  as  seen 
in  fig.  12.  All  the  wires  brought  into  the  test-box  are  thus 


REPAIRING  SUBTERRANEAN  WIRES.  597 

Fig.  10.  Fig.  11.  Fig.  12. 


arranged.  It  will  be  seen  from  these  explanations  that  it  is  an 
easy  matter  to  discover  in  what  direction  the  fault  may  be  on 
any  .wire  desired.  "With  instruments  nicely  adjusted,  as  to 
resistance,  nearly  the  precise  spot  or  place  at  fault  can  be  dis- 
covered at  one  of  these  test  stations,  and  then  by  measurement 
from  a  marked  place,  the  fault  can  be  discovered  and  remedied 
in  a  few  hours. 

REPAIRING  SUBTERRANEAN  TELEGRAPH  WIRES. 

When  the  wire  is  found  to  be  injured  as  to  insulation,  it  is 
immediately  repaired.  This  process  is  executed  in  the  follow- 
ing manner.  Figs.  13,  14,  and  15,  will  enable  the  reader 

Fig.  13. 


Fig.  15. 


to  understand  the  mode  of  splicing  a  subterranean  wire.  Fig. 
13  is  the  two  ends  spliced,  having  first  been  cleaned  with  a 
file  or  a  piece  of  sand  paper.  The  ends  of  the  wire  it  will  be 


598  SUBTERRANEAN  TELEGRAPHS. 

seen,  have  been  filed  so  as  to  lap  over  each  other,  and  yet  form 
but  the  thickness  of  the  wire.  After  the  ends  are  thus  placed 
together,  a  very  small  copper  wire  is  then  wound  around  the 
place  of  splice,  as  seen  by  fig.  14.  When  thus  prepared,  with 
a  spirit  lamp  the  solder  can  be  spread  upon  the  joint  uniting 
the  small  with  the  larger  wire.  If  the  solder  is  not  carefully 
spread  on  the  splice  the  wires  may  separate  as  seen  by  fig.  15. 
which  ought  never  to  be  the  case.  After  the  wires  are  well 
united,  the  gutta  percha  is  put  on  and  completes  the  insulation 
by  uniting  it  as  represented  by  the  dotted  lines  in  fig.  14.  This 
process  is  as  follows  : 

Have  in  readiness  a  few  strips  about  three  eighths  inch  broad 
of  very  thin  gutta-percha  sheet,  also  a  little  warm  gutta-per- 
cha about  one  eighth  inch  thick,  one  or  two  hot  tools,  and  a 
spirit  lamp. 

Remove  the  gutta-percha  covering  from  along  the  wire  no 
further  than  may  be  necessary  for  making  the  joint  in  the  wire. 
Having  joined  the  wire,  warm  gently  with  the  spirit  lamp  the 
bare  wire  and  joint  and  the  gutta-percha  near  to  it ;  taper  the 
gutta-percha  over  the  bare  wire  until  the  ends  meet ;  warm 
this  and  immediately  apply  one  of  the  strips  of  thin  sheet  in 
a  spiral  direction  over  it.  Press  this  covering  well  on  until 
cool,  then,  with  the  spirit  lamp,  carefully  warm  the  surface  and 
proceed  as  before  to  put  on  a  second  strip  of  the  thin  sheet, 
observing  to  wrap  it  in  a  direction  reverse  from  the  first  strip, 
always  making  the  commencement  and  termination  of  these 
coverings  to  overwrap  the  previous  ones.  It  is  safer  to  perform 
this  operation  a  third  time. 

Next  take  a  piece  of  the  warm  one  eighth  inch  sheet  and 
cover  over  the  coats  of  thin  sheet,  again  over  wrapping  the 
original  covering  of  gutta-percha,  which  should  be  heated  so 
as  to  insure  perfect  adhesion.  Press  it  well  on  as  it  cools,  and 
when  cold,  or  nearly  so,  finish  off  the  joints  with  a  warm  tool, 
working  well  together  the  old  and  new  material  at  each  end. 

Lastly,  and  in  general,  avoid  moisture,  grease  or  dirt,  and 
be  careful  not  to  burn  the  gutta-percha,  which  would  prevent 
proper  adhesion. 

I  have  been  quite  particular  in  these  explanations  in  regard 
to  the  mending  of  wires  insulated  with  gutta-percha.  Some 
of  the  lines,  however,  in  England  use  wires  wrapped  with  cot- 
ton thread,  and  well  coated  with  a  mixture  of  tar,  resin,  and 
grease.  This  coating  forms  a  perfect  insulator,  in  the  opinion 
of  some  telegraphers.  But  some  ten  years  ago  I  employed  this 
composition  to  saturate  osnaburg  coverings  to  submarine  wires, 
and  I  did  not  find  it  to  answer. 


AMERICAN  SUBMARINE  TELEGRAPHS 


CHAPTER   XLII. 

Disasters  to  Mast  Crossings  over  Rivers — Adoption  of  Submarine  Cables — Sub- 
marine Cables  Perfected — Submerging  of  the  Cable — Bishop's  Submarine 
Cables — Chester's  Cable  Manufactory  —Leaden  Covered  Telegraph  Wires. 

DISASTERS    TO    MAST    CROSSINGS    OVER    RIVERS. 

THE  crossing  of  the  rivers  by  the  use  of  high  masts,  in 
America,  proved  to  be  unreliable  and  very  expensive.  Yery 
often  the  wires  would  break  and  others  would  have  to  be  sub- 
stituted. High  winds,  sleet,  snow-storms,  and  even  frost,  were 
severe  enemies  to  the  wires.  The  time  required  for  the  repair 
sometimes  amounted  to  a  day  or  more.  Such  fatalities  bore 
heavily  upon  the  prosperity  of  the  telegraph.  The  public,  ever 
restless  to  complain,  could  not  appreciate  the  difficulties  en- 
countered. The  people,  however,  was  not  so  much  incommoded 
as  the  treasury  of  the  telegraph  company. 

Besides  the  breaking  of  the  wire  as  above  alluded  to,  the 
masts  were  often  torn  to  pieces  by  the  storms.  I  will  give  an 
example  of  the  fatality  of  some  of  those  masts  constructed  by 
me.  Early  after  the  completion  of  those  on  the  Mississippi,  a 
tornado  swept  over  that  part  of  the  country,  and  levelled  houses, 
*trees,  and  the  telegraphs.  Large  brick  houses  in  the  city  of 
Cape  Girardeau  were  torn  to  pieces.  Frame  buildings  were 
scattered  in  different  directions.  Steamers  at  the  river  side 
were  wrecked.  Several  hundred  large  trees,  as  much  as  four 
feet  in  diameter  at  base,  were  twisted  to  pieces.  The  breadth 
of  the  terrific  tornado  was  about  one  mile.  It  included  in  its 
devastating  power  the  telegraph  masts ;  and  they,  too,  were 
swept  from  their  iron-bound  fastenings,  and  parts  of  them 
carried  in  the  wind  several  miles.  A  few  lives  were  lost.  In 
its  course  up  the  river  it  even  checked  the  dashing  current  of 
the  father  of  waters.  The  mighty  storm  came  in  an  instant, 
and  everything  within  its  reach  was  demolished.  It  left  behind 

599 


600  AMERICAN  SUBMARINE  TELEGRAPHS. 

a  calm,  and  the  monuments  of  ruin  were  to  be  seen  in  every 
direction.  This  memorable  event  was  on  the  27th  of  Novem- 
ber, 1850. 

The  mast  constructed  on  the  island  at  the  crossing  of  the 
Ohio  river  was  swept  away  by  the  great  flood  in  January,  1851. 
Soon  after  that  was  repaired,  some  evil-disposed  persons  cut 
down  the  one  at  the  Tennessee  crossing.  A  few  days  thereafter 
the  one  on  the  Illinois  side  of  the  Ohio  river  was  destroyed  by 
a.  hurricane  ;  and  a  few  weeks  thereafter  the  great  mast  on  the 
Kentucky  side,  307  feet  high,  was  torn  to  pieces  by  a  tornado. 
The  five  masts  just  mentioned  were  erected  and  destroyed 
within  a  space  of  six  months. 

ADOPTION    OF    SUBMARINE    CABLES. 

It  was  during  these  misfortunes  that  my  attention  was  called 
to  the  practicability  of  submarine  crossings.  Grutta-percha 
insulated  wire  had  been  found  to  be  successful  in  tide-water 
streams,  but  to  meet  the  powerful  currents  of  the  Mississippi 
and  Ohio  rivers  no  plan  had  been  devised  commensurate  with 
the  circumstances.  During  low  water  I  had  submerged  No. 
10  iron  wires  covered  with  three  coatings  of  gutta-percha,  but 
they  lasted  but  a  short  time.  The  sand  that  thickens  the  water 
of  the  Mississippi  river  would  wear  off  the  gutta-percha  and 
leave  the  iron  wire  bare.  I  found  many  such  interruptions. 
In  order  to  protect  the  insulation  from  being  tlius  worn  off,  I 
had  it  covered  with  three  coatings  of  osnaburg  well  saturated 
with  tar ;  and  in  order  to  hold  the  osnaburg  on  the  insulated 
wire,  I  had  six  No.  10  wires  lashed  to  it  the  whole  length,  laid 
laterally.  These  wires  were  then  tied,  by  lashing  around 
them  a  No.  16  iron  wire  about  every  twenty  inches.  When 
this  cable  was  laid,  like  all  the  rest,  it  worked  well  for  a  few 
months  and  then  failed  for  ever.  Soon  after  this  effort  was 
made,  Mr.  J.  H.  Wade  was  completing  his  line  from  the  east  to 
St.  Louis.  The  crossing  of  the  river  was  under  the  direction 
of  Mr.  Andrew  Wade.  I  informed  him  of  my  experiments, 
and  he  concluded  to  cover  the  insulated  wire  entire  with  lateral 
wires  laid  on  to  the  gutta-percha.  They  were  fastened  with 
ties  of  small  wire  at  every  twelve  inches.  He  constructed  the 
cable  in  that  manner,  and  it  proved  to  be  a  success. 

THE  SUBMARINE  CABLES  PERFECTED. 

After  this  I  had  made  several  cables,  with  some  additions  to 
the  plan  adopted  by  Mr.  Wade.  Fig.  1  represents  the  cable  as 
finally  improved  by  me,  in  the  perfection  of  which,  however,  I 


SUBMERGING  OF  THE  CABLE. 


601 


was    aided  by  Mr.  John  B.  Sleeth,  an  experienced  mechanical 
engineer.     Letter  a,  the  electric  conductor,  is  a  No.  10  iron 
made  from  the  best  Swedish  bar,  and  drawn  with  great 


o 

wire, 


Fig,  1. 


care,  being  capable  of  sustaining  a 
strain  of  1,300  pounds,  b  is  the 
gutta  percha  insulation,  being  three  a 
coatings  carefully  manufactured,  c 
the  three  coverings  of  osnaburg, 
saturated  with  a  composition  made 
of  tar,  rosin  and  tallow,  d  are  the 
No.  10  lateral  wires,  and  e  the  bind-  b 
ing  wire  of  No.  12  gauge,  placed 
spirally  around  the  whole  cable. 
Several  of  these  cables  were  laid  in 
1853,  and  some  of  them  are  being 
worked  at  the  present  time. 

In  manufacturing  these  cables  we  c 
did  not  have  the  convenience  of 
machinery  and  the  variety  of  mechan- 
ical appliances  common  to  populated 
countries.  We  were  in  the  West,  ^ 
the  great  West,  in  the  shades  of  the 
forest.  The  earth  was  our  floor,  the 
blue  arched  heaven  our  canopy,  and 
the  horizon  the  only  limit  of  our 
saloon.  Fig.  2  (overleaf)  is  a  repre-  e 
sentation  of  the  making  of  the  cable. 
The  reel  is  seen  on  the  left.  At  the 
tree  a  wedge  holds  fast  the  finished 
cable.  The  men  are  engaged  in 
putting  on  the  binding  wires.  The 
circular  board  around  which  ythe 
lateral  wires  are  spread  is  moved  for- 
ward as  the  tie  process  requires.  The 
board  distributes  the  lateral  wires 
around  the  electric  conductor.  The 
gutta-percha  insulated  wire,  cover- 
ed with  the  osnaburg,  runs  through  a  hole  in  the  centre  of 
the  circular  board.  To  avoid  confusion,  the  insulated  wire 
has  been  left  out  of  the  figure. 

SUBMERGING  OF  THE  CABLE. 

When  the  cable  has  been  finished  it  is  ready  to  be  sub- 
merged. The  frame  is  erected  in  a  boat  and  the  reel  suspend- 
ed, as  seen  in  fig.  3.  The  oarsmen  then  perform  their  task, 


602 


AMERICAN    SUBMARINE    TELEGRAPHS. 
Fig.  2. 


and  as  fast  as  possible  the  boat  is  rowed  across  the  stream. 
The  cable  is  paid  out  as  fast  as  necessary ;  but  the  faster  the 
boat  traverses  the  stream  the  better  and  more  certain  will  be 
the  success.  Sometimes  it  was  possible  to  get  small  steam 
ferry-boats  to  tow  the  cable-boat  across  the  river,  but  this 
could  not  always  be  done. 

Fig.  3. 


When  the  Merrimac  cable  was  laid,  we  toiled  through  the 
gloom  of  night.  The  sun  had  gone  far  behind  the  western 
horizon.  The  moon  had  come  and  gone,  as  though  it  was 
hurrying  after  the  god  of  day  that  had  just  withdrawn  its  last 
ray ;  the  stars  remained,  and  from  the  blue  depths  of  their 


603 

abode  their  glimmering  beams  added  to  make  the  scene  sub- 
lime. In  the  stillness  of  night,  surrounded  by  a  deep  and 
dismal  forest,  where  the  foot  of  man  had  seldom  trod,  we 
were  busily  engaged  in  preparing  a  pathway  for  a  messenger, 
mantled  in  a  flame,  that  was  to  be  the  first  to  greet  the  rising 
sun  in  the  east  and  the  last  to  bid  it  adieu  in  the  far  west — 
to  carry  tidings  from  the  ice-bound  north  to  the  green  palm 
and  blooming  magnolia  regions  of  the  south.  Our  couch  was 
God's  footstool,  and  we  were  sheltered  from  the  dews  of  heaven 
by  the  forest  foliage.  We  were  lulled  to  sleep  by  the  croaking 
of  ^the  frog,  the  chirping  of  the  cricket,  the  whooping  of  the 
owl  and  the  yell  of  the  panther  !  Time  can  never  erase  from 
the  mind  the  reininiscences  of  those  scenes — eternity  alone 
can  pass  them  beyond  the  pale  of  memory. 

Besides  the  cables  constructed  under  my  direction,  many 
others  were  made  and  submerged  in  different  parts  of  America, 
of  which  there  was  one  at  St.  Louis  for  the  O'Rielly  line,  one 
at  Cincinnati  for  the  House  line,  another  at  New  Orleans  for 
the  Balize  line,  several  across  the  Hudson  at  New- York,  several 
on  the  seaboard  line  to  New-Orleans,  and  many  others  across 
streams  and  narrow  bays. 

BISHOP'S  SUBMARINE  CABLES. 

These  cables  have  been  constructed  to  meet  their  special 
cases.  Among  those  thus  employed  may  be  mentioned  ^ome 
that  have  been  laid  by  Mr.  S.  C.  Bishop  of  New- York,  the 
gutta-percha  manufacturer  of  America.  The  first  cables  laid 
by  this  gentleman  were  those  of  iron  wire,  covered  with  three 
coatings  of  gutta-percha,  to  which  were  attached  lead  sinkers. 
After  they  had  been  submerged  a  few  months  the  insulation 
was  found  to  be  chafed  off  at  the  sinkers,  and  then  Mr.  Bishop 
adopted  the  style  and  protective  coverings  represented  by  figs. 
4  and  5. 

Fig.  4  is  a  representation  of  a  cable  laid  across  the  Hudson 
river  for  the  Magnetic  Telegraph  Company,  and  successfully 
worked.  Letter  a  is  the  electric  wires  of  copper,  b  is  the 
gutta-percha  coverings  around  the  copper  wires  singly,  c  is  a 
gutta-percha  covering  around  the  insulated  copper  wires,  and 
d  is  a  spiral  covering  of  tarred  hempen  yarn.  Over  this  cover 
can  be  laid  an  armor  of  wires  of  any  required  size.  Fig.  5 
is  another  form  successfully  operated,  which  was  also  devised 
by  Mr.  Bishop.  The  three  electric  wires  a  are  No.  10  Swe- 
dish iron,  each  of  1,300  pounds  strength.  The  interior  b  and 
the  covering  c  are  gutta-percha,  and  d  is  the  exterior  protective 
covering  of  tarred  hempen  yarn,  as  in  fig.  4. 


604  AMERICAN  SUBMARINE  TELEGRAPHS. 

Fig.  4.  Fig.  5. 


CHESTER'S  CABLE  MANUFACTORY. 

an  auxiliary  in  the  production  of  telegraph  cables,  Messrs. 
Charles  T.  and  J.  N.  Chester  of  New- York,  have  constructed 
machinery  for  the  covering  of  gutta-percha  insulated  wires 
with  hempen  yarn,  and  an  iron  armor,  as  seen  in  figs.  6,  7, 
8,  9,  10,  and  13.  I  have  examined  the  machinery  employed 
by  these  gentlemen,  for  the  covering  of  cables,  and  its  opera- 
tion is  as  perfect  as  any  other  to  be  found  on  either  continent. 
Fig.  6  is  composed  of  five  conducting  wires  of  copper,  each 
insulated  with  gutta-percha,  the  whole  surrounded  with  tarred 
hempen  yarn,  and  then  with  an  armor  of  twelve  No.  6  iron 
wires.  Fig.  7  has  one  conducting  copper  wire,  with  an  armor 
of  twelve  No.  10  iron  wires.  Fig.  8  has  one  conducting  wire 
and  an  armor  of  twelve  No.  12  iron  wires.  Fig.  9  has  one 
conducting  wire  with  an  armor  of  nine  No.  12  iron  wires. 
Fig.  10  has  three  conducting  wires,  with  an  armor  of  twelve 
No.  6  iron  wires  ;  and  fig.  13  has  one  conducting  wire,  with 
twelve  No.  16  iron  wires.  These  different  kinds  of  cables  are 
made  to  comply  with  the  necessities  of  different  lines  or  places, 
and  have  worked  with  the  most  complete  success. 


CHESTER'S  CABLE  MANUFACTORY. 

Fig.  6.  Fig.  7.  Fig.  8. 


Fig.  10. 


Fig.  11. 


605 

Fig.  9. 


Fig.  12.  Fig.  13. 


606  AMERICAN  SUBMARINE    TELEGRAPHS. 

In  order  to  give  increased  strength  to  the  cable,  in  resisting 
the  great  currents  of  the  western  streams,  such,  for  example, 
as  the  Ohio,  Mississippi,  and  Missouri  rivers,  the  Messrs.  Chester 
have  devised  the  forms  seen  by  figs.  11  and  12.  Placing  the 
conducting  wire  or  wires  in  the  interior  of  these  iron  cords,  it  is 
believed  that  they  will  more  successfully  resist  the  power  of 
the  currents  in  those  streams.  Fig.  11  will  resist  a  strain  of 
14  tons.  The  reader  may  be  surprised  to  learn  that  such 
powerful  cables  are  necessary  to  be  submerged  in  the  western 
rivers,  but  it  must  be  remembered  that  there  are  thousands  of 
floating  trees  descending  those  rivers,  and  their  roots  drag  on 
the  bottom,  catching  into  everything  in  their  course.  Suppose 
a  tree  is  held  by  the  cable,  the  whole  current  bearing  upon 
that  tree  will  be  the  strain  against  the  cable ;  but,  besides 
this,  other  trees  descending  are  stopped  by  the  one  fastened  to 
the  cable,  and  they  continue  to  gather,  until  they  are  released 
from  their  iron  shackles  and  allowed  to  go  on  to  the  ocean  free 
and  unhindered. 

LEADEN-COVERED  TELEGRAPH  WIRES. 

In  order  to  cross  swamps  and  marshy  countries,  and  to  protect 
the  insulation  for  subterranean  and  subaqueous  purposes  gener- 
ally, Mr.  Bishop  has  constructed  extensive  machinery  for  the 
covering  of  the  insulated  wire  with  lead  of  any  required  thick- 
ness. These  leaden  covered  wires  have  been  extensively  em- 
ployed, and  have  thus  far  proved  to  be  durable  and  perfect  as 
to  insulation.  Some  of  these  wires  have  been  buried  in  earth 
and  water  several  years,  and  thus  far  show  no  signs  of  decay. 
One  of  these  leaden  covered  wires  extends  from  the  central 
telegraph  station  in  the  city  of  Washington  to  the  Capitol  of 
the  United  States,  connecting  with  the  telegraph  apparatus  in 
the  rear  of  the  speaker's  chair  of  the  House  of  Representatives. 
From  the  Capitol  the  proceedings  of  Congress  are  transmitted 
to  different  parts  of  America.  By  this  arrangement  the  Pres- 
ident's message,  on  being  read  in  Congress,  can  be  transmitted 
on  the  radiating  wires  east,  west,  north,  and  south,  and  com 
municated  simultaneously  to  millions  of  people. 


EUROPEAN  SUBMARINE  TELEGRAPHS. 


CHAPTER    XLIII. 

The  English  and  French  Cables — Mode  of  Shipping  and  Submerging  Cables — 
Holyhead  and  Howth  Telegraph— The  Irish  Channel  Cable  of  1852— The 
English  and  Belgian  Submarine  Telegraph — Donaghadee  and  Port  Patrick 
Submarine  Line — English  and  Holland  Submarine  Cable — Prince  Edward's 
Island  Cable — Danish  Baltic  Sea  Telegraph — The  Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence 
Telegraph — The  Balize,  Hudson  and  Zuyder  Zee  Cables — The  Black  Sea 
Telegraphs — The  Mediterranean  Submarine  Telegraph  Lines. 

THE    ENGLISH  AND  FRENCH    CABLES. 

HAVING  fully  explained  in  another  chapter  the  different  sub- 
marine telegraph  conductors  as  employed  in  America,  I  will  in 
this  refer  tt5  those  of  Europe,  where  that  department  of  the 
telegraph  enterprise  has  been  carried  out  to  a  far  more  extended 
degree. 

The  first  prominent  undertaking  was  that  for  the  connection 
of  England  with  France  by  a  subaqueous  conductor  across 
the  channel  between  Dover  and  Calais.  >  A  concession  was  ob- 
tained for  this  purpose  from  the  French  government,  but  upon 
the  condition  that  the  connection  by  telegraph  was  to  be 
effected  before  September,  1850.  On  the  27th  of  August, 
1850,  a  cable  was  laid  across  the  channel,  and  communication 
was  made,  telegraphically,  through  the  wire.  Unfortunately 
this  grand  enterprise  was  interrupted  by  the  action  of  the 
waves,  which  produced  a  movement  of  the  cable  upon  the  rocks 
near  the  shore  at  Cape  Grinez,  by  which  the  gutta-percha  in- 
sulation was  chafed  entirely  from  the  conducting  wire.  This 
cable  was  composed  of  an  electric  copper  wire  No.  14,  and 
covered  with  three  substantial  coatings  of  gutta-percha.  It 
was  weighted  to  the  bottom  of  the  sea  by  lead  sinkers.  Its 
length  wras  thirty  miles,  and  the  width  of  the  channel  was 
twenty-one  miles.  I  have  a  piece  of  this  cable  taken  from  the 
sea  after  it  had  been  submerged  some  five  years.  The  gutta- 

607 


608 


EUROPEAN  SUBMARINE  TELEGRAPHS. 


percha  was  then  and  is  now  in  good  condition  and  as  solid  as 
when  first  made  ;  and  notwithstanding  it  has  been  kept  dry, 
it  maintains  its  solidity  and  gives  no  evidence  of  decay.  Bar- 
nacles and  sea-weed  had  formed  upon  it ;  and  from  every  indi- 
cation there  are  reasons  to  believe  that  the  gutta-percha  as  a 
substance  would  have  remained  a  perfect  insulation  for  all 
time  to  come. 

The  working  of  the  cable  was  sufficient  to  maintain  the  in- 
tegrity of  the  concession,  and  therefore  it  was  respected  in 


good  faith. 


Fig.  1.— Dover  Cable. 


In  the  year  1851  another  cable  was 
prepared  by  Messrs.  Newall  &  Co.,  of 
Grateshead.  The  energy  and  superior 
skill  of  these  gentlemen  were  emi- 
nently successful  in  the  production  of 
a  cable  equal  in  every  respect  to  the 
emergencies  of  the  enterprise.  It  was 
a  noble  achievement  in  mechanics. 
The  triumphant  success  in  the  inven- 
tion of  that  cable  was  the  grandest  part 
of  the  enterprise.  Fig.  1  represents 
the  construction  of  the  cable  above  re- 
ferred to  :  a  are  four  conducting  wires, 
No.  16,  copper ;  b  is  a  cord  of  tarred 
hemp,  slightly  twisted ;  c  represents 
the  gutta-percha  around  the  copper 
wires ;  d  are  hempen  cords  like  b ;  e 
is  a  serving  of  tarred  hemp  spirally 
twisted  around  the  core  composed  of 
a,  by  c  and  d ;  and  /,  the  iron  wires, 
spirally  laid,  as  eeon  in  the  figure. — 
These  ten  iron  wires  were  galvanized 
with  zinc  and  tightly  laid  around  the 
interior  combination  with  great  care, 
by  a  perfect  organization  of  machinery. 
1 1  This  cable  was  successfully  laid  on 
ithe  17th  of  October,  1851,  from  Dover 
to  Calais.  It  was  25  miles  long,  and 
I  manufactured  in  the  short  space  of 
i  three  weeks.  The  cost  of  the  cable 
I  was  d£360  per  mile,  and  the  total  cost 
/  of  the  undertaking  was  estimated  at 
£  15,000.  Its  weight  per  mile  was  seven 
tons.  On  its  completion,  the  four  con- 
ducting wires  were  found  to  be  per- 


MODE  OF  SHIPPING  AND  SUBMERGING. 


609 


fectly  insulated,  and  operated  with  the  most  complete  success. 
The  success  of  this  enterprise  opened  a  new  era  in  telegraphing 
I  have  a  section  of  this  cable  after  it  had  been  submerged 
four  years,  and  although  a  part  of  the  galvanized  surface  of 
the  exterior  armor  seems  to  have  been  eaten  away  or  chafed 
off  in  the  sea,  it  is,  as  a  whole,  perfect  as  it  was  the  day  it 
was  laid.  .Fig.  2  is  another  representation  of  a  section  of  this 
cable.  The  transverse  section  is  the  natural  size. 


Fig.  2.— Dover  Cable. 


Fig.  3.— Holyhead 

and  Howth. 
Deep  sea  part. 


Fig.  4.— Holyhead 
and  Howth. 
Shore  ends. 


MODE  OF  SHIPPING  AND  SUBMERGING  TELEGRAPH  CABLES. 

Before  entering  into  a  detailed  explanation  of  the  respective 
cables  adopted  in  Europe,  I  will  briefly  refer  to  the  manner  of 
submerging  them  from  the  vessel. 

39 


610 


EUROPEAN  SUBMARINE  TELEGRAPHS. 
Fig.   5. 


Fig.  6. 


HOLYHEAD  AND  HOWTH  SUBMARINE  TELEGRAPH.      611 

Fig  5  represents  the  coiling  of  the  cable  in  the  hold  of  the 
ship.  This  and  the  next  figure  have  been  copied  from  the 
London  Illustrated  News,  and  they  are  excellent  representations 
of  the  subjects.  I  was  present  and  witnessed  the  coiling-  of  a 
section  of  the  great  Mediterranean  cable  in  the  vessel  at 
Greenwich,  near  London,  in  1854,  and  the  scene  represented 
by  fig.  5  was  taken  on  that  occasion.  In  like  manner  other 
cables  have  been  coiled  in  the  vessel,  proper  care  always  being 
taken  to  prevent  twists  or  kinks  of  any  kind.  When  the  cable 
is  thus  properly  placed  in  the  ship,  it  will  pay  out  into  the  sea 
without  hazard,  except  when  interfered  with  by  storm  or  un- 
foreseen causes. 

Fig.  6  represents  the  paying  out  of  the  cable  from  the  deck 
of  the  vessel  into  the  sea.  The  cable  ascends  from  the  hold 
of  the  ship  and  passing  between  guide  rollers,  as  seen  to  the 
right  in  the  figure,  passes  on  to  the  break  drum,  and  after  en- 
circling that  some  two,  three  or  more  times,  as  circumstances 
require,  it  is  conducted  over  the  stern  of  the  vessel  and  dropped 
into  the  water,  where  it  soon  finds  a  resting-place  upon  the 
bottom,  far  below  the  influence  •  of  storm  and  tempest,  and 
where  it  is  supposed  by  philosophers  there  are  no  movements 
of  the  mighty  waters  nor  a  single  element  to  disturb  its  quiet 
repose.  The  mechanism  adopted  for  the  paying  out  of  cables 
is  not  always  the  same,  though  in  general  principle  there  is 
but  little  difference.  Circumstances  may  require  an  occasional 
modification  of  certain  parts,  yet  every  plan  contemplates  the 
attainment  of  two  essential  considerations;  first,  the  paying 
out  of  the  cable  to  avoid  kinks  or  any  kind  of  entanglement ; 
and  second,  to*  pay  it  out  at  a  speed  commensurate  with  that 
of  the  vessel. 

HOLYHEAD  AND  HOWTH  SUBMARINE  TELEGRAPH. 

The  most  remarkable  feat  ever  performed  in  the  laying  of  a 
cable  was  in  connection  with  that  from  Holyhead  on  the 
Welsh  coast,  to  Howth  on  the  coast  of  Ireland,  on  June  1st, 
1852,  by  Messrs.  Newall  &  Co.  Several  companies  had  been 
projected  to  carry  out  the  telegraphic  connection  between  Ire- 
land and  England  on  the  route  above  mentioned.  Capital  was 
being  raised  and  great  arrangements  were  being  perfected  to 
accomplish  the  gigantic  undertaking.  The  distance  across  the 
channel  was  sixty  miles,  and  it  was  estimated  that  at  least  ten 
miles  plus  would  be  required  in  submerging  it.  The  length 
of  wire  was  insulated  with  gutta-percha  by  Messrs.  Statham 
&  Co.,  at  their  extensive  establishment  in  London.  It  was 
then  shipped  to  Messrs.  Newall  &  Co.,  at  (rateshead  on  the 


612 


EUROPEAN  SUBMARINE  TELEGRAPHS. 


Tyne,  where  it  was  enveloped  with  its  iron  armor  in  the 
short  space  of  four  weeks.  This  cable  was  made  for  the  deep 
and  for  the  shoal  water,  as  represented  by  figs.  3  and  4. 

The  former  was  for  the  deep  water  and  made  light,  as  will  be 
seen  from  the  figure,  which  represents  the  full  size  of  the  cable. 
Its  weight  was  a  little  less  than  one  ton  per  mile,  making 
a  total  of  about  eighty  tons.  The  shore  ends  will  be  seen  by 
reference  to  fig.  4,  being  surrounded  with  larger  wires,  forming 
an  armor  capable  of  resisting  the  waves  on  the  rocky  coast. 

The  cable  was  completed  and  conveyed  across  England  to 
Maryport  on  the  railway.  At  Maryport  it  was  placed  on  board 
the  vessel  and  transported  to  Holyhead.  One  end  was  carried 
on  shore  and  made  fast,  the  vessel  then  proceeded  to  submerge 
it  across  the  channel.  The  depth  was  seventy  fathoms.  Sixty- 
four  miles  of  the  cable  were  successfully  laid  and  operated. 
After  the  third  day  it  failed.  It  was  supposed  at  the  time  that 
the  anchor  of  a  vessel  had  produced  a  separation  of  the  wires, 
and  on  being  taken  up  they  were  found  broken  and  very  badly 
stretched.  This  was  near  the  Irish  shore.  About  a  year  after 
the  failure  of  this  cable,  a  ship  having  made  a  cruise  to  South 
America,  arrived  at  New- York  with  a  piece  of  the  cable  which 
had  been  cut  or  broken  off  by  the  sailors.  It  was  not  until 
after  the  arrival  of  the  vessel  in  America,  that  the  sailors  or  any 
of  the  crew  knew  what  the  great  and  mysterious  prize  was 
that  they  had  kept  with  such  care.  t 

THE  IRISH  CHANNEL  CABLE  OF   1852. 

In  the  month  of  October,  1852,  Messrs.  Newall  &  Co.  em- 
barked whh  another  cable  across  the  Irish  channel,  connecting 
Scotland  with  Ireland,  at  the  narrow  part  of  the  channel,  be- 
tween Donaghadee  and  Port  Patrick.  This  cable  is  represented 
by  fig.  7,  the  construction  of  which  will  be  readily  understood 
by  the  reader.  The  vessel  while  laying  this  cable  and  sixteen 
miles  from  shore  encountered  a  severe  gale,  and  it  was  impossi- 
ble to  steer  it  in  the  proper  course.  To  hold  out  against  the 
Fig.  7.— Irish  Channel  Cable. 


THE  DOVER  AND  OSTEND  CABLE. 


613 


storm  much  of  the  cable  would  have  been  lost  in  the  sea,  and 
the  remainder  on  board  would  not  have  been  enough  to  have 
reached  the  opposite  shore,  although  the  vessel  was  within 
seven  miles  of  the  Irish  coast,  and  had  nine  miles  of  cable  on 
board.  It  was  deemed  necessary  to  cut  the  cable,  which 
was  promptly  done,  and  the  sixteen  miles  lay  at  the  bottom 
as  a  treasure  of  the  sea.  In  1854,  this  cable  was  raised  by 
Messrs.  Newall  &  Co.,  and  pieces  of  it  were  shown  me  by  those 
gentlemen  in  London.  It  was  found  to  be  perfect  and  the 
wire  but  little  decayed.  A  crust  of  barnacles  was  formed  over 
it,  and  there  can  be  no  doubt  but  that  it  would  have  continued 
good  for  all  time. 

It  was  a  vast  undertaking  to  elevate  that  cable.  The  water 
was  150  fathoms  deep.  Some  of  the  cable  was  buried  in  the 
sand,  other  parts  covered  with  sea- weed,  and  other  parts  with 
barnacles  or  various  kinds  of  shells.  With  the  aid  of  a  powerful 
engine  the  cable  was  recovered.  On  testing  it  after  its  re- 
covery it  was  found  to  be  perfect  as  to  insulation. 

THE  DOVER  AND  OSTEND  CABLE. 

The  cable  between  Dover  and  Ostend  was  laid  on  the  6th  of 
May,  1853,  twenty  minutes  before  one  p.  M.  It  was  construct- 
ed by  Messrs.  Newall  &  Co.,  and  was  seventy  miles  long. 
This  was  the  greatest  and  most  memorable  accomplishment  of 
that  age.  It  was  a  triumph  in  art  that  will  for  ever  do  honor 
to  those  gentlemen.  Fig.  8  represents  this  cable,  containing  six 
wires.  The  armor  of  the  cable  is  composed  of  twelve  iron 
wires,  the  whole  capable  of  sustaining  a  strain  of  about  fifty 
tons.  The  inner  wire  did  not  prove  a  success.  It  weighed 
seven  tons  per  mile,  making  a  total  of  nearly  five  hundred  tons. 
It  was  manufactured  in  one  hundred  days,  and  cost  £33,000. 
It  required  seventy  hours  to  coil  it  in  the  ship,  and  it  was  sub- 
merged in  the  sea  from  Dover  to  Ostend  in  eighteen  hours.  Up 

Fig.  8.— Dover  and  Ostend  Cable. 


614 


EUROPEAN  SUBMARINE  TELEGRAPHS. 


to  that  time  there  had  been  no  achievement  in  telegraphing 
equalling  that  stupendous  undertaking,  and  there  never  was  an 
enterprise  crowned  with  more  signal  success.  The  industry 
and  enterprise  of  those  gentlemen  seetii  to  have  had  no 
bounds ;  for  wherever  there  has  been  an  opening  to  extend  the 
lightning  flash  they  have  always  been  foremost,  and  no  ob- 
stacles, however  great,  have  ever  checked  them  in  their  career. 

THE  DONAGHADEE    AND    PORT    PATRICK    SUBMARINE    LINE. 

After  the  success  in  the  submerging  of  the  Dover  and  Ostend 
cable,  Messrs.  Newall  &  Co.  renewed  their  efforts,  to  lay  a  cable 
between  Donaghadee  (Ireland)  and  Port  Patrick  (Scotland), 
across  the  Irish  channel.  This  cable  was  of  the  same  size  and 

Fig.  9. — Donaghadee  and  Port  Patrick  Cable. 


r 


weight  as  fig.  8,  but  the  con- 
ducting wires  were  differently 
arranged,  as*  will  be  seen  by 
reference  to  fig.  9,  which  is  a 
representation  of  it  in  its  proper 
size.  The  arrangement  of  the 
interior  wires  proved  a  complete 
success,  each  being  perfectly  in- 
sulated from  the  other  so  that  each  was  capable  of  being 
serviceable  for  telegraphic  purposes.  This  cable  was  manu- 
factured in  the  short  space  of  twenty-four  days  by  Messrs. 
Newall  &  Co.  The  cost  of  it  was  about  £13,000.  It  was 
laid  for  the  Magnetic  Telegraph  Company.  Another  cable  of 
the  same  make  was  laid  across  the  channel  at  the  same  place 
for  the  British  Telegraph  Company. 

ENGLAND  AND  HOLLAND  SUBMARINE  TELEGRAPH. 

I  have  already  described  the  cables  connecting  England 
with  France  and  Belgium,  and  1  now  come  to  notice  the  tele- 
graphic connection  between  England  and  Holland. 


ENGLAND    AND    HOLLAND    SUBMARINE    LINE.  615 

Fig.  10. — Orfordness  and  the  Hague  Cable. 


The  cable  is  laid  between  Orfordness  on  the  Suffolk  coast, 
and  the  Hague  in  Holland.  There  are  now  three  cables  laid 
between  these  places,  each  of  which  has  one  conducting  wire, 
and  covered  with  an  armor  of  twelve  iron  wires.  They  are 


616 


EUROPEAN  SUBMARINE  TELEGRAPHS. 


laid  some  three  miles  apart  across  the  channel,  and  near  the 
shore  they  are  connected  together  in  one  great  cable  as  repre- 
sented by  fig.*  10.  The  shre  ends  are  made  as  seen  in  the 
figure,  being  composed  of  seven  lesser  cables,  such  as  are  laid 
in  the  sea,  twisted  together,  forming  one  of  great  strength  and 
size.  It  is  intended  to  lay  the  other  four  across  the  sea  when- 
ever the  business  requires  them. 

PRINCE  EDWARD'S  ISLAND  CABLE. 

A  submarine  cable  manufactured  by  Messrs.  Newall  &  Co., 
as  represented  by  fig.  11,  was  laid  in  1852  between  Prince 
Edward's  Island  and  New  Brunswick,  a  distance  of  ten  miles. 
It  worked  successfully.  This  was  intended  as  a  part  of  the 
telegraph,  designed  to  run  from  Prince  Edward's  Island  to 
the  island  of  St.  Paul,  or  to  the  west  coast  of  Newfoundland. 

Fig.  11'.— Prince  Edward's  Island  Cable. 


THE  DANISH  BALTIC  SEA  TELEGRAPH. 

Fig.  12  represents  the  cable  constructed  for  the  Danish  gov- 
ernment and  laid  across  the  great  belt  of  the  Baltic  sea.  It 
runs  from  Nyborg  to  Korsoe  on  the  Island  of  Zealand,  connect- 
ing there  with  the  line  to  Copenhagen.  This  cable  has  three 
electric  wires  well  insulated  and  surrounded  with  an  armor 
of  nine  large  iron  wires.  The  cable  completed  the  telegraphic 
connection  between  Denmark  and  the  other  states  of  Europe, 
and  by  another  cable  laid  across  the  Sound  in  1854,  a  connec- 
tion was  formed  between  Denmark,  Norway  and  Sweden.  It 
was  necessary  that  the  cable  laid  across'  the  belts  of  the  Bal- 
tic should  be  very  strong,  because  it  was  liable  to  be  drawn 

Fig.  12.— Great  Belt  Cable. 


THE  BALIZE,  HUDSON,  AND  ZUYDER-ZEE  CABLES.      617 

up  frequently  by  the  hundreds  of  vessels  that  annually  pass 
through  those  narrow  arms  of  the  sea.  The  one  adopted  has 
proved  to  be  a  success  in  every  particular. 

THE   GULF  OF   ST.  LAWRENCE  TELEGRAPH. 

The  New- York,  Newfoundland,  and  London  Telegraph  Com- 
pany, attempted  to  lay  a  cable  similar  in  construction  to  fig. 
12  across  the  Grulf  of  St.  Lawrence,  from  the  west  coast  of 
Newfoundland  to  the  east  coast  of  Nova  Scotia  in  August, 
1855,  but  owing  to  the  violence  of  a  storm  encountered  by  the 
steamer  during  the  submerging  of  it,  when  thirty-two  miles 
from  the  Newfoundland  coast,  the  cable  had  to  be  severed  from 
the  vessel.  Forty  miles  of  it  had*  been  paid  out,  and  it  was 
evident  that  the  remainder  on  Mard  could  not  have  reached 
the  opposite  coast.  Besides  this  lamentable  misfortune,  several 
kinks  had  been  made,  and  two  of  the  three  conducting  wires 
had  failed.  But  one  was  left.  The  route  of  the  vessel  was 
then  changed  toward  St.  Paul's  Island,  but  the  sea  was  so 
high  and  the  gale  so  violent,  that  the  further  laying  of  the 
cable  was  considered  impossible  without  the  most  imminent 
hazard  to  the  vessel  and  the  lives  on  board.  To  save  the  ves- 
sel and  those  on  board  the  cable  was  cut.  The  loss  was  serious 
and  one  deeply  to  be  regretted. 

In  1856,  another  cable  was  laid  across  the  Grulf  of  St.  Law- 
rence. This  latter  was  not  as  heavy  as  the  former  one  was, 
and  it  had  a  conducting  cord  made  of  four  small  copper  wires 
twisted  together.  This  electric  cord  was  evidently  an  improve- 
ment on  the  former  conductors.  It  gave  to  it  additional  strength 
and  conductibility.  It  has  worked  successfully  with  some  few 
slight  interruptions. 

THE  BALIZE,  HUDSON,  AND  ZUYDER-ZEE  CABLES. 

Fig.  13  represents  a  cable  constructed  by  Messrs.  Newall  & 
Co.  for  the  Balize  telegraph  at  New-Orleans.  It  has  been  suc- 
cessfully submerged  opposite  the  city  and  worked  with  entire 
satisfaction.  A  cable  like  fig.  13  has  been  made  by  the  same 
gentlemen  and  laid  across  the  Hudson  river  at  New- York  city. 
Several  other  cables  have  been  made  by  Messrs  Newall  &  Co., 
and  submerged  in  different  parts  of  America  and  worked  with 

Fig.  13. 


618  EUROPEAN    SUBMARINE  TELEGRAPHS. 

perfect  success.     A  cable  similar  to  fig.  7  was  laid  across  the 
Zuyder-Zee,  a  distance  of  five  miles. 

THE  BLACK  SEA  SUBMARINE  TELEGRAPHS. 

The  most  remarkable  submarine  telegraph  was  that  laid  by 
Messrs.  Newall  &  Co.  between  Varna  and  Balaclava,  one 
hundred  and  fifty  miles  across  the  Black  sea,  during  the  late 
war,  by  which,  with  another  two  hundred  miles  long  through 
the  sea  from  Varna  to  Constantinople,  the  whole  continent  was 
placed  in  telegraphic  communication  with  the  Crimea  and  the 
capital  of  Turkey.  These  lines,  however,  were  laid  for  gov- 
ernment service.  The  line  between  Varna  and  Constantinople 
consisted  of  one  copper  wile  thickly  insulated  with  gutta-per- 
cha and  covered  with  an  armr  of  iron  wires.  Its  weight  was 
about  two  hundred  tons.  The  line  between  Varna  and  Bala- 
clava was  a  No.  16  copper  wire,  covered  with  three  thin  coat- 
ings of  gutta-percha,  being  about  the  size  of  one  of  the  insu- 
lated wires  seen  in  fig.  1.  Near  the  shore  protecting  wires 
were  placed  around  it.  This  line  was  laid  by  Messrs.  Newall 
&  Co.  for  £22,000.  It  worked  with  the  most  complete  success. 
This  was  certainly  the  boldest  and  yet  most  triumphant  feat 
in  submarine  telegraphy.  It  has  not  its  parallel  in  all  history. 
It  is  wonderful  to  reflect  upon  this  extraordinary  enterprise, 
successfully  submerged  and  practically  worked  across  the  most 
restless  and  turbulent  sea  upon  the  face  of  the  earth.  While 
above  the  storm  raged,  strewing  the  ocean's  surface  with 
wrecks,  the  tiny  strand,  unaffected  by  the  tempest's  blast, 
quietly  lay  in  the  depths  below,  traversed  by  the  electric  fluid, 
giving  note  of  the  progress  of  that  war  of  empires  upon  the 
seagirt  battle-field  of  the  Crimea.  Imagination  pales  before 
such  achievements  of  daring  and  scientific  effort. 

THE  MEDITERRANEAN  SUBMARINE  TELEGRAPH  LINES. 

Another  very  remarkable  telegraphic  feat  is  that  of  connect- 
ing Europe  with  Africa,  for  the  consummation  of  which  conces- 
sions were  awarded  by  the  French  and  Sardinian  governments. 
The  right  was  given  to  transmit  intelligence  in  all  languages. 
The  concessions  were  to  extend  for  fifty  years  from  1853.  The 
line  runs  from  Spezzia  to  Corsica.  The  submarine  cable  con- 
necting these  two  places  has  six  conducting  wires,  as  seen  by 
fig.  14.  The  length  of  the  cable  is  one  hundred  and  ten  miles, 
of  which  twenty  miles  was  estimated  for  slack  in  the  sea.  I 
was  present  at  the  embarkation  of  the  cable  in  1854,  and  saw 
some  of  it  manufactured  by  Messrs.  Kuper  &  Co.,  at  Green- 
wich, near  London.  It  is  similar  in  construction  to  the  cable 


THE  MEDITTERRANEAN  SUBMARINE  LINES.  619 

Fig.  14. — Mediterranean  Cable. 


laid  across  the  Irish  channel  from  Donaghadee  to  Port  Patrick. 
In  the  laying  of  this  cable  from  Spezzia  to  Corsica  the  vessel 
encountered  a  very  severe  storm  and  for  a  while  there  were 
great  apprehensions  that  the  cable  would  be  lost.  Its  great 
strength  preserved  it.  From  the  termination  of  the  cable  on 
the  Island  of  Corsica  there  is  a  land  line  one  hundred  and 
twenty-eight  miles  in  length,  extending  to  the  Straits  of  Boni- 
facio, where  a  short  submarine  line  of  seven  miles  runs  to  the 
Island  of  Sardinia,  across  which  there  is  a  line  two  hundred 
and  three  miles  long,  terminating  at  Cape  Spartivento.  The 
consummation  of  telegraphic  connection  between  the  Island  of 
Sardinia  with  Africa  seems  to  have  been  surrounded  with  very 
great  difficulties.  Two  attempts  were  made,  under  the  direc- 
tion of  Mr.  John  W.  Brett,  to  make  the  connection,  but  both 
failed.  The  first  was  in  September,  1855,  with  a  cable  repre- 
sented by  fig.  14.  The  second  was  in  August  1856,  with  a 
cable  containing  a  four  strand  copper  cord  for  the  conducting 
wire,  surrounded  with  an  armor  of  iron  wires  similar  in  con- 
struction to  the  cable  laid  across  the  Grulf  of  St.  Lawrence. 


Fig.  15. 


In  September,  1857,  Messrs.  Newall  &  Co. 
contracted  to  lay  the  cable  at  their  own  risk. 
It  was  manufactured  by  them  and  was  com- 
posed of  an  organization  as  seen  by  figs.  15 
and  16 ;  the  former  being  the  deep-sea  cable 
and  the  latter  the  shore  ends. 

The  iron  armor  of  the  deep-sea  cable  was 
composed  of  eighteen  iron  wires,  and  that  of 
the  shore  end  twelve  iron  wires.  The  distance 
between  Bona  on  the  African  coast  to  Cape 
Spartivento,  Sardinia,  was  one  hundred  and 
twenty-five  miles.  Length  of  cable  on  board, 
one  hundred  and  sixty -two  miles.  Shore  cable 
six  miles. 


620  EUROPEAN  SUBMARINE  TELEGRAPHS. 

In  the  laying  of  the  above  cable  there  were  many  difficulties 
encountered.  The  length  of  cable  was  too  short,  and  after 
splicing  to  it  all  the  pieces  at  command,  when  the  vessel  was 
within  ten  miles  of  the  shore,  in  eighty  fathoms  of  water, 
it  was  lost.  This  lamentable  occurrence,  however,  did  not  seem 
to  daunt  the  heroic  contractors.  They  immediately  dispatched 
a  vessel  to  England  for  more  cable,  which  returned  to  Cagliari 
October  28th.  Measures  were  taken  to  recover  the  end  of  the 
cable  lost  in  the  sea,  and  on  the  30th  it  was  found  to  be  in  per- 
fect condition.  On  the  same  day  the  new  cable  was  spliced  to 
the  end  that  had  been  lost  in  the  sea.  At  1  p.  M.  the  cable 
was  safely  landed  on  shore.  At  4  p.  M.  on  the  30th  of  October, 
the  first  lightning  flash  from  Europe  to  Africa  was  accom- 
plished, adding  new  lustre  to  the  wide-spread  fame  of  Messrs. 
Newall  &  Co. 

The  next  grand  stride  in  the  extension  of  submarine  tele- 
graphy was  the  connection  of  Malta  and  Corfu  with  the  Island 
of  Sardinia.     This  was  also  executed  by  Messrs.  Newall  & 
Co.,  as  contractors  under  the  Mediterranean  company  extended. 
Fig  .17.  The  cable  which  was  laid  on  this  route  is 

represented  by  figs.  17  and  18,  the  former  for 
-:-  r')       the  deep  sea  and  the  latter  for  the  shore  ends. 
The  inside  or  electric  cord  is  composed  of  seven 
small  copper  wires  twisted  together,   forming 
a  cord.     The  outside  was  an  armor  of  eighteen 
^?\  small  iron  wires.     The  shore  ends,  as  seen  by 

fig.  18,  were  larger,  and  covered  with  ten  iron 
wires.  The  weight  of  the  deep-sea  cable  was 
1,960  pounds. 

The  Elba  arrived  at  Cagliari,  Sardinia,  on 
the  10th  of  No^amber,  1857,  having  on  board 
eight  hundred  miles  of  the  cable.  The  Despe- 
rate, of  Malta,  had  taken  the  soundings  on  the  route,  and  the 
Blazer  was  the  guide  ship.  On  the  13th  of  November  the 
vessals  sailed  to  St.  Eliza,  some  four  miles  south  of  Cagliari, 
where  the  cable  was  landed,  and  on  the  14th  the  ships  em- 
barked on  their  great  mission,  leaving  all  things  behind  in  per- 
fect order.  On  the  15th  a  very  severe  storm  arose,  and  at 
noon  it  was  so  violent  that  the  waves  ran  a  foot  deep  over  the 
deck  of  the  vessel.  The  ship  labored  in  the  turbulent  sea, 
and  at  the  time  the  paying  out  of  the  cable  was  very  irregular. 
At  eleven  o'clock  on  the  16th,  as  the  ship  was  contending 
against  the  waves,  a  heavy  sea  struck  it  with  great  violence 
and  threw  it  upon  its  side,  displacing  the  cable  from  its  coil. 
On  the  17th  the  Island  of  Groro  was  in  sight  and  soon  there- 


THE    MEDITERRANEAN    SUBMARINE    LINES.  621 

after  the  little  fleet  moored  in  St.  G-eorge's  Bay,  north  of  La 
Yalette,  Island  of  Malta.  The  whole  laying  occupied  seventy- 
two  hours.  Three  hundred  and  seventy  miles  of  cable  were 
paid  out.  The  electric  flash  was  transmitted  through  the  cable 
with  perfect  success. 

On  account  of  the  unfavorable  weather,  the  laying  of  the 
cable  from  Malta  to  Corfu  was  suspended,  and  it  was  deter- 
mined to  submerge  it  from  Corfu  to  Malta  to  avoid  head  winds. 
To  this  end  the  vessels  sailed  to  Corfu.  The  town  of  Corfu 
lies  on  the  east  side  of  the  island.  The  St.  Gordo  Bay  lies  on 
the  west  side,  where  the  cable  was  carried  ashore.  The  end 
of  the  cable  was  connected  with  the  land  line  which  runs  over 
the  island  to  the  town  of  Corfu. 

At  11  A.  M.,  on  the  1st  of  December,  1857,  the  fleet  sailed, 
the  Desperate  piloting  the  way  and  the  Blazer  serving  as  tender. 
The  weather  was  very  fine  and  prospect  of  success  encouraging. 
December  3d,  the  greatest  depth,  eight  thousand  feet,  had  been 
passed,  and  on  the  4th  at  noon  the  whole  cable  was  submerged 
without  accident.  The  vessel  anchored  in  St.  G-eorge's  Bay, 
and  the  cable  soon  thereafter  conducted  on  to  the  Malta  shore. 
Amount  paid  out,  four  hundred  miles,  and  the  time  occupied 
seventy- two  hours.  On  the  5th  the  news  of  the  great  triumph 
was  announced  in  London.  The  whole  cost  of  the  line  was 
d£125,000.  In  this  enterprise  the  intrepid  contractors  won  for 
themselves  and  their  nation  a  renown  more  brilliant  than  deeds 
achieved  at  the  cannon's  mouth. 


ATLANTIC  OCEAN  TELEGRAPHY, 


CHAPTER    XLIV. 

The  Atlantic  Telegraph  Company  organized — Principles  of  Philosophy  pre- 
sumed by  the  Company — The  Expedition  for  laying  the  Cable  in  1857 — The 
first  Expedition  of  1858— The  Second  Expedition  of  1858 — Working  of  the 
Telegraph  Cable — Cause  of  the  Failure  of  the  Cable  to  operate. 

ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  ATLANTIC  TELEGRAPH  COMPANY. 

To  whom  the  world  is  indebted  for  the  suggestion  of  an 
Atlantic  Telegraph  is  not  a  question  of  any  material  conse- 
quence. Those  who  devised  the  ways,  the  means,  and  the  ele- 
ments of  art,  in  the  consummation  of  the  enterprise,  are  the 
ones  to  whom  honor  is  due. 

The  character  of  this  work  renders  it  impossible  for  me  to 
mention  the  names  of  the  brave  and  dauntless  men  who  plann- 
ed and  executed  the  submersion  of  the  different  Atlantic  cables 
of  1857  and  1858,  having  in  view  the  connection  of  the  eastern 
with  the  western  hemispheres — Ireland  in  the  Old  World  with 
Newfoundland  in  the  New. 

"While  I  have  no  faith  that  a  telegraphic  cable,  laid  in  the 
ocean  two  thousand  miles,  can  be  made  available  for  practical 
telegraphic  purposes,  with  the  present  known  sciences,  it  is  but 
fair  to  say  that  there  are  those  of  high  scientific  attainments, 
who  have  the  fullest  confidence  in  the  ultimate  realization  of 
the  most  ^complete  success.  The  reasons  impelling  me  to 
disbelieve  in  the  practicability  of  the  enterprise  are  strictly 
scientific,  and  those  reasons  will  be  considered  elsewhere  in 
this  work,  in  explanation  of  voltaic  currents  and  their  trans- 
mission over  conductors  through  air,  and  on  subterranean  and 
submarine  lines. 

The  Atlantic  Telegraph  Company  was  registered  under 
the  Limited  Liability  Act  of  1856,  on  the  31st  of  October  of 
that  year. 

622 


PHILOSOPHICAL    PRINCIPLES    PRESUMED.  623 

On  the  5th  of  December,  in  the  same  year,  the  whole  of  the 
shares  had  been  fully  subscribed  for,  and  in  a  few  days  after- 
ward the  entire  deposit  of  £200  per  share  had  been  paid  up. 

On  the  9th  of  December,  1856,  the  Board  of  Directors  was 
appointed  by  the  shareholders.  The  first  business  before  the 
company  thus  organized,  was  the  selection  of  a  cable,  and 
after  much  careful  investigation,  the  one  adopted  was  as  re- 
presented by  fig.  1. 

This  cable  was  composed  of  7  small  copper  wires 
twisted  together,  forming  a  cord.  Around  this 
copper  cord,  was  placed  the  gutta  percha  insula- 
tion, carefully  manufactured.  Next  was  placed 
the  tarred  hempen  covering,  and  around  the  core 
thus  made  was  placed  the  iron  armor,  consisting 
of  18  cords  of  small  wire  as  seen  in  fig.  1.  There 
can  be  no  doubt  but  what  the  organization  of  the 
cable  was  as  perfect  as  could  be  devised.  It  might 
have  been  improved  by  making  it  a  little  more 
buoyant,  but  even  that  is  not  a  settled  fact.  It 
was  a  great  mechanical  work,  and  conceived  by  a 
master  thought.  On  the  31st  of  December  the  con- 
tracts for  2,500  miles  of  the  cable  were  concluded, 
the  whole  to  be  ready  by  the  first  week  in  July 
1857.  The  manufacturers  of  the  immense  cable, 
were  Messrs.  Newall  &  Co.,  and  Messrs.  Glass, 
Elliott  &  Co.,  London. 


PRINCIPLES    OF    PHILOSOPHY    PRESUMED    BY    THE     COMPANY. 

The  promoters  of  the  Atlantic  Telegraph,  as  a  preliminary, 
satisfied  themselves  that  the  following  philosophical  points 
were  true,  viz. : 

\  st.  That  telegraphic  signals  could  be  transmitted  without 
difficulty  through  the  required  distance  ; 

2d.  That  a  large  conducting  wire  was  not  required  for  the 
purpose ;  and 

3d.  That  the  communication  through  the  conductor  could 
be  effected  at  a  thoroughly  satisfactory  speed. 

Subsequent  investigation  induced  the  company  to  officially 
announce  the  following  as  established  facts  in  philosophy: 

1st.  That  gutta  percha  covered  submarine  wires  do  not 
transmit  as  simple  insulated  conductors,  but  that  they  have  to 
be  charged  as  Leyden  jars  before  they  can  transmit  at  all. 

2d    That  consequently  such  wires  transmit  with  a  velocity 


624  ATLANTIC  OCEAN  TELEGRAPHY. 

that  is  in  no  way  accordant  to  the  movement  of  the  electrical 
current  in  an  unembarrassed  way  along  the  simple  conductors  ; 

3d.  That  magneto-electric  currents  travel  more  quickly 
along  such  wires  than  simple  voltaic  currents; 

4th.  That  magneto-electric  currents  travel  more  quickly 
when  in  high  energy  than  when  in  low,  although  voltaic  cur- 
rents of  large  intensity  do  not  travel  more  quickly  than  voltaic 
currents  of  small  intensity  ; ' 

5th.  That  the  velocity  of  the  transmission  of  signals  along 
insulated  submerged  wires  can  be  enormously  increased,  from 
the  rate  indeed  of  one  in  two  seconds  to  the  rate  of  eight  in  a 
single  second,  by  making  each  alternate  signal  with  a  current 
of  different  quality,  positive  following  negative,  and  negative 
following  positive ; 

6th.  That  the  diminution  of  the  velocity  of  the  transmission 
of  a  magneto-electric  current,  in  induction-embarrassed  coated 
wires,  is  not  in  the  inverse  ratio  of  the  squares  of  the  distance 
traversed,  but  much  more  nearly  in  the  ratio  of  simple  arith- 
metical progression ; 

7th.  That  several  distinct  waves  of  electricity  may  be  trav- 
elling along  different  parts  of  a  long  wire  simultaneously,  and 
within  certain  limits,  without  interference  ; 

8th.  That  large  coated  wires  used  beneath  the  water  or 
earth  are  worse  conductors,  so  far  as  velocity  of  transmission  is 
concerned,  than  small  ones,  and  therefore  are  not  so  well  suited 
as  small  ones  for  the  purpose  of  submarine  transmission  of  tele- 
graphic signals ;  and 

9th.  That  by  the  use  of  comparatively  small  coated  wires, 
and  of  electro- magnetic  induction  coils  for  the  exciting  agents, 
telegraphic  signals  can  be  transmitted  through  two  thousand 
miles  with  a  speed  amply  sufficient  for  all  commercial  and 
economical  purposes. 

On  the  night  of  the  9th  of  October,  1856,  some  experiments 
were  instituted  which  were  regarded  of  great  importance. 
"Ten  gutta-percha  insulated  wires,  each  measuring  more  than 
200  miles,  were  connected,  so  that  one  continuous  circuit  of 
above  2,000  miles  was  formed.  There  were  coils  of  five  wires, 
introduced  for  experimental  purposes  at  the  joints  of  the  wires, 
further  increasing  the  circuit  virtually  to  the  amount  of  2,300 
miles.  The  magneto-electric  induction  coils  of  Mr.  Whitehouse 
were  used  to  excite  the  wires,  and  the  current  was  made  to 
operate  by  means  of  the  receiving  apparatus,  upon  one  of  Pro- 
fessor Morse's  ordinary  recording  instruments.  Signals  were 
distinctly  and  satisfactorily  telegraphed  through  the  two  thou- 


THE    FIRST    EXPEDITION    FOR    LAYING    THE    CABLE.  625 

sand  miles  of  wire,  at  the  rate  of  210,  241,  and  upon  one  oc- 
casion, 270  per  minute." 

The  friends  of  the  enterprise  supposed  that  like  results 
would  be  accomplished  on  the  ocean  cable,  and  that,  as  a  com- 
mercial fact,  twenty  words  could  be  transmitted  through  the 
cable  per  minute.  Under  the  belief  that  these  things  would 
be  realized  by  the  telegraph,  capital  was  raised,  and  the  com- 
pany with  rapid  strides  proceeded  to  the  completion  of  the 
enterprise. 

THE    FIRST    EXPEDITION    FOR    LAYING    THE    CABLE. 

The  British  government  detailed  the  ship  Cyclops,  and  the 
United  States  government  detailed  the  Arctic,  to  take  the 
soundings  of  the  ocean  on  the  proposed  route.  And  to  lay 
the  cable,  the  British  government  detailed  the  ships  Agamemnon 
and  Leopard,  and  the  United  States,  the  Niagara  and  Sus- 
quehanna. 

.  The  cable  was  completed  in  due  time,  and  placed  on  board 
of  the  respective  vessels ;  and  on  the  5th  of  August,  1857,  at 
Valentia  Bay,  Ireland,  the  end  of  the  cable  was  taken  on  shore 
from  the  Niagara.  After  some  few  incidental  delays,  -the  fleet 
sailed  from  Yalentia  on  the  7th  of  August.  All  the  cable  had 
been  put  on  board  of  the  Niagara  and  the  Agamemnon.  The 
other  vessels  served  as  tenders.  The  cable  was  being  laid  with 
success,  until  the  morning  of  the  llth  of  August,  when  it 
broke,  and  was  lost  in  the  sea.  There  had  been  submerged 
380  miles.  To  enable  the  reader  to  understand  the  particulars 
of  this  expedition,  I  insert  the  following  from  the  report  of  Sir 
Charles  T.  Bright,  the  distinguished  engineer  of  the  company : 

"  Early  in  the  month  of  April,  1857,  H.  M.  S.  Agamemnon 
was  placed  at  my  disposal  as  your  engineer ;  and  the  fittings 
necessary  to  adapt  her  to  the  reception  of  the  cable  having  been 
carried  out  with  the  utmost  rapidity,  she  was  moored  at  her 
station  at  Greenwich  to  take  in  the  eastern  half  of  the  cable. 

On  the  14th  of  May,  the  U.  S.  frigate  Niagara  arrived  in  the 
Thames;  but,  on  calculating  the  space  available  for  our  re- 
quirements, it  was  found  that  considerable  alterations  would 
be  necessary  to  suit  her  interior  to  our  purpose.  These  were 
put  in  hand  at  Portsmouth,  and  she  finally  proceeded  to  Birk- 
enhead,  to  receive  her  portion  of  the  cable. 
'  In  the  Agamemnon,  by  clearing  her  hold  of  the  tanks  and 
magazines,  the  available  space  allowed  of  the  cable  bein^  made 
into  one  great  coil,  forty-eight  feet  in  diameter  and  twelve  feet 

40 


626  ATLANTIC  OCEAN  TELEGRAPHY. 

high.  In  the  Niagara,  it  had  to  he  disposed  in  five  coils,  three 
in  the  hold,  orlop-deck  and  herth-deck  forward,  and  two  on  the 
herth  and  main  decks  aft. 

The  machinery  for  regulating  the  egress  of  the  cable  from 
the  paying-out  vessels  was  constructed  with  regard  to  the 
great  depths  of  water  to  he  passed  over,  the  constant  strain,  and 
the  number  of  days  during  which  the  operation  must  be  un- 
ceasingly in  progress. 

The  cable  was  passed  over  and  under  a  series  of  sheaves, 
having  the  bearings  of  their  axles  fixed  to  a  framework, 
composed  of  cast-iron  girders  bolted  down  to  the  ships' 
beams. 

The  sheaves  were  geared  to  each  other,  and  to  a  pinion  fixed 
to  a  central  shaft,  revolving  at  a  rate  three  times  faster  than 
that  of  the  sheaves ;  two  friction  drums  upon  this  shaft  regu- 
lated the  speed  of  paying-out,  and  the  grooves  of  the  sheaves 
(which  were  fixed  to  their  axles  outside  the  framework  and 
bearings)  were  fitted  to  the  semi-circumference  of  the  cable, 
so  as  to  grasp  it  firmly,  without  any  pressure  by  which  it 
could  be  injured. 

I  need  not  here  enter  into  the  arrangements  for  splicing, 
buoying,  guard-ropes,  staff,  lights,  and  other  minor  details  of 
the  expedition,  nor  into  the  causes  which  led  to  your  resolu- 
tion, that  the  laying  of  the  cable  should  commence  from  Ire- 
land, instead  of  from  the  centre,  as  was  at  first  contemplated. 
On  the  29th  of  July,  the  two  ships,  with  the  whole  of  the  cable 
on  board,  met  at  Queenstown.  On  the  3d  of  August,  after 
uniting  the  two  lengths,  to  test  the  conductivity  of  the  entire 
line,  and  taking  in  coals  and  sundry  stores,  we  started  for 
Valentia,  in  company  with  H.  M.  S.  Leopard  and  the  U.  S. 
frigate  Susquehanna,  two  powerful  paddle-wheel  steamers,  ap- 
pointed to  render  assistance  in  case  of  need. 

At  Valentia,  we  were  met  by  H.  M.  S.  Cyclops,  and  on  the 
5th,  the  end  of  the  cable  was  landed  at  Ballycarbery  strand 
from  the  Niagara,  which  lay  in  the  bay  about  two  miles 
distant. 

An  accident  to  the  heavy  shore  end  cable  shortly  after  weigh- 
ing anchor  on  the  6th,  deferred  our  final  departure  until  the 
7th  of  August. 

For  three  days  everything  proceeded  as  satisfactorily  as  could 
be  wished  ;  the  paying-out  machinery  worked  perfectly  in  shal- 
low, as  well  as  in  the  deepest  water,  and  in  rapid  transition 
from  one  to  the  other ;  while  the  excellent  adaptation  of  the 
cable  in  weight  and  proportions  to  the  purpose  was  most  for- 
cibly demonstrated  by  the  day's  work  previous  to  the  mishap, 


THE    FIRST  EXPEDITION    FOR  LAYING    THE    CABLE.  627 

during  which  one  hundred  and  eighteen  miles  of  the  cable  were 
laid,  for  one  hundred  and  eleven  miles  run  by  the  ship. 

The  details  of  the  voyage  from  the  7th  until  the  morning  of 
the  llth,  are  fully  set  forth  in  the  following  extract  from  a  re- 
port made  by  me  to  the  board  shortly  afterward : 
•  By  noon,  on  the  8th,  we  had  paid  out  forty  miles  of  cable, 
including  the  heavy  shore  end,  our  exact  position  at  this  time 
being  in  lat.  51°  59'  36"  N.,  long.  11°  19/  15"  W.,  and  the 
depth  of  water,  according  to  the  soundings  taken  by  the  Cyclops, 
whose  course  we  nearly  followed,  ninety  fathoms. 

Up  to  four  p.  M.  on  that  day,  the  egress  of  the  cable  had  been 
sufficiently  retarded  by  the  power  necessary  to  keep  the  ma- 
chinery in  motion,  at  a  rate  a  little  faster  than  the  speed  of  the 
ship  ;  but  as  the  water  deepened,  it  was  necessary  to  place  some 
further  restraint  upon  it  by 'applying  pressure  to  the  friction 
drums,  in  connection  with  the  paying-out  sheaves ;  and  this 
was  gradually  and  cautiously  increased  from  time  to  time,  as 
the  speed  of  the  cable  compared  with  that  of  the  vessel,  and 
the  depth  of  the  soundings,  showed  to  be  requisite. 

By  midnight,  eighty-five  miles  had  been  safely  laid,  the  depth 
of  water  being  then  a  little  more  than  200  fathoms. 

At  eight  o'clock  in  the  morning  of  the  9th,  we  had  finished 
the  deck  coil  in  the  after  part  of  the  ship,  having  paid  out  120 
miles  ;  the  change  to  the  coil  between  decks  forward  was  safely 
made. 

By  noon,  we  had  laid  136  miles  of  cable,  the  Niagara  having 
reach  lat.  52°  11'  40"  N.,  long.  13°  V  20"  W.,  and  the  depth 
of  water  having  increased  to  410  fathoms. 

In  the  evening  the  speed  of  the  vessel  was  raised  to  five  knots 
per  hour  ;  I  had  previously  kept  down  the  rate  at  from  three  to 
four  knots  for  the  small  cable,  and  two  for  the  heavy  end 
next  the  shore,  wishing  to  get  the  men  and  machinery  well 
at  work  prior  to  attaining  the  speed  which  I  had  anticipated 
making. 

By  midnight  189  miles  of  cable  had  been  laid.  At  four 
o'clock  in  the  morning  of  the  10th,  the  depth  of  water  began 
to  increase  rapidly,  from  550  fathoms  to  1750,  in  a  distance  of 
eight  miles.  Up  to  this  time,  seven  cwt.  strain  sufficed  to  keep 
the  rate  of  the  cable  near  enough  to  that  of  the  ship  ;  but,  as 
the  water  deepened,  the  proportionate  speed  of  the  cable  ad- 
vanced, and  it  was  necessary  to  augment  the  pressure  by  de- 
grees, until,  in  the  depth  of  1,700  fathoms,  the  indicator  showed 
a  strain  of  fifteen  cwt.,  while  the  cable  and  ship  were  running 
five  and  a  half  and  five  knots  respectively.  At  noon,  on  the 
10th,  we  had  paid  out  255  miles  of  cable,  the  vessel  having 


628  ATLANTIC  OCEAN  TELEGRAPHY. 

made  214  miles  from  shore,  being  then  in  lat.  52°  27'  50"  N., 
long.  16°  00/ 15"  "W.  At  this  time  we  experienced  an  increas- 
ed swell,  followed  late  in  the  day  by  a  strong  breeze. 

From  this  period,  having  reached  2,000  fathoms  water,  it 
was  necessary  to  increase  the  strain  to  a  ton,  by  which  the  rate 
of  the  cable  was  maintained  in  due  proportion  to  that  of  the 
ship. 

At  six  in  the  evening  some  difficulty  arose  through  the  cable 
getting  out  of  the  sheaves  of  the  paying-out  machine,  owing  to 
the  tar  and  pitch  hardening  in  the  grooves,  and  a  splice,  of  large 
dimensions,  passing  over  them.  This  was  rectified  by  fixing 
additional  guards,  and  softening  the  tar  with  oil. 

It  was  necessary  to  bring  up  the  ship,  holding  the  cable  by 
stoppers,  until  it  was  again  properly  disposed  around  the  pul- 
leys. Some  importance  is  due  toHhis  event,  as  showing  that  it 
is  possible  to  lay  to  in  deep  water  without  continuing  to  pay  out 
the  cable — a  point  upon  which  doubts  have  frequently  been 
expressed.  Shortly  after  this,  the  speed  of  the  cable  gained 
considerably  upon  that  of  the  ship,  and  up  to  nine  o'clock,  while 
the  rate  of  the  latter  was  about  three  knots  by  the  log,  the 
cable  was  running  out  from  five  and  a  half  to  five  and  three 
quarter  knots  per  hour.  The  strain  was  then  raised  to  twenty- 
five  cwt,  but  the  wind  and  sea  increasing,  and  a  current  at 
the  same  time  carrying  the  cable  at  an  angle  from  the  direct 
line  of  the  ship's  course,  it  was  not  found  sufficient  to  check  the 
cable,  which  was  at  midnight  making  two  and  a  half  knots 
above  the  speed  of  the  ship,  and  sometimes  imperilling  the  safe 
uncoiling  in  the  hold. 

The  retarding  force  was,  therefore,  increased  at  two  o'clock 
to  an  amount  equivalent  to  thirty  cwt.,  and  then  again,  in  conse- 
quence of  the  speed  continuing 'to  be  more  than  it  would  have 
been  prudent  to  permit,  of  thirty-five  cwt. 

By  this  the  rate  of  the  cable  was  brought  to  -a  little  short 
of  five  knots,  at  which  it  continued  steadily  until  3.45,  when 
it  parted ;  the  length  paid  out  at  that  time  being  380  statute 
miles. 

I  had  up  to  this  time  attended  personally  to  the  regulation 
of  the  brakes ;  but  finding  that  all  was  going  011  well,  and  it 
being  necessary  that  I  should  be  temporarily  away  from  the 
machine,  to  ascertain  the  rate  of  the  ship,  and  to  see  how  the 
cable  was  coming  out  of  the  hold,  and  also  to  visit  the  electri- 
cian's room,  the  machine  was  for  the  moment  left  in  charge  of 
a  mechanic,  who  had  been  engaged  from  the  first  in  its  con- 
struction and  fitting,  and  was  acquainted  with  its  operation. 
I  was  proceeding  toward  the  fore  part  of  the  ship,  when  I  heard 


THE    FIRST     EXPEDITION    FOR    LAYING   THE    CABLE.  629 

the  machine  stop.  I  immediately  called  out  to  ease  the  brake, 
and  reverse  the  engine  of  the  ship ;  but  when  I  reached  the  spot 
the  cable  was  broken. 

On  examining  the  machine,  which  was  otherwise  in  perfect 
order,  I  found  that  the  brakes  had  not  been  released,  and  to  this, 
or  to  the  hand- wheel  of  the  brake  being  turned  the  wrong  way, 
may  be  attributed  the  stoppage,  and  the  consequent  fracture 
of  the  cable  ;  when  the  rate  of  the  wheels  grew  slower,  as  the 
ship  dropped  her  stern  in  the  swell,  the  brake  should  have 
been  eased.  This  had  been  done  regularly  before,  whenever  an 
unusually  sudden  descent  of  the  ship  temporarily  withdrew  the 
pressure  from  the  cable  in  the  sea. 

After  the  accident,  the  commanders  of  the  vessels  proceeded 
to  Davenport  at  my  request,  the  dockyard  at  Keyham  affording 
many  facilities  for  unshipping  the  cable. 

At  a  subsequent  discussion,  the  prudence  of  making  a  second 
attempt  in  October  was  considered,  but  the  difficulty  of  obtain- 
ing sufficient  additional  line,  and  the  uncertainty  of  the  weather 
so  late  in  the  year,  were  cogent  reasons  against  the  adoption  of 
such  a  course.  It  was,  therefore,  decided  to  store  the  cable 
until  next  summer,  and  (having  been  granted  the  use  of  a  vacant 
space  of  ground  by  the  government)  four  large  roofed  tanks 
were  constructed  to  receive  it. 

The  cable,  which  is  in  good  condition,  was  discharged  from 
the  Niagara  first,  and  has  subsequently  been  unshipped  from 
the  Agamemnon.  It  has  been  passed  through  a  mixture  of  tar, 
pitch,  linseed  oil,  and  bees-wax,  in  such  consistency  and  quan- 
tity as  effectually  to  guard  against  rust. 

The  buoys,  chains,  hawsers,  and  other  stores  and  tools,  are 
safely  warehoused  in  the  adjacent  building. 

Immediately  upon  the  return  of  the  expedition,  steps  were 
taken  to  recover  such  part  of  the  cable  laid  from  Valentia 
as  could  be  raised  so  soon  as  the  equinoctial  gales  might  be 
over. 

The  Monarch,  a  steamer  employed  upon  the  submarine 
lines  laid  between  Orfordness  and  the  Hague,  and  fitted  with 
the  necessary  appliances  for  picking  up  cables,  was  at  first  un- 
derstood to  be  at  our  service  for  this  work  ;  but  some  delay  to 
our  plans  for  recovery  arose  from  the  fact,  that  at  the  time  she 
was  expected  to  be  available,  she  was  dispatched  by  the  com- 
pany to  whom  she  belongs  upon  another  duty,  and  it  thus 
became  necessary  for  us  to  procure  and  equip  another  vessel. 

In  the  middle  of  October,  I  proceeded  to  Yalentia  with  the 
Leipzig,  a  paddle-wheel  steamer  of  a  sufficient  capacity ;  after 
some  hindrance  by  the  gales  which  prevailed  at  that  time,  fifty- 


ATLANTIC  OCEAN  TELEGRAPHY. 

three  miles  of  the  small  cable  and  four  miles  of  the  heavy 
ca  bit-  were  got  up  ;  the  remainder  of  the  shore-end  was  under- 
run,  and  is  buoyed  ready  for  splicing  next  year. 

The  sea  and  swell  on  that  coast  at  this  season  are  so  unsuited 
to  the  work  that  the  attempt  to  regain  the  remainder  must  be 
deferred  for  some  weeks  ;  but  if  the  contract  which  has  been 
accepted  by  you  is  successfully  carried  out,  it  will  be  more 
satisfactory  as  regards  risk  of  outlay,  than  for  us  to  renew  the 
operation. 

The  recovered  cable,  which  is  in  good  order  and  fit  for  use 
again,  has  been  delivered  into  store  at  Keyham. 

Referring  to  the  proposal  to  order  a  further  length  of  three 
hundred  miles  of  cable,  in  addition  to  the  four  hundred  miles 
now  in  course  of  construction  by  Messrs.  Glasse,  Elliott  &  Co., 
I  would  observe  that  while  I  anticipate  that  the  appliances 
suggested  by  experience  will  enable  us  to  lay  the  cable  this 
year  with  much  less  slack  than  is  expected,  I  quite  agree 
with  the  recommendation  of  your  scientific  committee  that 
more  allowance  should  be  made  for  contingencies,  in  laying  a 
line  of  such  extraordinary  length. 

It  is  doubtless  a  circumstance  much  to  be  lamented  in  the 
past  history  of  our  undertaking,  that  the  time  within  which  it 
was  intended  to  be  completed  did  not  permit  of  experimental 
rehearsals  of  various  plans  of  cable-laying  in  deep  water,  re- 
specting which  there  had  been  no  previous  successful  experience. 

"  The  result  has  been  that  experiment  and  practice  have  been 
mixed  together  in  one  operation  ;  and  hence,  although  all  con- 
cerned actively  in  the  undertaking  are  now  fully  alive  to  the 
means  which  will,  in  all  human  probability,  secure  success  on 
the  next  occasion,  yet  great  expense  has  been  incurred  without 
an  adequate  return,  which  might  have  been  avoided  had  the 
needful  time  for  experiment  been  available." 

The  following  is  extracted  from  the  report  of  Wildman 
"Whitehouse,  electrician  of  the  Atlantic  Telegraph  Company  : 

"  Placed,  at  very  short  notice,  in  the  responsible  post  which 
he  now  holds,  your  electrician  was  called  upon  to  examine 
into  one  of  the  latest  and  most  difficult  electrical  problems  of 
the  day,  involving  considerations  at  once  of  the  highest  philo- 
sophical interest  and  of  the  utmost  social  and  national  impor- 
tance. He  was,  moreover,  pledged  to  achieve  a  practical  suc- 
cess therein  in  the  brief  space  of  a  few  months  ;  nor  while 
engaged  in  this  research  could  he  for  a  moment  be  released 
from  the  equally  important  duty  of  personally  superintending 
the  manufacture,  and  testing  the  perfection  and  integrity  of 


THE  FIRST  EXPEDITION  FOR  LAYING  THE  CABLE.  631 

the  cable  as  it  grew  from  day  to  day  at  the  Grutta-Pereha 
Works  at  Birkenhead  and  at  Greenwich. 

The  examination  of  the  former  required  the  prosecution  of 
an  extended  series  of  researches,  and  the  construction  of  new 
instruments  for  the  purpose  of  determining  with  accuracy  the 
available  force  of  the  electrical  current  as  tested  at  different 
distances,  and  for  the  investigation  of  the  peculiar  and  hitherto 
practically  most  embarrassing  phenomena  of  induction  in  sub- 
marine wires. 

It  was  necessary,  too,  to  approach  the  subject  to  a  certain 
degree  tentatively,  and  from  time  to  time,  as  the  increased 
length  of  cable  admitted,  to  let  our  early  telegraphic  instru- 
ments grow  with  its  growth  and  increase  in  strength  or  sensi- 
bility as  the  augmented  distance  required. 

These  indispensable  researches  naturally  involved  a  some- 
what considerable  outlay  in  my  department.  They  were  not 
however,  entered  into  without  most  careful  consideration,  and 
have  been  fully  justified  by  the  important  and  practical  bearing 
of  the  results  which  they  have  been  the  means  of  bringing  to 
light. 

Notwithstanding  my  endeavors,  circumstances  conspired 
to  limit  the  range  of  these  researches,  while  the  fact  of  the 
cable  having  been  made  at  two  distant  places,  rendered  any 
full  and  satisfactory  trial  of  instruments  impossible,  till  the 
arrival  of  both  vessels  in  Q,ueenstown  Harbor.  That  event 
was  looked  forward  to  with  the  most  intense  interest,  as  afford- 
ing a  brief  and  yet  valuable  opportunity,  which,  up  to  that 
time,  had  not  been  enjoyed  by  any  scientific  man,  at  once  of 
proving  the  practicability  of  recording  intelligible  electric  sig- 
nals through  a  submarine  conductor  of  the  unprecedented 
length  of  2,500  miles,  and  of  trying  on  the  extended  scale  the 
appliances  for  affecting  this  object,  which  up  to  that  time  had 
necessarily  so  far  been  constructed  theoretically,  as  only  to 
have  been  actually  tried  upon  less  than  one  half  of  the  entire 
line  intended  to  be  worked  by  the  Company. 

On  the  arrival  of  the  vessels  at  Queenstown  Harbor,  the 
earliest  opportunity  was  seized  of  connecting  the  halves  of  the 
cable  on  board  the  two  vessels,  by  a  temporary  line  extended 
between  ship  and  ship,  in  order  that  I  might  thus  be  enabled 
to  test  the  instruments  whose  construction  was  based  on  the 
results  of  previous  experiment  on  shorter  lengths.  In  doing 
this  I  had  the  advantage  of  the  assistance  and  co-operation  of 
Professor  "W.  Thomson,  who  is  one  of  our  directors. 

These  trials  were  made  under  every  possible  disadvantage 
of  time,  place,  and  circumstance ;  the  connection  between  ship 


632  ATLANTIC  OCEAN  TELEGRAPHY. 

and  ship  was  imperfect,  was  interfered  with  inadvertently  on 
several  occasions,  and  was  entirely  destroyed  at  turn  of  tide. 

The  power  of  the  instruments  was  found  to  be  ample  for 
the  whole  length  of  2,500  miles  ;  the  signals  received  were  even 
stronger  than  necessary,  but  the  time  required  to  elapse  be- 
tween signal  and  signal  in  order  to  avoid  the  blending  of  elec- 
tric waves  in  the  wire  was  considerable. 

An  extemporaneous  arrangement  by  Professor  Thomson 
and  myself  enabled  us  to  transmit  actual  despatches  in  spite 
of  these  difficulties. 

"  Our  experiments  at  Queenstown,  therefore,  successful 
though  they  were  as  furnishing  a  proof  of  the  adequacy  of  the 
instruments  to  work  through  the  whole  distance,  yet  rendered 
it  sufficiently  evident  that  much  time  and  attention  might, 
judiciously  be  bestowed  upon  these,  as  well  as  on  the  details 
and  peculiar  arrangements  required  for  signaling  through  so 
vast  and  untried  a  distance,  in  order  to  attain  a  thoroughly 
certain  and  commercially  satisfactory  rate  of  communication. 

On  the  sailing  of  the  expedition  we  commenced  our  com- 
munication with  the  ship  by  the  use  of  the  lowest  battery 
power  sufficient  to  effect  our  object,  in  order  to  facilitate  the 
detection  of  a  fault  or  accident  to  the  cable  by  those  on  board 
at  the  earliest  possible  moment  after  its  occurrence. 

An  arrangement  has  been  made  by  which,  on  the  next 
occasion,  on  commencement  from  mid-ocean,  either  of  the 
ships  shall  be  able,  at  any  and  every  instant  during  the  voyage, 
to  ascertain  that  all  is  right  in  her  electrical  connection  with 
the  sister  ship,  though  it  is  not  deemed  desirable  to  endanger 
the  safety  of  the  Company's  complete  and  special  telegraphic 
apparatus  by  an  attempt  to  keep  up,  by  its  use  during  the  voy- 
age, a  constant  interchange  of  messages  from  ship  to  ship. 

Proceeding  in  the  path  which  the  light  of  experiment  has 
opened  up  to  us  in  relation  to  the  differential  values  of  conduct- 
ing media,  we  have,  in  the  additional  length  of  cable  now  in 
process  of  manufacture,  adopted  the  recent  suggestion  of  Pro- 
fessor W.  Thomson,  and  have  instituted  a  series  of  tests  for  the 
conductivity  of  copper  wire.  Every  hank  of  wire  to  be  used 
for  our  conductor  is  tested,  and  all  whose  conducting  power 
falls  below  a  certain  standard  is  rejected. 

"  We  have  thus  secured  a  conductor  of  the  highest  value, 
ranging  in  conductivity  from  twenty-eight  to  thirty  per  cent, 
above  the  average  standard  of  unselected  copper  wire. 

It  is  but  due  to  the  Grutta-Percha  Company  to  state,  that, 
in  their  anxiety  to  advance  the  interests  of  submarine  tele- 
graphy to  the  utmost,  they  have  afforded  us  every  possible 


THE  FIRST  EXPEDITION  FOR  LAYING  THE  CABLE.  633 

facility  in  this  laborious  and  important,  but  somewhat  tedious 
and  obstructive  operation. 

The  arrival  of  the  vessels  at  Plymouth,  and  the  unship- 
ment  of  the  whole  of  our  cable,  to  be  stored  there  during  the 
winter,  afford  the  opportunity  which  I  have  so  long  deemed 
necessary,  of  submitting  the  working  powers  of  our  instru- 
ments to  the  most  rigid  tests  through  the  whole  circuit,  under 
every  conceivable  condition.  I  have,  therefore,  with  the  sanc- 
tion of  the  directors,  removed  thither  the  workshop,  retaining 
a  few  of  our  most  skilled  hands  for  repairs  and  alterations  of 
instruments,  and  the  construction  of  any  new  ones  deemed 
desirable.  "With  these  I  have  also  removed  our  superintendent, 
and  the  whole  staff  of  manipulators  or  instrument  clerks,  pro- 
posing to  give  them,  during  the  winter,  constant  occupation  in 
the  transmission  of  actual  dispatches  through  the  whole  length' 
of  the  cable,  thus  rehearsing  what  will  be  the  routine  of  their 
duties  when  our  line  is  in  operation. 

The  facilities  afforded  by  the  government  authorities  at 
the  dockyard  at  Keyham  have  enabled  me  to  fit  up  a  complete 
telegraphic  station  here,  in  one  of  the  buildings  devoted  to 
our  use,  in  which  the  superintendent  and  staff  of  clerks  are 
now  constantly  engaged  in  transmitting  dispatches. 

I  have  been  able  to  examine  most  critically  into  the  ques- 
tion of  the  highest  speed  of  transmission  attainable,  carefully 
eliminating  ail  mere  instrumental  or  manipulative  error  from 
the  results. 

In  doing  this  we  have  made  use  of  an  arrangement  by 
which  the  accurate  correspondence  or  otherwise  of  the  trans- 
mitted with  the  received  signal  shall  be  most  readily  ascer- 
tained. The  electric  signals,  on  their  entrance  into  the  cable. 
are  made  to  pass  through  an  instrument,  by  means  of  which 
they  record  themselves  upon  the  same  slip  of  paper  and  side 
by  side  with  those  of  the  receiving  instrument  at  the  other  or 
distant  end  of  the  line.  We  are  thus  enabled  to  scrutinize 
most  closely  the  behavior  and  transit  of  every  signal.  If  a 
dot  or  dash  be  lost,  it  is  instantly  detected;  and  if  even  the 
slightest  discrepancy  occur  in  the  length  of  the  relative  marks, 
it  cannot  fail  in  this  way  to  be  at  once  made  evident. 

The  power  of  our  apparatus,  as  already  made,  is  seen  to  be 
ample  for  the  purpose  ;  the  speed  with  which  it  can  be  worked 
so  as  to  insure  accuracy  in  the  transmission  of  a  dispatch  is 
found,  however,  to  depend  so  greatly  upon  the  steadiness  and 
mechanical  truthfulness  of  the  manipulating  clerk,  that  I  have 
been  induced  to  devise  an  addition  to  the  transmitting  part  of 
our  apparatus  which  shall  render  manipulative  error  almost 
impossible. 


634:  ATLANTIC  OCEAN  TELEGRAPHY. 

This  apparatus,  though  as  yet  merely  in  an  experimental 
form,  has  enabled  me,  without  the  use  of  additional  electrical 
power,  to  obtain  a  very  considerable  increase  in  our  speed,  not 
only  without  any  sacrifice,  but  with  an  absolute  gain  in  the 
accuracy  of  transmissions. 

By  this  means,  and  by  the  adoption  of  such  an  amount  of 
abbreviation  or  code  signals  as  we  find  it  safe  to  use,  we  are 
now  transmitting  through  the  entire  length  of  our  cable  dis- 
patches at  the  rate  of  four  words  in  a  minute. 

I  cannot  refrain  from  an  expression  of  the  real  gratification 
which  the  attainment  of  this  step  has  afforded  me, — the  more 
so  as  I  feel  justified  thereby  in  anticipating  still  further  prog- 
ress and  higher  results  ; — nor  need  I  point  out  the  direct  and 
positive  bearing  of  this  question  upon  the  commercial  success 
of  the  company." 

THE    FIRST    EXPEDITION    OF    1858. 

Early  in  June  the  vessels  proceeded  to  the  deep  sea  in  the 
vicinity  of  the  Bay  of  Biscay,  on  an  experimental  expedition 
to  test  the  machinery  for  the  laying  and  drawing  in  of  the 
cable.  Three  days  were  thus  employed,  and  the  results  were 
pronounced  as  satisfactory. 

On  the  tenth  of  June  the  telegraph  squadron  sailed  from 
Plymouth  for  mid-ocean,  where  it  had  been  determined  by  the 
company  to  commence  the  submerging  of  the  cable,  instead 
of  the  Irish  coast,  as  had  been  adopted  in  1857.  The  point  in 
mid-ocean  where  the  vessels  expected  to  meet  and  unite  the 
cable  was  lat.  52°  02X,  long.  33°  18X. 

Each  vessel  had  1,500  miles  of  cable  on  board.  It  was 
intended  that  the  Niagara  should  proceed  from  the  point  of 
junction  to  the  Newfoundland  coast,  and  the  Agamemnon  was 
to  proceed  to  the  coast  of  Ireland. 

On  the  26th  of  June  the  splice  was  made  and  the  respective 
vessels  proceeded  on  their  mission.  The  vessels  had  proceeded 
but  a  short  distance  when  the  cable,  becoming  entangled  in  the 
machinery,  broke.  Some  six  miles  of  cable  were  lost  in  the 
sea.  The  break  was  immediately  discovered  on  board  the 
Agamemnon.  Both  vessels  returned  and  a  new  splice  was 
forthwith  made.  The  ships  again  proceeded  to  lay  the  cable. 
On  Sunday,  the  27th,  the  continuity  of  the  current  was  found 
to  be  broken  when  some  42  miles  of  the  cable  had  been  paid 
out.  The  cause  of  the  interruption  of  the  electric  current  was 
never  discovered.  The  vessels  again  returned  to  the  rendez- 
vous, and  on  the  28th  another  splice  was  made,  and  soon  there- 
after they  were  under  way.  The  paying  out  continued  with 


WORKING  OF  THE  ATLANTIC  TELEGRAPH  CABLE.  635 

complete  satisfaction  until  142  miles  of  the  cable  had  been 
submerged,  when  it  broke  near  the  stern  of  the  Agamemnon. 
Up  to  this  time  there  had  been  lost  in  the  three  efforts  190 
miles. 

The  vessels,  failing  to  meet  again  in  mid-ocean,  returned  to 
Q,ueenstown  for  further  arrangements  to  be  adopted  in  the 
premises. 

THE    SECOND    EXPEDITION    OF    1858. 

The  company  having  determined  to  make  another  attempt 
to  lay  the  cable  in  1858,  the  vessels  again  proceeded  to  mid- 
ocean,  where  they  united  the  ends  on  the  29th  of  July,  1858. 

The  paying  out  was  continued  successfully  until  7  45  p.  M., 
when  the  signals  ceased  ;  fortunately,  however,  communica- 
tion was  again  restored  some  two  hours  thereafter.  Like 
interruptions  occurred  several  times  during  the  voyage,  and 
no  satisfactory  explanations  in  regard  to  them  have  transpired. 

On  the  5th  of  August,  at  1  45  A.  M.,  the  Niagara  anchored 
in  Trinity  Bay,  Newfoundland.  The  distance  run  by  the 
Niagara  was  882  miles,  and  the  amount  of  cable  paid  out  was 
1,016  miles.  At  5  15  A.  M.  the  end  of  the  cable  was  landed 
on  shore. 

On  the  5th  of  August,  at  6  A.  M.,  the  Agamemnon  anchored 
opposite  Yalentia,  having  laid  1,020  miles  of  cable.  At  3 
o'clock  p.  M.  the  end  was  carried  on  shore. 

WORKING  OF  THE  ATLANTIC  TELEGRAPH  CABLE. 

In  regard  to  the  working  of  the  cable,  but  little  has  been 
made  public.  The  batteries  employed  to  work  it  consisted  in 
the  first  instance  of  induction  coils  known  as  RuhmkorfPs, 
but  in  a  modified  form,  excited  by  a  Smee  battery.  Subse- 
quently the  ordinary  Daniell  battery  was  adopted.  The  instru- 
ment used  at  the  Newfoundland  end  was  a  delicate  electrom- 
eter, and  at  the  Yalentia  end  Professor  Thomson's  reflecting 
electrometer. 

To  what  extent  communication  has  been  transmitted  over 
the  cable  the  public  has  not  been  informed.  I  have,  however, 
learned  from  reliable  sources  that  the  maximum  speed  of  intel- 
ligible and  unintelligible  signals  transmitted  and  received  over 
it  were  at  the  rate  of  one  wave  for  each  three  and  one  third 
seconds.  It  was  announced  that  a  message  from  the  Queen 
of  Grreat  Britain  was  received  over  the  cable  for  the  President 
of  the  United  States,  on  the  16th  of  August,  eleven  days  after 
the  cable  had  been  landed  on  the  Newfoundland  and  Irish 
coasts.  On  the  evening  of  the  16th  a  paragraph  containing 


636  ATLANTIC  OCEAN  TELEGRAPHY. 

about  one  third  of  the  message  was  presented  to  the  President 
and  the  public  as  the  whole  dispatch,  but  on  the  17th  the  re- 
mainder was  published,  with  the  following  explanation : 

ST.  JOHNS,  N.  F.,  August  17. 

Mr.  De  Sauty,  the  electrician-in-chief  at  Trinity  Bay,  says 
that  he  is  unable  to  give  any  information  for  publication  as  to 
the  working  of  the  cable,  but  that  the  time  necessary  for  the 
transmission  of  the  President's  Message  depends  on  its  length 
and  the  condition  of  the  line  and  instruments  at  the  time — 
perhaps,  under  favorable  circumstances,  an  hour  and  a  half. 

The  reception  of  Queen's  Message  was  commenced  early 
yesterday  morning,  and  not  finished  until  this  morning,  but  it 
was  stopped  for  several  hours  to  allow  of  repairs  to  the  cable. 
The  fragment  of  the  message  transmitted  yesterday  was  handed 
to  the  Newfoundland  line  as  the  genuine  entire  message,  and 
was  supposed  to  be  such  until  this  morning. 

Another  publication  estimated  that  the  time  required  for  the 
transmission  of  the  message  was  about  20  hours.  It  contained 
about  100  words, 

In  regard  to  this  subject,  the  following  extracts  of  a  letter 
was  published  in  the  London  Morning  Post  of  August  18th  : 

To  the  Editor  of  the  Morning  Post: 

SIR  :  I  have  the  pleasure  to  inform  you  that  the  line  from 
Valentia  to  Newfoundland  is  now  working  satisfactorily  both 
ways.  The  following  message  was  dispatched  yesterday 
evening  from  the  Directors  in  England  to  the  Directors  in 
America  : 

"  Europe  and  America  are  united  by  telegraph.  Grlory  to 
Grod  in  the  highest,  and  on  earth  peace,  good  will  toward 
men." 

This  message,  including  the  addresses  of  senders  and  receivers, 
occupied  35  minutes  in  transmission,  and  consisted  of  31 
words.  Immediately  afterward  a  message  from  her  majesty 
the  Queen  to  his  excellency  the  President  of  the  United 
States,  consisting  of  99  words,  was  received  by  Newfoundland 
in  67  minutes.  Both  messages  were  repeated  back  to  Valentia 
to  test  their  accuracy,  and  were  found  to  be  taken  with  great 
exactness.  Of  course,  unless  permission  was  given,  the  con- 
tents of  her  majesty's  dispatch  cannot  be  made  public. 

It  will  thus  be  seen  that  the  line  is  now  capable  of  being 
worked  with  perfect  accuracy,  and  the  company  will  now  pro- 
ceed, as  rapidly  as  is  consistent  with  the  establishment  of  a 
proper  system,  to  make  the  necessary  arrangements  for  opening 


CAUSE  OF  THE  FAILURE  OF  THE  CABLE.  637 

the  communication  to  the  public ;  in  doing  which,  however, 
some  delay  must  necessarily  occur. 

Yours  truly,  GEORGE  SAWARD, 

Secretary  and  Manager. 
Chief  Office,  22  Old  Broad-street, 
LONDON,  August  17. 

The  signals  over  the  cable  continued  to  grow  feebler  until 
the  1st  of  September,  when  nothing  intelligible  could  be 
received.  Since  that  time  all  efforts  to  operate  it  have  failed. 
The  failure  of  the  cable  to  operate  successfully,  as  had  been 
announced  by  the  company,  fell  upon  the  world  with  surprise 
and  profound  regret. 

The  successful  laying  of  the  cable  across  the  ocean  had  been 
hailed  by  the  roar  from  thousands  of  guns,  by  the  shouts  of 
joy  throughout  the  land,  by  the  chiming  of  bells  in  the  sacred 
spires,  and  songs  of  praise  were  heard  on  hill  and  in  dale.  It 
was  but  natural  that  the  failure  of  the  cable  to  work  success- 
fully, after  it  had  been  stretched  from  hemisphere  to  hemi- 
sphere, should  produce  in  the  minds  of  men  more  than  an  ordi- 
nary astonishment. 

CAUSE  OF  THE  FAILURE  OF  THE  CABLE  TO  OPERATE. 

As  soon  as  the  company  in  London  ascertained  that  the  cable 
had  failed  to  communicate  intelligible  signals,  energetic  efforts 
were  made  to  ascertain  the  cause,  having  in  view  the  remedy- 
ing of  the  difficulty.  To  that  end,  Mr.  C.  F.  Yarley,  the  very 
able  electrician  of  the  International  Telegraph,  was  dispatched 
to  Yalentia,  and  subsequently,  was  Mr.  W.  T.  Henley,  a  distin- 
guished electrician,  of  London.  Through  the  kindness  of  the 
energetic  secretary  of  the  company,  Mr.  Saward,  I  am 
.enabled  to  present  the  reports  of  those  gentlemen  to  the  reader. 
They  contain  scientific  information  verv  valuable  to  submarine 
telegraphers. 

Report  on  the  State  of  the  Atlantic  Telegraph   Cable. 

LONDON,    Saturday,  Sept.  18. 

I  arrived  at  Yalentia  on  the  evening  of  the  5th  inst,  when  I 
found  that  no  words  had  for  many  days  been  received  through 
the  cable  from  Newfoundland. 

On  the  6th,  7th,  8th,  9th  and  10th,  I  tested  the  cable  at  in- 
tervals in  four  different  ways  to  ascertain  its  condition.  The 
following  are  the  results  : 

1.  There  is  a  fault  of  great  magnitude  at  a  distance  of  be- 
tween 245  and  300  statute  miles  from  Yalentia,  but  the  local- 


638  ATLANTIC  OCEAN  TELEGRAPHY. 

ity  cannot  be  more  accurately  ascertained  until  a  portion  of  the 
cable,  20  or  oO  miles  in  length,  has  been  tested  against  my 
standard  of  resistance,  and  until  the  log  has  been  consulted  to 
ascertain  the  amount  of  slack  paid  out.  I  would  suggest  that 
the  piece  of  cable  at  Greenwich  be  carefully  measured  and 
tested  against  my  standard,  in  order  to  obtain  the  most  correct 
estimate  of  the  distance  of  the  fault.  Assuming,  however, 
that  it  is  270  miles,  and  allowing  22  per  cent,  for  slack,  it  is 
possible  that  the  chief  defect  is  in  shallow  water — 410 
fathoms. 

2.  The  copper  wire  at  the  faulty  place  above  alluded  to  does 
not  touch  the  iron  covering  of  the  cable,  as  is  proved  by  its 
forming  a  voltaic  element,  which  gives  rise  to  a  continuous 
positive  current  from  the  copper  wire  varying  very  little  in  ten- 
sion. 

3.  The  insulation  of  the  wire  between  Yalentia  and  the 
fault,  is  perfect,  or  at  least  contains  no  defect  of  sufficient  im- 
portance to  be  perceptible,  or  to  materially  influence  the  work- 
ing were  the  cable  otherwise  perfect. 

4.  The  copper  wire  is  continuous,  and  consequently  the  cable 
has  not  parted.     Faint  signals,  or  reversals,  are  still  received 
from  Newfoundland,  but  the  power  used  will  shortly  eat  away 
the  exposed  copper  wire  in  the  faulty  place  by  electrolytic  de- 
composition. 

The  actual  resistance  of  the  fault  appears  to  be  at  least  equal 
to  ten  miles  of  the  cable,  but  is  most  probably  greater. 

Taking  it  at  its  lowest  resistance,  viz.,  ten  miles,  and  assu- 
ming that  Newfoundland  is  only  using  180  cells  of  Daniell's  bat- 
tery, the  strongest  current  received  thence  during  my  stay  was 
only  a  24th  part  of  the  force  that  it  should  be  were  there  but 
this  one  fault.  When  it  is,  however,  borne  in  mind  that  on 
the  other  side  they  are  probably  using  more  power,  and  also 
that  the  defect  first  alluded  to  probably  offers  more  resistance 
than  that  assumed,  viz.,  ten  miles,  it  is  evident  that  there  is 
another  and  more  distant  fault,  the  approximate  locality  of 
which  I  could  not  pretend  to  estimate  at  this  end  without 
being  able  to  speak  to  Newfoundland. 

From  authentic  data  shown  to  me  at  Yalentia,  I  am '  of 
opinion  that  there  was  a  fault  on  board  the  Agamemnon,  be- 
fore the  cable  was  submerged,  at  a  distance  of  about  five  hun- 
dred and  sixty  miles  from  one  end,  and  six  hundred  and  forty 
from  the  other. 

The  following  are  the  data  in  question,  but  on  what  occa- 
sion they  were  obtained,  I  am  unable  to  state.  They  were, 
however,  probably  taken  when  the  ships  were  at  Queenstown  : 


CAUSE  OF  THE  FAILURE  OF  THE  CABLE.        639 

Testing  of  Coils  on  board  the  Agamemnon,   consisting  of 
about  twelve  hundred  statute  miles  of  Cable. 

1.  When  the    upper    end  was  disconnected,  the 

current  entering  the  cable  from  a  battery, 

was 8.5  parts. 

2.  "When  upper  end  was  put  to  earth,  current  en- 

tering the  cable  was 10.5  parts. 

3.  Current  going  out  of  upper  end  of  cable  to  the 

earth 5  parts. 

4.  When  the  lower  end  was  disconnected,  the  cur- 

rent entering  the  cable  was 8.5  parts. 

5.  When  lower  end  to  earth 10.5  parts. 

6.  Current  going   out   of  upper  end  of  cable  to 

earth 4.5  parts. 

Showing  that,  if  there  were  a  fault,  it  was  nearer  to  the  upper 
end,  but  not  far  from  the  middle  of  the  coil. 

When  200  miles  had  been  removed  from  one  end  of  the  coil, 
(but  from  which  end  I  am  not  at  present  aware,)  leaving  1,000 
miles,  the  amounts  were  : 


1 7.5     parts. 

2 10.25  parts. 

3 6.5     parts. 


4 8.5  parts. 

5 11.5  parts. 

6 6.5  parts. 


Indicating  that  there  was  a  fault,  by  rough   calculation,  at 
about  560  miles  from  one  end,  and  440  from  the  other. 
With  the  200  miles  of  cable  amounts  were  : 


1 2          parts. 

2 40        parts. 

3 39.5     parts. 


4 —    parts. 

5 40.5  parts. 

6 39.5  parts. 


Test  of  the  entire  Cable  on  board  the  Agamemnon  and  Ni- 
agara— viz.,  twenty -five  hundred  miles. 

BATTERY  AT  AGAMEMNON  END. 

1.  Current  entering  the  cable,  the  Niagara   end 

being  disconnected 45      parts. 

2.  Niagara  end  to  earth 49f    parts. 

3.  Current  flowing  out  at  Niagara  end  to  earth..  15^    parts. 

BATTERY  AT  NIAGARA  END. 

4.  Current  entering  cable,  Agamemnon  end  being 

disconnected 35|    parts 

5.  Agamemnon  end  to  earth 37      parts. 

6.^  Current   flowing   out    at   Agamemnon   end  to 

earth 14      parts. 

Indicating  considerable  leakage  on  board  the  Agamemnon. 


640  ATLANTIC  OCEAN  TELEGRAPHY. 

I  am  also  informed  that  the  currents  through  the  cable, 
even  immediately  after  it  was  submerged,  were  so  weak  that 
relays  were  useless,  and  that  not  one  perfect  message  was  re- 
corded by  them,  everything  that  was  received  being  read  from 
the  reflections  of  a  galvanometer. 

By  comparing  the  above  data  with  those  of  the  new  cable 
now  making  by  Messrs.  Grlasse  and  Elliott,  for  the  Electric 
and  International  Telegraph  Company,  the  amount  of  current 
which  entered  the  1,000  miles  of  cable  when  disconnected  at 
one  end  should  not  have  exceeded  2  or  2.5  parts,  instead  of  7.5 
and  8.5  parts. 

The  inference  by  rough  calculation,  therefore,  is  that  there 
was  a  fault  offering  a  resistance  equal  to  1,000  or  1,200  miles 
of  cable,  situated  at  a  distance  about  560  miles  from  one  end 
of  the  1,200  mile  coil  on  board  the  Agamemnon. 

This,  however,  cannot  be  the  fault  first  alluded  to,  situate 
at  about  270  miles  from  Yalentia,  but  may  have  been  the  one 
which  caused  such  alarm  when  the  ships  were  500  miles  from 
Ireland,  and  when  the  signals  ceased  altogether  and  never 
certainly  recovered. 

It  is  not  at  all  improbable  that  the  powerful  currents  from 
the  large  induction  coils  have  impaired  the  insulation,  and  that 
had  more  moderate  power  been  used,  the  cable  would  still 
have  been  capable  of  transmitting  messages. 

To  satisfy  myself  on  this  point,  I  attached  to  the  cable  a 
piece  of  gutta-percha  covered  wire,  having  first  made  a  slight 
incision  in  the  gutta-percha  to  let  the  water  reach  the  wire ; 
the  wire  was  then  bent  so  as  to  close  up  the  defect.  The  de- 
fective wire  was  then  placed  in  a  jug  of  sea  water,  and  the 
latter  connected  with  the  "  earth."  After  a  few  signals  had 
been  sent  from  the  induction  coils  into  the  cable,  and,  conse- 
quently, into  the  test  wire,  the  electricity  burnt  through  the 
incision,  rapidly  burning  a  hole  nearly  one  tenth  of  an  inch  in 
diameter. 

When  the  full  force  of  the  coils  was  brought  to  bear  on  the 
test  wire  by  removing  them  from  the  cable,  and  allowing  the 
electricity  only  one  channel — viz.,  that  of  the  test  wire,  the 
discharges,  as  might  be  expected,  burnt  a  hole  in  the  gutta- 
percha  under  the  water,  half  an  inch  in  length,  and  the  burnt 
gutta-percha  came  floating  up  to  the  surface. 

The  foregoing  experiments  prove  that  when  there  are  imper- 
fections in  the  insulating  covering,  there  is  very  great  danger 
arising  from  using  such  intense  currents. 

The  size  of  the  present  conducting  strand  is  too  small  to 
have  worked  satisfactorily  even  had  the  insulation  been  sound. 


CAUSE  OF  THE  FAILURE  OF  THE  CABLE.         641 

With  a  strand  of  larger  dimensions  less  intense  currents  would 
be  required,  and  both  speed  and  certainty  increased. 

It  is  not,  however,  altogether  impossible  that  some  intelligi- 
ble signals  may  yet  b.e  received  through  the  cable,  as  stated  in 
my  previous  communication. 

C.  F.  VARLEY, 

Electrician  of  the  Electric  and 
International  Telegraph  Company. 

On  the  5th  of  October,  1858,  Mr.  Gfeorge  Saward,  the  Sec- 
retary of  the  Company,  officially  authorized  the  publication  of 
the  following  report  in  the  London  Times : 

To  the  Chairman  and  Directors  of  the  Atlantic  Telegraph 

Company : 

VALENTIA,  Sept.  30,  1858. 

GTENTLEMEN  :  In  accordance  with  your  instructions,  I  have, 
since  my  arrival  here  on  the  8th  instant,  carefully  tested  the 
cable  at  various  times,  and  with  different  degrees  of  battery 
power,  and  have  found  its  insulation  seriously  impaired,  and  the 
results  of  the  testing  led  to  the  conclusion  that  the  injury  is 
at  a  considerable  distance  from  this  (very  nearly  300  miles  of 
the  cable  apparently  intervening  between  this  point  and  the 
fault). 

As  I  think  it  right  you  should  know  on  what  grounds  and 
by  what  modes  of  operation  I  and  others  have  arrived  at  this 
conclusion,  and  as  you  may  also  like  to  be  informed  as  to  some 
of  the  phenomena  of  electrical  science  as  shown  in  connection 
with  this  cable,  I  have  ventured  to  go  a  little  into  detail, 
hoping  thereby  to  convey  some  information  that  may  not  be 
unacceptable. 

On  connecting  one  pole  of  a  voltaic  battery  with  the  end  of 
the  cable  with  a  galvanometer  in  circuit,  and  the  other  battery 
pole  to  earth,  I  find  the  current  meets  a  resistance  to  its  pas- 
sage equal  to  two  hundred  and  ninety  miles  of  the  copper  con- 
ducting wire  of  the  cable,  and  as  the  cable  is  more  than  two 
thousand  miles  long,  it  is  therefore  evident  that  the  greater 
pa.rt  of  the  current  finds  a  shorter  route  to  the  earth. 

By  resistance  is  meant  the  impeding  force  that  electricity 
meets  with  in  its  passage  through  conductors  of  all  kinds, 
metallic  or  otherwise,  and  which  varies  immensely,  not  only  in 
various  metallic  and  other  bodies,  but  also  in  the  same  kind  of 
metal,  and  this  can  be  accurately  measured  even  in  one  inch 
of  wire.  Taking  any  given  metal,  the  conductibility  of  which 

41 


642  ATLANTIC  OCEAN  TELEGRAPHY. 

is  uniform,  the  resistance  of  the  wire  will  be  found  to  increase 
as  the  size  decreases,  exactly  in  proportion  to  the  sectional  area. 
A.  mile  of  No.  40  copper  wire  is  thus  found  to  resist  as  much 
as  175  miles  of  the  conducting  wire  of  the  Atlantic  cable.  It 
is  necessary  also  that  the  fine  wire  should  have  been  previously 
tested  with  some  of  the  cable,  as  wires  of  the  same  gauge  are 
frequently  found  to  vary  very  much  in  size  as  well  as  in  con- 
ductibility.  Knowing  the  resistance  per  yard  of  the  fine  wire, 
to  obtain  that  of  the  cable  comprised  between  the  point  of  ope- 
rating and  the  fault  (and  thus  to  find  its  length),  the  battery 
and  galvanometer  are  connected  with  the  line  and  earth  in  the 
before-mentioned  manner.  The  degrees  of  deflection  are  accu- 
rately read  on  the  galvanometer,  and  this  process  is  repeated 
several  times  with  batteries  of  different  degrees  of  strength ; 
the  batteries  and  galvanometer  are  then  disconnected  from  the 
cable  and  earth,  and  connected  with  coils  of  fine  wire,  the 
length  of  which  latter  is  added  to  or  diminished  until  the  read- 
ings of  the  galvanometer  exactly  coincide  in  every  case  with 
those  noted  when  connected  with  the  cable.  The  length  of 
the  fine  wire  will  then  give  that  of  the  cable  up  to  the  point 
at  which  the  battery  current  finds  earth,  reckoning  about  one 
mile  of  cable  for  every  10  yards  of  wire.  There  are  several 
methods  of  doing  the  same  thing,  but  they  are  all  based  on  the 
same  system  of  proportionate  resistances. 

There  is  next  the  resistance  of  the  fault  itself  to  be  taken 
into  account,  for,  strange  as  it  may  appear  to  some,  faults  (in 
proportion  to  their  magnitude)  may  be  equal  in  resistance  to 
from  one  mile  to  several  hundreds  of  miles  of  cable,  and  would 
give  the  same  indications  on  a  testing  instrument.  If  we.  knew 
the  exact  nature  of  the  injury,  and  how  much  of  the  copper 
was  exposed,  we  could,  with  tolerable  certainty,  tell  at  what 
distance  it  existed ;  but  in  the  absence  of  such  knowledge  we 
must  judge  from  appearances,  making  use  of  any  previous  ex- 
perience we  may  have  had  in  matters  of  a  similar  kind.  And, 
firstly,  we  know  if  much  of  the  resistance  was  produced  by 
the  fault,  it  must  expose  a  very  small  amount  of  surface,  and 
that  on  sending  positive  currents,  the  wire  (by  electrolytic 
action)  would  be  oxydized  at  the  faulty  spot,  and  the  galvan- 
ometer would  show  that  the  fault  was  partially  repaired  by  the 
non-conducting  power  of  the  oxyde. 

On  reversing  the  direction  of  the  current,  hydrogen  would 
be  evolved,  which,  by  reducing  the  oxyde  and  cleaning  the 
wire,  brings  the  fault  back  to  its  former  state.  Should  it  be 
of  considerable  size,  and  consequently  of  small  resistance,  the 
coat  of  oxyde  would  be  thin,  and  quickly  reduced  by  reversing 


CAUSE  OF  THE  FAILURE  OF  THE  CABLE.          643 

the  current,  showing  that  very  little  alteration  was  produced 
by  changing  its  direction. 

Precisely  this  effect  is  produced  by  sending  currents  into 
the  cable,  indicating  the  injury  to  be  of  that  character.  A 
small  fault  could  not  reduce  the  strength  of  the  signals  to  the 
extent  we  find  them,  unless  the  wire  was  separated  near  that 
point,  and  this  (which  is  quite  within  the  range  of  probability) 
would  set  our  calculations  at  naught.  That  the  cable  is  not 
severed  we  have  abundant  proof,  but  that  any  one  can,  by  the 
most  delicate  tests,  discover  whether  the  conducting  wire  is  so 
or  not  in  a  cable  of  this  length  I  utterly  deny.  Should  such 
be  the  case,  it  does  not  follow  that  the  line  must  be  rendered 
useless,  as  T  have  known  underground  telegraphs  to  work  for 
months  after  the  conducting  wires  had  been  separated  more  than 
a  quarter  of  an  inch  by  the  decomposing  power  of  the  batteries 
employed.  A  slight  failure  existed  in  the  gutta-percha ;  this 
admitted  moisture,  which,  by  conveying  the  electricity  to  the 
earth,  caused  the  decomposition  of  the  wire,  and  then  aided 
the  working  of  the  telegraph  by  conducting  a  portion  of  the 
current  from  one  point  of  the  separated  wire  to  the  other. 
Signals  were  much  reduced  in  power,  as  in  the  present  case  ; 
still  the  wire  continued  to  work,  and  if  such  can  be  done  for 
months,  it  might  happen  for  a  longer  period. 

If,  by  any  means,  the  conducting  wire  separates,  and  the 
gutta-percha  remains  sound,  all  communication  ceases,  from 
the  absence  of  moisture  to  complete  the  circuit.  By  our  test- 
ing, one  fact  is  unquestionably  established,  and  that  is,  the 
fault  is  not  beyond  300  miles.  I  speak  of.  the  great  fault ; 
others  may  exist  between  that  and  Newfoundland,  but  if  it  be 
a  fact,  as  I  have  heard,  that,  on  testin*g  at  the  latter  place, 
very  little  earth  is  shown,  the  probability  is  that  the  other  part 
of  the  cable  is  good.  Having  arrived  at  the  fact  of  $he  injury 
not  being  beyond  300  miles,  the  difficulty  is  to  know  how  much 
within  that  distance  it  is  to  be  found,  or  how  much  of  the  re- 
sistance is  due  to  the  cable,  and  how  much  to  the  fault ;  and 
although  by  accurate  testings  and  examinations  a  pretty  cor- 
rect knowledge  of  the  facts  may  be  obtained,  still  it  is  liable 
to  some  uncertainty,  and  instances  have  occurred  in  testing 
cables  where  the  most  experienced  have  been  quite  wrong  in 
their  conclusions. 

I  cannot  think  it  possible  for  the  injury  to  be  in  the  har- 
bor, but  should  think  it  advisable  to  lay  down  some  length  of 
shore  end,  as  the  cable  near  the  land  must  soon  be  injured 
by  friction  on  the  rocks  and  shingle.  A  piece  of  the  same  size, 


644  ATLANTIC  OCEAN  TELEGRAPHY. 

laid  across  the  harbor  for  the  Magnetic  Company,  was  entirely 
worn  asunder  some  days  since. 

In  my  opinion  the  fault  or  faults  existed  in  the  cable 
before  it  was  submerged,  and  that  they  would  have  been 
detected  and  made  good  had  the  precaution  been  observed  of 
having  the  whole  cable  tested  in  water  during  its  manufacture. 

Its  not  showing  so  bad  when  first  laid  is  easily  to  be  ac- 
counted for,  as  it  takes  some  time  for  the  water  to  soak  through 
the  coating  of  pitch  and  tar.  In  a  cable  I  am  now  manufac- 
turing a  fault  was  four  days  in  the  water  before  showing  any- 
thing. 

Had  your  cable  been  injured  after  submersion  by  Jesting 
on  the  sharp  edge  of  a  rock,  the  inner  wire  and  the  outer 
metallic  covering  must  have  come  in  contact,  and  that  this  is 
not  the  case  we  have  absolute  proof,  both  from  the  fact  of  a 
battery  current  being  generated  by  the  iron  sheathing  and 
the  exposed  copper,  and  from  signals  being  received  from 
Newfoundland  ;  for,  did  the  iron  touch  the  copper  conductor  in 
the  smallest  point,  not  the  slightest  signal  could  be  observed. 
Signals  were  from  the  first  much  weaker  than  they  ought  to 
have  been  from  a  tolerable  insulated  line  of  that  length,  and 
were  scarcely  sufficient  to  work  a  very  delicate  relay,  which 
can  be  used  with  a  current  so  feeble  that  it  could  only  just  be 
detected  on  the  tongue.  The  currents  now  received  are  not 
more  than  a  tenth  of  that  power,  and  can  only  be  indicated  on 
Professor  Thomson's  very  ingenious  reflecting  galvanometer. 
This  is  constructed  on  the  principle  of  the  boys'  "trick"  of 
receiving  the  rays  of  the  sun  on  a  piece  of  looking-glass  and 
reflecting  them  on  the  wall,  a  very  small  motion  of  the  hand 
giving  a  range  of  many  feet  to  the  spot  of  light.  Professor 
Thomson  attaches  a  small  mirror  to  the  magnetic  needle  of 
a  very  delicate  galvanometer  of  his  own  contrivance  ;  the  light 
of  a  lamp  is  thrown  on  the  mirror,  and  a  motion  of  the  needle 
that  would  be  inappreciable  in  itself  is  plainly  indicated  by 
the  reflected  spot  of  light  on  a  scale.  The  apparatus  could  be 
made  much  more  delicate  still,  and  capable  of  working  with 
the  smallest  amount  of  current,  but  there  is  an  obstacle  in  the 
way  of  using  such  a  feeble  power,  and  that  is  the  earth  cur- 
rent, which  shows  itself  at  all  times  more  or  less. 

If  this  earth  current  were  at  all  constant  in  its  quantities 
or  direction,  it  would  be  quite  easy  to  compensate  for  it  and 
render  its  effects  neutral :  but  it  is  most  erratic  in  its  move- 
ments, sometimes  throwing  the  spot  of  light  entirely  off  the 
scale,  at  others  changing  from  positive  to  negative  and  back 
again  so  rapidly  and  frequently,  and  with  such  regularitv  that 


CAUSE  OF  THE  FAILURE  OF  THE  CABLE.  645 

it  is  difficult  to  know  whether  it  is  Newfoundland  or  the  earth 
current  signaling. 

These  earth  currents  in  submarine  and  subterranean  lines 
(like  the  atmospheric  currents,  as  they  are  termed  in  overground 
wires)  are  produced  by  the  inductive  effect  of  natural  currents 
of  electricity  moving  parallel  with  the  conducting  wires,  it 
being  a  well-known  law  of  electricity  that  if  a  current  moves 
in  the  vicinity  of  a  wire  or  other  insulated  conductor,  a  current 
is  set  up  in  each  wire  in  a  contrary  direction,  its  strength  being 
in  proportion  to  the  parallelism  of  the  wire  with  the  natural 
current. 

Any  wire  laid  parallel  with  the  equator,  or  nearly  so,  will 
have  also  its  electrical  condition  disturbed  by  every  variation 
in  the  earth's  magnetism.  On  the  first  establishment  of  prac- 
tical telegraphy,  the  inconvenience  experienced  from  these 
currents  was  as  annoying  as  it  was  unexpected,  but  in  course 
of  time  contrivances  were  produced  capable  of  modifying  or 
counteracting  their  effects,  so  that  but  little  trouble  is  now  felt 
from  their  occurrence ;  although  even  now  occasionally  on 
some  lines  all  communication  is  stopped  for  a  short  time 
when  these  terro- magnetic  currents  are  unusually  strong.  On 
lines  of  100  miles  or  so  they  only  show  themselves  at  intervals. 
At  other  times  the  line  is  quite  free ;  but  on  a  line  of  such 
enormous  length  as  the  Atlantic  cable,  electric  disturbance  is 
sure  to  take  place  on  some  part  of  it  at  all  times ;  and  if  a 
current  is  set  in  motion  in  any  part,  the  effect  is  communicated 
throughout  the  whole.  In  another  cable  (as  well  as  in  this 
had  its  insulation  been  more  perfect)  earth  currents  would  not 
cause  much  trouble,  as  the  working  currents  sent  through  the 
line  would  not  lose  their  strength,  as  in  the  present  case,  and 
consequently  would  overpower  them. 

The  mere  resistance  of  the  cable  as  regards  its  length  would 
offer  very  little  impediment  to  its  working.  The  same  length 
of  insulated  wire,  stretched  on  dry  earth  or  other  non-conductor, 
could  be  worked  through  with  a  very  small  power  and  at  a 
rapid  rate.  It  is  only  when  it  becomes  surrounded  by  a  con- 
ductor, such  as  damp  earth  or  water,  or  by  the  metallic  cover- 
ing of  the  cable,  that  the  phenomena  of  induction  again  come 
into  play,  and  the  more  complete  the  insulation  the  greater 
will  be  the  embarrassment  from  induction. 

The  effect  of  this  is  shown  when  a  battery  is  connected  with 
the  line  and  earth,  or  outside  of  the  cable.  The  inner,  or  con- 
ducting wire,  becomes  charged  or  electrified  plus  ;  the  outer 
coating  minus  (similar  to  a  Leyden  jar).  When  the  ends  are 
put  to  earth  the  effect  goes  off,  but  not  instantly,  and  when  the 


646  ATLANTIC  OCEAN  TELEGRAPHY. 

two  electrified  media  are  so  far  removed,  as  in  a  line  of  2,000 
miles,  if  connected  with  the  earth,  a  very  considerable  time  is 
occupied  both  in  charging  and  discharging,  causing  much  re- 
tardation of  the  current,  so  that  I  think  four  words  per  minute 
will  be  the  maximum  rate  of  transmission  through  any  At- 
lantic cable  with  the  present  dot  and  dash  system.  If  other 
plans  can  be  worked  by  which  a  letter  would  be  indicated  by 
one  or  two  signals,  the  rate  would  be  increased  in  proportion. 

As  I  have  made  use  of  the  terms  resistance  and  retarda- 
tion, and  as  they  are  words  having  different  meanings,  I  will 
explain  what  constitutes  the  difference.  The  "  resistance  "  of 
a  wire  has  the  effect  of  keeping  part  of  an  electric  current 
back,  or  diminishing  its  quantity,  without  affecting  its  velocity, 
the  remainder  passing  as  quickly  as  it  would  through  a  wire 
of  the  same  length  with  less  than  a  hundredth  part  of  the 
resistance.  The  effect  of  "retardation,"  on  the  contrary,  is  to 
diminish  both  the  quantity  and  velocity  of  the  current.  For 
example,  in  an  overground  well-insulated  wire,  2,000  miles 
long,  an  electric  current  or  impulse  would  traverse  the  entire 
length  in  one  tenth  of  a  second ;  through  the  same  extent  of 
submarine  line,  owing  to  the  effect  of  the  charge,  the  time 
occupied  would  be  nearly  a  second  and  a  half. 

Respecting  the  question  of  injury  to  the  line  from  the  use 
of  powerful  currents — if  a  small  hole  leading  to  the  wire 
exists  in  the  gutta-percha  covering  near  either  end,  there  is  no 
doubt  that  a  current  of  great  quantity  and  intensity,  whether 
produced  by  battery  or  coils,  would  have  the  effect  of  enlarging 
the  breach  by  burning ;  but  this  can  only  take  place  to  a 
limited  extent.  Heat  can  only  be  developed  by  an  electric 
current  when  the  latter  meets  with  great  resistance  ;  conse- 
quently, as  soon  as  that  is  diminished  by  a  slight  enlargement 
of. the  hole,  all  burning  ceases.  I  tried  the  experiment  alter- 
nately with  the  large  induction  coils,  with  the  battery  now 
here  (400  cells  of  Daniell's)  and  with  my  large  magneto-electric 
machine.  They  were  each  connected  in  turns  with  the  line 
and  the  earth,  and  at  the  same  time  with  a  piece  of  gutta- 
percha- covered  wire,  in  which  the  copper  was  bared  to  one 
thirty-second  of  an  inch  diameter,  and  a  piece  of  copper  in  a 
basin  of  sea- water,  thus  dividing  the  current  between  the  two 
routes.  The  coil  current  enlarged  the  fault  to  one  twentieth 
of  an  inch  in  diameter ;  the  batteries  to  a  sixteenth — both  very 
slowly.  That  from  the  magneto-electric  machine  made  no 
change  in  the  fault  it  was  applied  to  until  it  was  disconnected 
with  the  line  and  earth,  and  allowed  the  one  road  only ;  when 
burning  took  place,  as  might  have  been  expected.  The 


CAUSE  OF  THE  FAILURE  OF  THE  CABLE.          647 

fault  was  enlarged  very  slowly  to  one  tenth  of  an  inch.  On 
repetition  with  the  coils,  the  fault  was  increased  to  one  tenth 
diameter,  and  with  the  batteries  to  one  sixth,  rapidly  with  both. 
No  further  burning  can  take  place  with  either  current  till  the 
wire  is  brought  to  the  surface  of  the  water,  when,  owing  to  the 
resistance  increasing,  by  the  fault  being  only  partly  immersed, 
the  burning  commences  anew  and  the  gutta-percha  inflames. 

On  the  arrival  of  my  large  magnetic  machine,  I  put  it 
together,  and  connected  it  with  the  cable,  and  have  used  it  a 
part  of  every  day  since,  sending  at  some  times  reversals  and 
at  others  words  and  sentences.  I  am  unable  to  tell  whether 
•Ihey  were  received  and  understood,  but  hope  to  find  such  has 
been  the  case  on  the  receipt  of  intelligence  from  Newfoundland. 
Having  a  machine  at  one  end  only,  it  will,  of  course,  be  evident 
that,  even  if  they  received  properly,  they  could  not  have 
answered  better  than  before.  But  we  have  been  encouraged 
by  seeing  more  reversals  and  attempts  to  send  words  from  them 
lately  than  before.  I  will  leave  the  machine  here ;  it  will  be 
worked  at  stated  hours  each  day  by  the  assistants  until  the 
days  fixed  upon  in  October,  when  it  will  be  used  alter- 
nately as  arranged  with  the  battery  and  coils.  The  clerks  at 
each  end  will  then  act  according  to  preconcerted  arrangements, 
which  I  hope  will  have  the  effect  of  renewing  telegraphic  cor- 
respondence. If  that  is  not  accomplished,  probably  the  best  thing 
then  would  be  to  raise  the  cable  for  about  15  miles  out  and  test. 
I  cannot  say  I  have  any  hopes  of  the  fault  being  found  within 
that  distance,  but  as  it  would  not  be  attended  with  any  trouble 
or  risk  I  think  it  worth  the  trial.  If  the  injury  is  in  the  deep 
soundings,  I  believe  any  attempt  to  raise  it  would  be  the  means 
of  breaking  the  cable  and  losing  the  e"nd  altogether.  If  the 
state  of  the  cable  should  not  get  worse  I  am  still  in  hopes  of 
its  being  rendered  workable  by  transmitting  signals  slowly,  by 
having  delicate  receiving  apparatus,  and  by  adopting  means  for 
neutralizing  the  earth  current.  Professor  Thomson  has  par- 
tially succeeded  in  the  latter  object  by  throwing  into  the  receiv- 
ing end  of  the  line  feeble  currents  of  different  values,  from  one 
cell  to  one  twentieth  of  a  cell,  in  opposition  to  the  earth  current. 
I  am,  gentlemen,  yours  obediently, 

W.  T.  HENLEY,  Telegraph  Engineer. 

46  John-street-road)  Clerkenwell. 

Various  trials  have  been  made  to  work  the  cable  since  the 
report  of  Mr.  Henley  was  submitted,  but  without  success.  The 
company  has  exerted  itself  to  make  available  the  great  enter- 
prise, but  thus  far,  sadly  to  be  recorded,  in  vain. 


648  ATLANTIC    OCEAN    TELEGRAPHY. 

This  stupendous  enterprise  was  started  and  executed  with 
great  energy  and  skill.  The  account  current  of  the  company 
up  to  December  1,  1858,  exhibited  an  aggregate  expenditure 
of  £379,029.  The  governments  of  Great  Britain  and  the 
United  States  loaned  the  vessels  employed  in  1857  and  in  1858, 
by  which  the  finances  of  the  company  were  materially  benefited. 
The  governments,  also,  had  agreed  to  pay  an  annual  subsidy 
upon  certain  conditions  for  a  term  of  twenty-five  years.  The 
colonial  governments  in  America  had  also  granted  certain  im- 
munities for  the  benefit  of  the  undertaking.  In  a  word,  the 
company  had  lavished  upon  it  every  consideration  to  enable  it 
to  effect  the  most  signal  triumph.  Every  effort  within  human 
power  was  directed  toward  the  consummation  of  success  ;  but, 
how  to  make  the  cable  work  effectively  for  commercial  purposes, 
was  something  beyond  the  reach  of  man,  and  known  only  to 
the  Supreme  Being. 

At  the  present  time  it  has  not  been  determined  when  another 
attempt  will  be  made  to  connect  the  New  and  the  Old  World 
by  telegraph. 

In  the  meantime,  other  companies  are  being  organized  for 
the  submerging  of  cables  on  other  routes,  one  of  which  is 
proposed  to  run  from  England  or  Portugal  to  the  Azores,  and 
thence  to  the  United  States,  on  which  route  the  longest  circuit 
will  be  about  1,400  miles ;  and  another  project  is  to  run  a  line 
via  the  Faroe  Isles,  Iceland,  and  Greenland,  to  Labrador,  the 
longest  circuit  on  which  line  will  be  about  500  miles.  There 
can  be  no  doubt  but  what  cables  can  be  laid  on  any  and  all  the 
routes  projected  across  the  ocean  ;  but  to  practically  work  them 
after  they  are  laid  for  commercial  purposes,  is  a  problem  not 
yet  solved.  We  can,  however,  indulge  the  hope  that  some  new 
discovery  may  be  made  in  the  science  of  electrics  that  will 
enable  the  world  to  realize  the  most  complete  consummation 
of  the  great  desideratum,  which  was,  for  a  time,  supposed  to 
have  been  accomplished  on  the  submerging  of  the  late  Atlantic 
cable  between  the  coasts  of  Ireland  and  Newfoundland. 

It  is  a  singular  coincidence  that  the  first  feat  of  telegraphing 
was  executed  by  order  of  King  Agamemnon  to  his  queen,  an- 
nouncing the  fall  of  Troy,  1084  years  before  the  birth  of  Christ, 
and  that  the  last  great  feat  was  executed  by  the  ship  Agamem- 
nonf  in  the  landing  of  the  Atlantic  cable  on  the  coast  of  Ireland, 
5th 'of  August,  1858. 


OCEAN    TELEGRAPHY. 


CHAPTER    XLV. 

The  Depths  of  the  Ocean — Description  of  the  Brooks  Lead — The  Elements  of 
the  Ocean — Maury's  View  of  a  Deep  Sea  Cable — Atlantic  Telegraphs  Pro- 
jected. 

THE  DEPTHS  OF  THE  OCEAN. 

THE  submerging  of  a  telegraph  cable  in  the  deep  sea,  is  an 
affair  of  no  ordinary  magnitude.  Ever  since  the  American 
government  so  triumphantly,  reached  the  bottom  of  the  ocean 
with  a  lead,  and  brought  to  the  surface  the  treasures  that  have 
laid  there  undisturbed,  perhaps,  since  the  world  began,  I  have 
been  satisfied,  that  a  cable  might  be  laid  upon  the  bottom 
of  the  mighty  deep,  in  most  any  direction,  from  hemisphere  to 
hemisphere. 

Since  then,  cables  have  been  laid  across  the  British  channel, 
the  gulf  of  St.  Lawrence,  the  Mediterranean  sea,  the  Black  sea, 
and  lastly,  the  great  Atlantic  ocean,  from  Ireland  to  Newfound- 
land. The  experience  the  world  has  in  relation  to  the  sub- 
merging of  a  cable  in  the  deep  seas,  gives  confidence  in  the 
feasibility  of  laying  a  cable  across  any  ocean,  however  deep, 
or  in  whatever  latitude. 

From  time  immemorial,  the  world  has  tried  to  fathom  the 
depths  of  the  sea.  Various  contrivances  have  been  invented 
and  experimented  upon,  but  without  success.  The  ocean  bed 
remained  as  a  sealed  volume — an  unsolved  problem. 

Nations,  and  men  of  science,  of  all  ages,  have  endeavored 
to  interpret  the  mysteries  of  the  sea.  Book  after  book  has 
been  written  upon  the  probable  contour  of  the  bottom  ;  but  all 
these  were  mere  speculations,  based  upon  comparisons  with 
developed  nature.  Finally,  the  long  desired  light  burst  forth, 
and  spread  its  rays,  diffusing  fresh  knowledge  throughout  the 
world.  The  honor  had  been  reserved  to  America,  to  conquer 
the  wave,  and  descend  to  the  blue  depths  of  the  restless  ocean 


THE  DEPTHS  OF  THE  OCEAN. 
Fig.  3. 


651 


and  grasp  its  "bottom  for  the  most  minute  inspection.  To  the 
energetic  labors  of  Lieut.  M.  F.  Maury,  Superintendent  of  the 
National  Observatory,  and  to  Passed  Midshipman  J.  M.  Brooks, 


652  OCEAN    TELEGRAPHY. 

the  inventor  of  the  deep  sea  lead,  both  of  the  United  States 
Navy,  great  honor  is  due  for  the  success  attained  in  fathoming 
the  great  depths. 

By  an  act  of  Congress,  approved  March  3,  1849,  the  Secre- 
tary of  the  Navy  is  directed  to  assist  Lieut.  Maury  in  his  re- 
searches concerning  the  physics  of  the  sea,  by  detailing  the 
vessels  of  the  navy  to  make  soundings,  and  other  investigations, 
relative  to  the  winds  and  currents  of  the  ocean. 

Conformably  to  this  act  of  Congress,  Lieut.  Maury  has,  un- 
ceasingly and  with  singular  power  of  discrimination,  perse- 
vered in  the  investigation  of  the  various  seas,  but  particularly, 
the  greater  part  of  the  Atlantic  ocean.  Soundings  have  been 
taken  from  the  equator,  and  north  to  Newfoundland  and  Ire- 
land. The  contour  of  the  bottom  of  the  Atlantic  can  be  calcu- 
lated upon  with  a  great  degree  of  certainty,  and  its  hills  and 
valleys,  its  plains  and  deep  caverns,  are  beginning  to  be  as 
correctly  located  as  the  face  of  the  trodden  earth, 

DESCRIPTION  OF  THE  BROOKS  LEAD. 

The  lead  employed  for  the  sounding  of  the  ocean,  was  in- 
vented by  Lieut  Brooks,  some  ten  years  ago,  and  from  time 
to  time  improved.  Its  present  combination  is  regarded  as  per- 
fect for  the  purposes  in  view.  Figs.  1  and  2  represent  the 
lead  as  now  used,  for  taking  soundings,  described  by  Lieut. 
Maury,  as  follows  •  "  Numeral  1,  fig.  1,  represents  the  rod, 
with  the  detaching  apparatus  ;  and  figure  2  represents  the 
lead  ready  for  sounding.  A  is  a  shot,  cast  with  a  hole  through 
it,  and  slight  grooves  on  its  side,  to  receive  and  steady  the 
slings,  E  E.  B  is  a  rod,  to  which  is  attached  an  arm,  c  ;  c  is 
an  arm  moving  vertically  about  the  pin  D,  and  from  which  the 
shot  A  is  suspended  by  slings  E.  E  E  are  the  slings  and 
washer  which  are  thrown  off  with  the  shot.  The  lower  end 
of  the  rod  is  tubular,  receiving  the  barrels  of  several  goose 
quills,  open  at  both  ends,  retaining  their  places  by  their  elas- 
ticity. F  is  a  valve  of  thin  leather  opening  outward  ;  it  per- 
mits the  water  to  now  through  the  quills  2,  as  the  rod  descends  ; 
but,  closing  as  it  is  drawn  up,  preserves  the  specimen  intact. 
This  provision  for  the  escape  of  the  water  permits  the  entrance 
of  the  specimen,  and  guards  against  the  capture  of  infusoria, 
or  substances  suspended  in  the  water  which  would  depreciate 
the  value  of  the  specimens  by  leading  to  false  conclusions. 

The  proportions  of  this  instrument  are  such,  that  when  the 
shot  is  suspended  from  the  arm  c,  the  point  of  contact  x,  the 
point  of  suspension  Y,  and  the  point  of  resistance  z,  all  lie  in 
the  same  vertical  line  ;  the  weight  of  the  rod,  B,  will  then  give 


ELEMENTS  OF  THE  OCEAN.  653 

the  arm,  c,  a  slight  inclination,  which,  with  the  friction  of  the 
water  on  the  line,  holding  it  back,  guards  against  premature 
detachment. 

It  is  obvious  that  the  sensitiveness  of  this  detaching  appa- 
ratus, will  depend  upon  the  relative  positions  of  those  three 
points  ;  for  the  arm,  c,  may  be  regarded  as  a  lever  of  the 
second  order  with  its  fulcrum  at  D  ;  the  gravity  of  the  shot  as 
the  power  acting  upon  the  resistance  of  the  line.  So  that,  by 
increasing  or  diminishing  the  distance  of  the  ring,  H,  from  the 
pin,  D,  the  detachment  is  rendered  more  or  less  difficult. 

In  order  that  change  of  position  in  the  arm,  c,  as  it  yields 
to  the  pull  of  the  shot  in  the  act  of  detaching,  may  not  inter- 
fere, it  is  so  made  as  to  permit  the  ring  to  slip  back  as  the  arm 
inclines,  as  shown  by  fig.  3. 

On  soft  bottom  it  should  work  as  well  as  on  hard,  for  it  is 
only  necessary  that  there  shall  be  a  retardation  of  the  descent 
of  the  rod,  while  the  heavier  shot  continues  to  descend  into 
the  mud,  to  cause  the  turning  of  the  arm  and  discharge  the 
shot. 

Before  using  the  instrument,  the  operator  may  test  its  sen- 
sitiveness and  adapt  it  to  the  depth  of  the  water  ;  in  deep 
sounding,  it  should  be  so  delicately  adjusted,  as  to  act  upon  the 
slightest  touch,  and  should  be  eased  down  for  the  first  fifty 
fathoms,  or  more. 

The  quills,  Q  Q,  are  cut  as  per  figure,  and  are  placed  with 
the  cut  ends  downward,  and  then  several  of  them  are  wedged 
into  the  cell  or  holder.  The  advantages  of  this  arrangement 
are,  we  have  more  abundant  specimens  than  an  ordinary  arm- 
ing will  -bring  up,  and  then  we  have  the  gratification  of  having 
them  properly  examined  by  the  microscope." 

With  this  lead  the  deep  sea  has  been  fathomed,  and  its  bot- 
tom exposed  to  man,  and  upon  its  examination  by  the  micro- 
scope the  supposed  earth  has  been  found  to  be  the  remains  of 
the  minute  inhabitants,  or  the  organisms  of  the  sea. 

THE    ELEMENTS    OF    THE    OCEAN. 

On  the  subject  of  Ocean  telegraphy,  Lieut.  Maury  thus 
writes  :  "It  is  an  established  fact  that  there  is  no  running 
water  at  the  bottom  of  the  deep  sea.  The  agents  which  dis- 
turb the  equilibrium  of  the  sea,  giving  violence  to  its  waves 
and  force  to  its  currents,  all  reside  near  or  above  its  surface ; 
none  of  them  have  their  home  in  its  depths.  These  agents  are 
its  inhabitants,  the  moon,  the  winds,  evaporation  and  precipi- 
tation, with  changes  of  temperature — such  as  heating  here,  and 
cooling  there. 


654  OCEAN    TELEGRAPHY. 

The  rays  of  the  sun  cannot  penetrate  into  the  depths  of  the 
ocean,  and  radiation  cannot  take  place  thence  ;  consequently, 
the  change  of  the  temperature  in  the  depths  of  the  sea,  from 
summer  to  winter,  and  winter  to  summer,  must  he  almost,  if 
not  entirely,  inappreciable.  This  is  a  generally  admitted  fact. 

The  winds  take  up  water  from  the  surface,  and  not  from  the 
depths,  and  in  so  doing,  they  disturb  the  equilibrium  of  the 
water  at  the  top,  not  the  equilibrium  of  the  water  at  the  bot- 
tom ;  by  evaporation,  the  water  becomes  salter  and  heavier 
than  it  was  before,  the  vapor  thus  taken  up  is  condensed  into 
rain  and  precipitated  on  other  parts  of  the  sea — thus  both 
raising  the  sea  level,  and  making  the  water  lighter  and  less 
salt  than  it  was  before.  Thus  we  have  the  genesis  of  horizon- 
tal circulation,  or  an  interchange  of  water  called  currents.  If 
by  the  process  of  evaporation,  the  surface  water  becomes  so 
salt  as  to  be  heavier  than  the  water  at  the  bottom,  the  water 
at  the  bottom  and  water  at  the  top  will  change  places.  This 
may  give  rise  to  a  vertical  circulation,  but  one  so  feeble  that 
it  cannot  be  felt,  by  even  the  tiny  little  shells  which  strew  the 
bed  of  the  ocean,  and  which  lie  there  as  lightly  as  gossamers 
under  the  dew  of  the  morning ;  practically,  therefore,  the 
water  at  the  bottom  is  still. 

It  is  also  generally  admitted  that  the  waves,  even  in  their 
most  angry  moods,  are  incapable  of  reaching  far  down  in  the 
sea,  or  of  disturbing  the  quiet  and  repose  which  reign  in  its 
depths. 

In  short,  there  is  reason  to  believe,  that  the  bottom  of  the 
deep  sea  is  everywhere  protected  from  the  violence  of  its  waves, 
the  abrading  action  of  its  currents,  and  the  rage  of  the  forces 
which  are  ever  at  play  on  its  surface,  by  a  cushion  of  still 
water. 

The  grounds  for  this  belief  are  afforded  by  these  circum- 
stances :  everywhere,  whencesoever  specimens  of  bottom  have 
been  obtained  by  the  deep  sea  plummet,  they  have  been  found 
to  consist  of  the  untriturated  remains  of  the  microscopic  organ- 
isms of  the  sea.  Some  of  these  have  the  flesh  of  the  little 
creatures  still  in  them.  Now  these  feculences  of  the  sea,  as 
the  remains  of  its  microscopic  inhabitants  may  be  called,  are 
relatively  as  light  in  the  water,  as  motes  in  the  air ;  and,  if 
the  bottom  of  the  sea  were  scoured  by  its  currents,  those  sea 
moles  would  be  swept  away  into  drifts  like  snow  or  into  dunes 
like  sand,  they  would  be  scratched,  their  sharp  corners  and  the 
edges  would  be  broken  off  and  rounded.  Moreover,  were  they 
drifted  about,  then  sand  and  other  scourings  of  the  ocean  would 
be  found  mixed  with  them.  But  not  so,  the  specimens  brought 


ATLANTIC  TELEGRAPHS    PROJECTED.  655 

up  from  the  deep  sea  show  no  such  mixture,  and  the  infusoria 
thence  bear  no  marks  of  abrasion  upon  even  their  most  deli- 
cate parts." 

MAURY'S  VIEWS  OF  A  DEEP  SEA  CABLE. 

He  further  states,  that  between  Newfoundland  and  Ireland, 
the  pressure  varies  from  200  to  300  atmospheres,  that  is,  from 
430,000  to  650,000  pounds  the  square  foot.  "  Chemical  forces 
may  be  measured,  and  consequently  overcome  by  pressure,  for 
the  gases  generated  by  chemical  decomposition  are  themselves 
capable,  so  the  chemists  tell  us,  of  exerting  in  the  process  of 
that  decomposition,  only  so  much  pressure  ;  hence,  if  we  sub- 
ject them  to  a  greater  pressure  they  cannot  separate,  and  decom- 
position cannot  take  place. 

In  proof  of  this,  I  refer  you  to  a  recent  discovery  of  Ehren- 
berg.  In  the  specimens  obtained  at  a  great  depth  from  the 
Mediterranean,  that  celebrated  microscopist  has  distinctly  re- 
cognized fresh  water  shells  with  meat  in  them.  From  this 
beautiful  little  fact  we  may  infer  that  the  very  volatile  gases, 
which  enter  into  composition  for  the  formation  of  the  fleshy 
parts  of  marine  animalculse,  are  subjected  to  such  a  pressure 
upon  the  deep  bed  of  the  ocean,  that  they  cannot  separate.  If 
this  inference  be  correct,  and  it  doubtless  is,  may  we  not  pro- 
ceed a  step  further,  and  conclude  with  reason,  that  with  the 
pressure  of  the  deep  sea  upon  it,  the  gutta-percha  used  for  in- 
sulating sub-marine  wires  becomes  impervious  to  decay  ?" 

It  is  his  opinion,  that  there  is  no  need  of  an  iron  armor 
around  the  cable,  but  on  the  contrary,  the  iron  coat-of-mail  is 
a  great  injury  to  the  success  of  the  enterprise.  Mr.  Henry 
J.  Rogers,  a  telegraphic  engineer,  of  many  years'  experience 
and  of  great  ability,  has  invented  a  novel  cable  for  the  deep 
sea.  The  gutta-percha  is  covered  with  one  or  more  coatings 
of  hempen  thread,  whip-cord  fashion,  and  then  he  protects  the 
whole  with  a  gum  which  shields  the  gutta-percha,  securing 
against  chafes,  &c. 

ATLANTIC    TELEGRAPHS    PROJECTED. 

There  are  several  routes  across  the  ocean,  proposed  to  be 
occupied  by  Atlantic  Telegraphs.  The  most  prominent  are  : 

1st.  The  line  from  Norway  and  Scotland,  respectively,  to  the 
Faroe  Isles,  Iceland,  Greenland,  and  Labrador,  the  longest 
section  of  cable  required  being  about  six  hundred  miles. 
Greatest  depth  of  water  about  1,400  fathoms. 

2d.  The  route  of  the  late  Atlantic  Telegraph,  from  Ireland 
to  Newfoundland,  requiring  a  cable  in  one  section,  exceeding 


656  OCEAN    TELEGRAPHY. 

two  thousand  miles.  Greatest  depth  of  water,  about  2,100 
fathoms. 

3d.  From  some  point  in  Europe  to  the  Azore  Isles,  and  from 
thence  to  America,  for  which  the  longest  stretch  of  cable  re- 
quired, will  exceed  fourteen  hundred  miles.  The  greatest 
depth  of  water,  about  2,600  fathoms. 

4th.  And,  the  next  route,  is  in  the  extreme  south,  running 
along  the  European  and  African  coast,  in  the  sea,  touching  at 
the  Madeira,  Canary,  and  Cape  Yerde  Isles,  and  thence  to  the 
Isles  of  Don  Pedro  and  Fernando  Noronha,  to  South  America. 
The  line  then  to  follow  the  coast  north  to  the  Isle  of  Trinidad, 
thence  to  the  West  Indies,  across  St.  Thomas,  Porto  Rico,  Cuba, 
and  thence  to  the  United  States.  The  longest  stretch  of  cable 
required  for  the  route,  will  be  about  one  thousand  miles.  The 
greatest  depth  of  water,  about  3,500  fathoms. 

With  the  Rogers  deep  sea  telegraph  cord,  Lieut.  Maury 
thinks  a  line  can  be  successfully  laid  from  one  continent  to  the 
other.  In  regard  to  ocean  telegraphy,  it  is  due  to  the  dis- 
tinguished Superintendent  of  the  National  Observatory  to  say 
that  he  only  discusses  the  Neptunian  obstacles  to  the  laying  of 
an  Atlantic  cable,  and  he  very  correctly  and  fairly  says : 

"  The  real  question  for  future  projectors  of  lines  of 
submarine  Telegraph,  is  not  how  deep,  or  how  boisterous,  or 
how  wide  the  sea  is,  but  what  are  the  electric  limits  to  the 
length  of  submarine  lines" 


TELEGRAPH  CROSSINGS  OVER  RIVERS 


*_,     CHAPTER    XLVI. 

Telegraph  Crossings  in  Europe — The  Great  Crossing  over  the  River  Elbe — 
Wide  Spans  of  "Wire  on  the  Continent — River  Crossings  in  America — De- 
scription of  the  Great  Mast  on  the  Ohio  River — Suspension  of  the  Wire 
over  the  Masts — A  Western  Frontier  Telegraph  Crossing. 

TELEGRAPH    CROSSINGS    IN    EUROPE. 

THE  telegraph  lines  in  Europe  do  not  traverse  very  large 
rivers,  compared  with  those  of  America.  The  Elbe,  the  Neimen, 
and  the  Dwina,  are  the  widest  crossed  by  the  wires  on 
masts.  The  telegraphs  on  that  continent  have,  therefore,  had 
but  little  experience  in  crossing  rivers  with  the  lines  erected  in 
the  air.  As  a  general  thing,  throughout  the  world,  the  use  of 
masts  has  been  abandoned,  and  submarine  crossings  adopted 
in  their  stead.  In  order,  however,  that  the  telegraph  may  be 
prepared  to  meet  any  emergency,  I  will  explain  in  sufficient 
detail,  the  manner  of  using  masts  for  long  stretches  over  swamps 
or  rivers. 

In  regard  to  the  crossings  of  streams,  the  opinion  entertained 
in  Europe  is,  that  rivers  under  twelve  hundred  feet  in  breadth, 
are  to  be  crossed  in  this  manner,  in  all  cases  where  it  is 
practicable,  having  reference  to  the  height  of  the  masts  of  the 
vessels  passing  under  the  line  at  the  highest  level  in  the  rainy 
season. 

It  being  impracticable  to  give  precise  rules  applicable  to  each 
case,  it  will  best  fulfil  the  object  of  these  pages  to  give  an  exact 
description  of  some  remarkable  river  crossings  effected  in  this 
manner  in  Europe. 

The  following  are  the  details  of  the  construction  of  the  tele- 
graph masts  at  Norwich. 

657 


658  TELEGRAPH    CROSSINGS    OVER    RIVERS. 

The  river  is  but  62  feet  broad  at  high  water,  and  then  nearly 
level  with  its  banks. 

The  masts,  one  on  each  bank,  each  of  two  spars,  are  150  feet 
apart,  and  100  feet  above  ground.  The  lower  mast  is  1  foot  in 
diameter,  70  feet  above  ground,  into  which  it  penetrates  10 
feet,  and  is  stepped  in  a  buried  frame  of  two  beams,  crossed  at 
a  right  angle,  each  20  feet  long,  6  inches  square,  the  ends  con- 
nected by  four  timber  pieces,  skengthened  at  the  angles  by 
wrought  iron  straps  and  bolts.  There  are  four  timber  struts, 
each  12  feet  long,  one  from  each  end  of  the  cross  piece,  bolted 
to  the  mast,  2  feet  below  the  ground.  For  the  attachment  of 
the  stays,  there  are  four  piles  at  equal  distances,  each  8  feet 
from  the  mast,  1  foot  square,  12  feet  long,  shod, with  iron,  and 
provided  with  iron  caps  and  bolts.  A  stay  ojf  one  inch  iron 
rope  leads  from  the  top  of  the  lower  mast  to  each  of  these 
piles. 

The  top  mast  is  thirty-six  feet  long,  and  thirty  feet  above 
the  lower  mast ;  the  compound  mast  being  one  hundred  feet 
above  the  ground. 

A  cross  stay  of  iron  wire  rope  runs  from  mast  to  mast.  7  feet 
below  the  top.  Two  stays,  also  of  iron  wire  rope,  lead  from  the 
same  part  of  the  mast  to  two  piles  60  feet  from  the  lower  mast, 
and  of  the  same  dimension  as  the  other  piles.  The  top  mast  is 
secured  by  four  stays  of  iron  wire  rope,  attached  to  cross-trees 
in  the  usual  mode  of  mast  rigging. 

A  spindle  and  vane,  serving  also  as  the  point  of  a  lightning 
conductor  of  iron  rope,  completes  the  mast. 

The  telegraph  conductors  are  six  wires  of  No.  8  galvanized  iron 
of  the  best  kind.  They  are  led  through  brown  stoneware  in- 
sulators, attached  to  the  mast  at  its  highest  part,  and  above  the 
stays.  The  wires  are  strained  tight,  and  led,  each  set,  to  a 
telegraph  post  one  hundred  feet  from  the  mast,  and  thirty- 
five  feet  high.  From  these  posts  the  wires  join  the  lines  at 
each  side. 

Instead  of  the  expensive  and  troublesome  plan  of  framing  for 
the  underground  worlj:  above  described,  in  India  they  employ 
the  screw  piles,  six  feet  long.  These  piles  carry  a  lower  mast 
35  to  40  feet  high.  Four  of  the  ordinary  small  piles,  3  feet 
long,  are  first  screwed  into  the  ground,  each  at  20  feet  from  the 
spot  where  the  mast  .is  to  be  erected.  The  mast  fitted  in  its 
pile  is  raised  into  its  position,  and  steadied,  tent-pole  fashion,  by 
four  rope  guys  lashed,  as  required,  to  a  short  spar  in  the  smaller 
pile  ;  four  loops  of  iron  \vire  on  an  iron  plate  fitting  loosely  on  a 
pin  in  the  mast,  serve  for  the  attachment  of  the  guys,  and  keep 
the  mast  perpendicular,  while  it  is  screwed  into  its  place.  This 


THE  GREAT  CROSSING  OVER  THE  RIVER  ELBE. 

is  effecte'd  by  lashing  a  strong  spar,  "by  its  middle,  to  the  top  of 
the  pile,  by  a  piece  of  chain,  and  a  party  of  five  men  at  each 
end  man  this  spar,  capstan  manner.  The  screwing  is  easily 
accomplished  in  a  stiff  clay,  sandy,  or  light  gravelly  soil,  in  five 
minutes.  Four  iron  rope  or  rod  iron  jointed  guys  should  then 
be  permanently  attached  to  screw  piles  of  the  three-feet  pattern, 
planted  obliquely  in  the  ground.  Each  pile  has  a  short  wrought 
iron  link  for  the  attachment  of  the  guy,  and  each  guy  has  a 
tightening  screw  to  regulate  its  tension. 

THE    GREAT    CROSSING    OVER    THE    RIVER  ELBE. 

The  most  remarkable  crossing  on  masts,  in  Europe,  is  that 
over  the  river  Elbe  near  Hamburg.  I  have  frequently  examined, 
that  crossing,  and  as  it  is  regarded  by  the  European  telegraph- 
ers as  a  great  achievement  in  the  art,  I  will  give  the  details  of 
it  as  furnished  by  Mr  Grerk,  the  engineer  of  the  line.  The 
principal  arm  of  the  Elbe  is  about  1,200  feet  wide,  and  is  nav- 
igated by  sailing  vessels  of  moderate  tonnage. 

For  rivers  averaging  1,500  feet  in  breadth  Mr.  G-erk  ad- 
vises thu  use  of  masts  strongly  and  substantially  built,  and 
from  30  to  40  feet  higher  than  the  highest  masts  of  the 
vessels  which  have  to  pass  below.  This  is  necessary  to  allow 
for  a  deflection  of  one  fiftieth  in  the  wire,  which,  when  of  the 
very  best  description,  can  be  strained  no  tighter,  without  great 
risk  of  fracture  by  storms,  or  by  the  weight  of  icicles  in 
northern  climates. 

Five  masts,  such  as  I  will  proceed  to  describe,  were  erectqd 
in  1848  for  the  crossing  of  both  arms  of  the  Elbe. 

Each  mast  penetrates  10  feet  in  the  ground,  and  is  there 
wedged  down  between  strong  cross  beams,  and  the  whole 
covered  with  heavy  stones  or  concrete.  About  16  feet  from 
the  end  of  each  beam  a  pile  is  driven  deeply  and  obliquely 
into  the  earth  for  the  attachment  of  the  stays,  which  are  iron 
rods,  one  inch  diameter  below,  three  fourths  of  an  inch  in  the 
middle,  and  half  an  inch  at  top.  These  stays  lead  from  the 
piles  to  the  top  of  the  lower  mast,  where  they  are  attached  to 
a  wrought  iron  collar  with  four  eye-bolts  and  rings.  At  9  feet 
from  the  ground  each  stay  is  provided  with  a  straining  screw 
by  which  it  is  tightened  to  the  required  degree. 

The  masts  described  and  figured  by  Mr.  Grerk  are  180  feet 
high,  in  several  pieces  bound  together  by  wrought  iron  rings, 
2  feet  in  diameter  at  the  ground,  tapering  to  4  inches  at  the 
top.  The  first  set  of  cross-trees  is  at  70  feet  from  the  ground. 
Four  beams,  each  of  36  feet  long,  are  laid  cross-tree  fashion  at  the 


660  TELEGRAPH    CROSSINGS    OVER    RIVERS. 

surface  of  the  ground,  the  mast  in  the  centre ;  from  'each  end 
of  these  beams  a  prop  is  bolted  to  the  mast  at  25  feet  above  the 
ground,  and  stays  lead  from  the  mast  at  70  feet  high. 

The  first  cross-trees  for  the  support  of  the  shrouds,  are  four 
oak  pieces,  each  18  feet  long.  The  second  cross-trees  are  8 
feet  long,  and  are  attached  to  the  mast  150  feet  from  the 
ground.  Above  this  point  the  spar  rises  30  feet,  and  carries  a 
wrought  iron  cap  and  pin,  with  a  porcelain  or  stone  ware  in- 
sulator of  the  Prussian  pattern. 

Mr.  Grerk  employs  a  compound  wire  of  ?>  strands  of  No.  19 
best  charcoal  iron,  twisted  together.  According  to  his  own 
experiments,  wire  of  this  gauge  withstands  strains,  storms,  and 
-casual  pressure,  better  than  any  other  kind. 

MODE    OF    ELEVATING    THE    WIRE. 

Mr.  Grerk  erects  the  wire  in  the  following  manner : 
The  wire  is  held  ready  wound  on  a  reel,  like  that  which 
ropemakers  use,  mounted  on  an  axle,  so  as  to  let  the  wire 
run  freely  off. 

The  man  who  ascends  the  mast  winds  the  end  round  his  left 
arm  in  a  knot,  taking  care  that  in  drawing  it  after  him  it  all 
runs  free,  especially  of  the  backstays.  When  he  reaches  the 
top,  he  draws  the  end  through  the  lignum  vitse  sheave  which  is 
placed  there,  and  either  takes  it  with  him  below,  or  else  fastens 
it  at  once  by  means  of  brass  double  screws  to  theo  ther  end  of 
the  conducting  wire,  which  ascends  from  the  last  bottom  peg, 
or  out  of  the  ground.  In  the  latter  case  the  point  of  connection 
will  be  in  the  first  or  second  cross-tree.  As  soon  as  this  is  done, 
two  men,  holding  the  reel  by  means  of  the  staff  on  which  it  is 
centred,  get  into  the  boat  which  is  lying  ready,  and  a  third,  or 
the  man  on  the  mast,  takes  care  that  the  wire  runs  freely  off 
during  the  passage  over  to  the  other  side.  If  the  river  is  broad, 
and  there  is  a  chance  of  ships  passing  by,  the  wire,  of  which  there 
must  be  at  least  400  feet  over  length,  is  allowed  to  run  free 
in  the  water,  while  the  person  who  remained  behind  at  the 
firs+  mast  holds  fast,  until  all  is  so  far  in  order  by  the  other 
mast  that  the  fixing-on  can  take  place.  But  if  the  river  is 
narrow,  and  there  is  no  danger  of  ships  passing  by,  the  wire 
should  be  held  as  long  as  possible  above  the  water,  because  a 
possible  entanglement  in  the  bed  of  the  river  will  thus  be 
avoided.  As  soon  as  the  other  bank  is  reached,  about  twice 
the  length  of  the  mast  is  let  run  off  the  roller,  or,  if  there  is 
more  on,  the  necessary  quantity  must  be  drawn  out  of  the 
river.  To  avoid  risk  of  the  wire  breaking,  two  men  go  back 


WIDE  SPANS  OF  WIRE.  ON  THE  CONTINENT.        661 

in  the  boat,  and,  while  one  rows,  the  other  lets  the  wire  glide 
through  his  hands,  in  order  to  lift  it  from  the  ground. 

If  all  is  so  far  arranged,  the  mast-climber  commences  in 
the  same  manner  as  before  to  ascend  with  the  end  of  the 
wire,  in  doing  which  he,  as  well  as  those  below,  ought  to  take 
care  that  the  wire  runs  free,  and  especially  that  it  does  not 
hook  behind  the  eyes  of  the  backstays.  As  soon  as  the  end  is 
brought  through  the  sheave,  the  man  descends  with  it  to  the 
next  cross- tree,  binds  a  weight  on,  and  lets  it  glide  down  to 
the  man  who  is  standing  on  the  bottom  cross-tree,  who  takes 
hold  of  tthe  wire  and  removes  the  weight.  A  strong  iron  pin 
must  be  fixed  in  a  sloping  direction  to  the  under  cross-tree,  in 
such  a  manner  that  the  conducting  wire  may  touch  no  other 
substance,  and  particularly  no  piece  of  metal.  The  iron  pin  is 
covered  with  an  insulating  cap,  round  which  the  man  below 
lays  the  wire,  while  the  one  above  climbs  up  as  high  as  he 
can,  and  while  he  lays  his  breast  against  the  top  of  the  mast, 
stretches  out  his  arms  as  far  as  he  can,  and  draws  to  him  the 
wire,  unhindered  by  friction  of  any  kind,  out  of  the  water  or 
through  the  air ;  while  the  man  below  draws  to  him  the  wire 
thus  gained,  lays  it  round  the  insulator,  and  holds  it  tight,  to 
prevent  its  sliding  back  again.  If  the  wire  is  now  so  tight  in 
its  stretch  across  the  stream  that  the  man  above  cannot  pull  it 
further  in  with  his  hands,  he  fixes  a  vice  to  it  as  far  out  as 
possible,  with  flat  teeth,  and  pulls  in  the  wire  as  far  as  it 
will  go  without  breaking.  The  proper  measure  is  naturally  the 
height  of  the  ships  which  have  to  pass  under  with  the  highest 
high  water,  where  a  tide  exists  If  the  wire  has  now  its  proper 
stretch,  the  man  below  wraps  the  same  several  times  round  the 
insulator,  nips  the  end  which  hangs  over  pretty  long  off,  and 
makes  the  connection  to  the  general  line. 

WIDE  SPANS  OP  WIRE  ON  THE  CONTINENT 

The  longest  span,  even  greater  than  the  Elbe,  in  Europe, 
is  that  over  the  river  Niemen,  at  Kovno  in  Russia.  From 
pole  to  pole  it  is  estimated  at  1,700  feet,  though  the  river  is 
not  more  than  half  the  width.  A  very  tall  tree  on  a  very 
high  hill  is  used  on-  the  west  side,  and  a  very  high  pole  on  the 
east  side.  The  river  Niemen  is  navigated  by  very  small  sailing 
and  steam  vessels.  The  crossing  over  the  Dwina  at  Dunaburg, 
Russia,  is  another  of  the  principal  spans,  though  not  so  wide 
as  the  Elbe.  The  next,  is  that  over  the  Vistula  in  Prussia. 
Neither  the  Dwina  nor  the  Vistula  is  navigated  by  vessels 
with  very  high  masts.  The  crossings  over  these  rivers  are,  for 
the  large  wire,  full  long ;  nevertheless  equal,  and  even  greater 


662  TELEGRAPH    CROSSINGS    OVER    RIVERS. 

distances  are  spanned  from  the  tops  of  houses  in  Paris,  and  over 
the  Alpine  regions  of  Switzerland.  From  mountain  to  mountain 
the  iron  thread  is  suspended,  and  on  witnessing  the  electric 
cord  elevated  high  from  the  green  vale  helow,  stretching  from 
the  snow-clad  summits,  it  often  occurred  to  me  that  the  means 
used  by  man  for  the  spread  of*  the  telegraph  over  the  earth — 
traversing  the  seas  and  mountain  barriers — was  as  sublime  as 
the  lightning,  which  Providence  had  made  subservient  for  the 
diffusion  of  light  and  knowledge. 

RIVER    CROSSINGS    IN    AMERICA. 

From  what  I  have  stated,  the  reader  will  see  that  there 
are  no  very  extensive  crossings  in  Europe  compared  with 
those  of  America.  I  will  now  describe  a  few  of  those  on  the 
western  continent.  It  will  be  inconvenient  to  refer  to  them 
in  the  order  as  to  the  time  they  were  respectively  constructed. 
I  will,  therefore,  refer  to  them  as  to  facts,  with  the  general 
remark,  that  those  to  which  I  refer  were  all  built  between 
the  years  1846  and  1850. 

The  crossing  of  the  rivers  by  the  telegraph  has  been  from 
the  commencement  of  the  enterprise  a  source  of  much  an- 
noyance and  a  vast  expense.  I  think  it  would  be  safe  to 
say,  that  the  American  telegraph  companies  have  lost  and 
expended  more  than  half  a  million  of  dollars  in  connection 
with  river  crossings.  On  the  extension  of  the  experimental  line 
between  Washington  and  Baltimore  to  Philadelphia  in  1845, 
the  Susquehanna  river  occasioned  some  difficulty  and  consider- 
able expense.  The  line  was  constructed  some  distance  from 
the  direct  route  in  order  to  cross  the  river  at  a  practicable  point. 
The  next  formidable  difficulty  was  that  of  the  Hudson  river  at 
New  York  City.  For  a  long  time  the  dispatches  were  carried 
over  the  river  by  messengers  in  boats ;  but  finally,  the  line 
was  submerged  by  Mr  Ezra  Cornell  in  leaden  pipes,  the  wire 
being  covered  with  cotton,  and  insulated  with  Indiarubber. 
This  was  November  20,  1845.  There  were  two  cables  thus 
formed,  and  they  worked  very  well  for  several  months,  until  they 
were  carried  away  by  the  ice  in  1846.  They  crossed  the  Hud- 
son at  Fort  Lee,  some  12  miles  above  New  York  City.  "When 
these  cables  were  broken,  high  masts  were  erected  and  wire 
upon  them  was  stretched  across  the  river.  Men  were  in  attend- 
ance all  the  time  to  repair  the  wire  when  broken  by  vessels. 
It  was  the  custom  to  let  the  wires  down  into  the  water  for 
vessels  to  pass  and  then  draw  them  up  again.  This  was  prac- 
ticable in  tide  water,  but  not  so  with  the  inland  rivers.  The 
Hudson  river  at  the  place  of  crossing  was  2,700  feet  wide. 


RIVER    CROSSINGS    IN    AMERICA.  663 

These  masts  were  constructed  under  the  directions  of  Mr.  Henry 
J.  Rogers,  the  energetic  superintendent  of  the  telegraph.  In 
1847  another  effort  was  made  to  cross  the  Hudson  with  a  cable, 
and  to  that  end  a  copper  wire,  covered  with  gutta  percha  by  Mr. 
S.  T.  Armstrong,  was  purchased  and  submerged  by  Messrs.  T. 
M.  Clark  and  J.  W.  Nortons  for  the  Magnetic  Telegraph  Com- 
pany. The  cable  was  placed  across  the  river  at  the  foot  of  Cort- 
landt  st.  It  worked  a  day,  and  was  then  torn  away  by  an  anchor. 

On  the  lines  constructed  by  Mr.  Henry  O'Rielly,  throughout 
the  great  West,  many  rivers  had  to  be  crossed,  over  which  the 
wire  was  stretched.  The  widths  of  these  streams  were  from 
1,000  to  3,000  feet.  The  first  crossing  was  that  at  "Wheeling, 
over  the  Ohio  river,  1,300  feet;  the  next  was  that  over  the 
Ohio  at  Louisville.  The  latter  was  one  of  great  expense. 
From  the  Indiana  shore  to  an  island  it  was  2,100  feet,  and 
from  the  island  to  the  Kentucky  shore  it  was  1,300  feet.  High 
masts  had  to  be  erected  to  support  the  wire,  so  that  the  steam- 
ers with  their  chimneys  90  feet  above  deck  would  not  touch  it. 
At  first,  a  large  cord,  made  of  three  No.  18  wires  twisted  to- 
gether, was  used,  but  its  groat  weight  prevented  it  from  being 
drawrn  to  the  required  elevation.  Small  steel  piano- wire  was 
then  employed  singly,  and  with  that  the  full  height  desired 
could  be  attained,  but  in  cold  weather  it  contracted  by  the 
frost  and  frequently  broke.  After  this  experiment  No.  16  iron 
wire  was  adopted  and  proved  the  most  serviceable  in  every  partic- 
ular, and  on  all  subsequent  crossings  this  sized  wire  was  adopted. 
'About  the  same  time  the  crossing  was  made  over  the  Wabash 
river  at  Yincennes,  and  then  followed  the  spanning  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi river  at  St.  Louis.  From  the  Illinois  shore  to  Bloody 
island  it  was  2,700  feet,  but  this  arm  of  the  river  was  not  nav- 
igable. From  Bloody  island  to  St.  Louis  shore  it  was  2,200 
feet.  The  mast  on  the  Illinois  shore  was  160  feet  high.  On 
Bloody  island  it  was  185  feet  high  and  on  the  St.  Louis  shore 
a  shot  tower  of  equal  height  was  used. 

Crossings  have  also  been  made  over  the  Ohio  river  at  Mays- 
ville  and  at  Parkersburg,  the  Niagara  near  Buffalo,  the  St. 
Lawrence  near  Montreal,  the  smaller  bays  of  the  Grulf  near 
New- Orleans,  the  Mississippi  at  Hannibal,  and  many  others; 
some  of  which  I  will  now  proceed  to  explain  more  in  detail. 

In  1849  and  1850,  Messrs.  Shaifner  and  McAfees,  construct- 
ors  of  a  telegraph  south  of  St.  Louis,  to  connect  with  New-Or- 
leans, traversed  with  their  line  the  Mississippi,  Ohio,  Tennes- 
see, and  Cumberland  rivers,  all  within  a  distance  of  one  hundred 
miles.  The  Mississippi  river  was  crossed  near  Cape  Grirardeau, 
in  the  State  of  Missouri.  The  width  of  4  he  span  was  2,980  feet. 


664 


TELEGRAPH    CROSSINGS    OVER    RIVERS. 


The  mast  on  the  Illinois  shore  was  210  feet  high,  and  that  on 
the  Missouri  shore  was  205  and  on  an  elevation  of  110  feet, 
making  the  whole  height  from  the  water  315  feet.  The  Ohio 
crossing  was  at  Paducah,  for  which  three  masts  were  employed, 
one  being  placed  on  a  sandy  island.  The  mast  on  the  Kentucky 
shore  was  307  feet  high  and  on  a  hank  32  feet  above  the  water, 
making  an  elevation  for  the  wire  339  feet.  The  mast  on  the 
island  was  205  feet,  and  the  one  on  the  ,  Illinois  shore  was  215 
feet.  The  width  of  the  river  between  the  Illinois  shore  and  the 
island  was  2,400  feet  and  between  the  island  and  the  Kentucky 
shore  it  was  3,720  feet.  The  Tennessee  river  was  crossed  near 
Paducah.  On  one  side  a  tree,  90  feet  high,  situated  on  a  bank, 
120  feet  high,  was  used  and  on  the  other  side  a  mast  160  feet 
high.  The  width  of  the  river  was  2,300  feet.  The  Cumberland 
river  was  crossed  in  the  same  manner  as  the  Tennessee.  The 
width  of  the  river  was  1,850  feet. 

DESCRIPTION    OF    THE    GREAT    MAST    ON    THE    OHIO    RIVER. 


Fig,  1, 


Having  referred  to  the  cross- 
ings respectively,  I  will  now 
describe  the  construction  of 
the  mast  at  Paducah,  upon 
the  principles  of  which  all  the 
others  were  erected. 

Fig.  1  represents  an  outline 
representation  of  the  mast, 
307  feet  high.  The  cross  tim- 
bers, fastened  at  the  foot,  are 
seen  to  the  right  and  above  in 
the  figure.  These  cross  tim- 
bers were  fastened  to  20  large 
cedar  logs,  placed  perpendicu- 
larly 12  feet  in  the  earth  and 
2  feet  above  the  earth.  The 
cross  timbers  were  12  inches 
square,  25  feet  long,  and  were 
fastened  to  the  upright  posts 
with  large  iron  straps.  In 
the  little  square  centre,  15 
inches  in  diameter,  the  foot 
of  the  mast  was  fitted  ;  braces 
of  strong  timber,  8  inches 
square,  were  then  placed  be- 
tween the  cross  timbers  and 
the  mast,  well_fastened  with 


SUSPENSION    OF    THE    WIRE    OVER    THE    MASTS.  665 

irons.  It  will  "be  seen  from  this  arrangement,  that  the  foot  of 
the  mast  proper  did  not  enter  the  earth,  hut  that  its  compound 
footing  comprised  20  large  cedar  logs,  united  hy  the  cross  timbers, 
and  they  were  united  to  the  mast  hy  the  braces. 

The  first  or  main  spar,  letters  a  b,  was  110  feet,  the  second, 
c,  70  feet,  the  third,  d,  57  feet,  the  fourth,  e]  43  feet,  and  the 
fifth,  /,  27  feet.  The  first  and  second  pieces  were  spliced,  as 
follows.  The  main  spar  was  composed  of  two  logs,  one  of 
which  was  75  feet  long,  20  inches  diameter  at  base,  and  at  top 
17  inches  diameter,  and  the  other  log  17  inches  at  base,  and 
15^  inches  at  top.  The  splice  section  was  seven  feet,  both 
spars  being  cut  diagonally,  so  as  to  fit  together  and  make  a 
uniform  size  with  the  remainder  of  the  log.  The  ends  of  the 
logs  were  not  chamfered  at  their  ends,  but  were  made  so  as  to 
rest  on  a  shoulder.  Three  large  iron  bands  were  then  placed 
around  the  section  united.  Besides  these  bands,  the  whole 
place  of  splicing  was  surrounded  with  No.  10  iron  wire  closely 
wound.  The  bands  of  iron  and  of  the  wire  were  sufficient  for 
the  purposes ;  but  as  the  main  piece  was  very  long,  and  had 
to  sustain  a  heavy  weight,  it  was  apprehended  that  it  might 
bend.  To  prevent  this,  iron  braces,  commonly  known  in 
America  as  hog  chains,  were  fastened  to  the  mast,  bracing  30 
feet  of  the  centre ;  and  then,  as  a  further  security,  iron  guys, 
1-2-  inches  diameter,  were  fastened  at  b  to  the  spar,  and  to  the 
ends  of  the-  cross  timbers  below.  The  top  of  the  main  spar 
was  also  sustained  by  4  iron  guys,  an  inch  in  diameter.  The 
second  piece  was  spliced  by  the  winding  of  the  wire  around  it, 
as  was  done  with  the  main  mast,  but  there  were  no  iron  bands 
used.  From  the  top  of  each  spar  ran  4  separate  and  independ- 
ent iron  guys,  which  were  fastened  to  substantial  piles  buried 
15  feet  in  the  earth.  The  top  guys  were  quarter-inqh  rqds. 
To  each  and  all  of  the  guys  straining  screws  were  attached,  by 
which  they  could  be  tightened  at  will. 

A  rope  and  pulley  were  fastened  to  the  top  of  the  mast,  so 
that  a  man  could  ascend  at  pleasure.  Some  ill-disposed  per- 
sons one  night  pulled  the  rope  out  of  the  pulley.  I  employed  an 
expert  climber,  who  ascended  to  the  top,  aided  only  by  the  tele- 
graph spurs,  described  in  the  chapter  on  line  repairing.  He  re- 
mained till  the  rope  was  replaced,  and  then  descended  by  it. 

SUSPENSION    OF    THE    WIRE    OVER    THE    MASTS. 

The  masts  being  constructed,  the  next  to  be  done  is  the  sus- 
pension of  the  wire  over  the  stream.  To  explain  this  process, 
suppose  the  masts  A  and  B  are  on  the  respective  sides  of  the 
river ;  the  wire  is  to  be  placed  in  the  top  of  each  through  the 


TELEGRAPH    CROSSINGS    OVER    RIVERS. 


open  insulator.  Beyond  A  it  should  be  "  made  fast"  to  the  line 
wire.  Beyond  B  the  wire  should  be  held  by  two  or  more  men. 
The  ends  between  A  and  B  are  loose  at  the  ground.  A  small 
reel,  containing  the  wire,  should  be  suspended  in  a  frame  at 
the  stern,  of  a  small  boat — for  example,  a  skiff  or  yawl.  The 
end  of  the  wire  upon  the  ground  at  A  is  then  spliced  carefully 
to  the  end  of  the  wire  on  the  reel.  The  boat  is  then  -rowed 
across  the  river  to  the  mast  B,  where  the  loose  wire,  hanging 
from  the  top  of  B,  is  spliced  to  the  reel  wire.  Immediately 
after  they  are  united,  the  men  beyond  B  pull  the  wire  through 
the  open  insulator  at  the  top  of  the  mast  B,  until  it  is  above 
the  river  a  sufficient  height.  In  crossing  the  river,  care  must 
be  taken  not  to  let  the  wire  get  into  the  water,  particularly  if 
there  is  a  current ;  as,  in  such  cases,  it  is  often  carried  down 
stream,  and  is  liable  to  catch  in  roots  or  rocks  at  the  bottom ; 
besides,  it  may  be  broken  by  the  current,  especially  while  being 
elevated.  The  wire  used  for  the  great  crossings  was  No.  16 
iron,  unannealed.  It  was  my  practice  to  coat  it  with  linseed  oil 

A  WESTERN    FRONTIER    TELEGRAPH  CROSSING. 

Before  concluding  this  chapter,  I  must  refer  to  .the  crossing 
at  Kansas,  Missouri,  constructed  in  1851,  then  on  the  verge  of 

Fig.  2. 


A    WESTERN    TELEGRAPH    CROSSING.  667 

civilization.  The  Missouri  river  was  about  2,100  feet  wide, 
and  one  of  the  most  turbulent  streams  in  America.  On  the 
south  bank  of  the  river,  the  line  was  built  to  the  frontier ;  and 
to  avoid  traversing  the  Indian  territory,  the  wire  was  stretched 
across  the  river,  and  then  built  to  St.  Joseph,  some  seventy 
miles  further  westward. 

Since  that  time,  brief  as  the  period  is,  a  wonderful  change 
has  taken  place  in  that  part  of  the  country.  In  places  where 
I  saw  the  Indians  as  the  sole  inhabitants,  and  the  whole  broad- 
spread  prairies  beautifully  adorned  with  the  varied  flowers  and 
green  grass,  now  the  white  man  has  full  possession,  and  vil- 
lages have  sprung  up  as  by  magic,  and  the  ploughshare  up- 
heaves the  soil  so  lately  traversed  with  the  red  man  armed  with 
his  deadly  weapons,  the  tomahawk  and  the  bow.  On  that 
very  soil,  but  a  few  years  since,  the  blood  of  the  father,  mother, 
and  child,  dripped  from  the  scalping-knife,  while  fiendish  beings 
danced  with  joy  around  the  trophies  cut  from  the  heads  of  the 
murdered.  To-day  civilization  reigns  supreme  over  that  same 
land,  and  the  tomahawk,  the  scalping-knife,  and  the  iron- 
pointed  arrow,  have  been  bound  together  with  the  olive  branch, 
and  now  move  by  the  breath  of  the  Creator  at  the  top  of  the 
saored  spire 


CONSTRUCTION  OF  THE  AMERICAN 
LINES, 


CHAPTEK    XLYII. 

Organization  for  Digging  the  Holes — Erection  of  the  Poles — Suspension  of  the 
Wire — Insulating  the  Poles. 

ORGANIZATION    FOR    DIGGING    THE    HOLES. 

IN  organizing  men  for  the  construction  of  a  telegraph  line, 
much  consideration  must  be  given  to  the  proper  distribution 
of  labor,  to  effect  the  most  certain  and  rapid  consummation  of 
the  ends  in  view.  In  the  classification,  a  proper  force  must  be 
placed  at  the  digging  oi  the  holes,  the  getting  and  putting 
up  of  the  poles,  the  suspension  of  the  wire,  and  the  necessary 
auxiliaries  in  the  premises.  I  propose  to  notice  each  corps 
respectively. 

The  detachment  of  men  engaged  in  digging  telegraph  holes 
is  generally  called  a  "squad,"  "  gang,"  or  " party."  In  my 
practice,  I  have  usually  termed  them  a  "  squad."  The  neces- 
sary implements  are  the  shovel,  fig.  1,  the  digger,  a  wrought-iron 
rod,  about  six  feet  long,  with  steel  •  cutter  at  end,  and  the 
auger,  with  blades  about  twelve  inches  diameter,  fig.  2.  The 
use  of  these  tools  I  will  shortly  describe.  A  digging  squad 
should  not  exceed  nine  men,  one  of  whom  will  act  as  "  boss," 
or  director.  The  duty  of  the  boss  is  to  step  off  the  places  for 
the  holes,  locating  the  spot  of  each  by  a  stone,  removing  a  little 
of  the  earth,  or  by  driving  a  stick  into  the  earth  to  serve  as  a 
mark  to  the  diggers.  The  boss  must  be  capable,  and  under- 
stand the  whole  process  of  construction.  He  establishes  ,the 
range  or  line  of  the  poles,  so  as  to  distribute  the  strain  of  the 
wire  on  as  many  of  them  as  possible.  Much  expense  has  been 
thrown  upon  the  subsequent  working  of  lines  by  injudicious 
location  of  the  poles  ;  for  example,  suppose  poles  ABC  are 
erected,  the  first  on  a  hill,  the  second  in  a  valley,  and  the  third 

668 


ORGANIZATION    FOR    DIGGING    THE    HOLES. 


on  a  hill.  The  wire  will  pull  off  the  cap  of  the  insulator  used 
on  the  southwestern  lines,  and  will  pull  off  the  insulator  em- 
ployed on  the  eastern  line,  as  most  insulators  are  constructed 
with  a  view  to  the  weight  of  the  wire  hanging,  instead  of  its 


F-    2 


strength  applied  to  an  upward  force. 

Again,  angles  are  to  be  avoided  as 

much  as  possible,  establishing  curves 

in  their  stead.     From  these  few  re- 

marks, it  will  be  seen  that  the  duties 

of  the  boss  are  responsible,  otherwise 

than  in  a  proper  management  of  his 

men.     The  squad  of  eight  men  are 

divided  into  four  pairs,  each  pair  hav- 

ing a  digger,  shovel,  and  an  auger. 

In  ordinary  earth,  two  men  can  dig 

forty  holes  per  day.     To  have  more 

than  two  men  to  a  hole  is  a  waste  of 

time,  and  no  acceleration.     I  have 

thoroughly  experimented  upon  this 

subject,  and  there  can  be  no  doubt 

of  the  correctness  of  these  conclu- 

sions.    Only  one  man  can  work  at 

a  time  at  the  same  hole.     Now,  it 

may  be  supposed  that  it  would  be 

better  to  have  one  man  only  to   a 

hole,  but  such  is  not  the  case.    Man 

is  companionable,  and,  when  alone, 

will  not  labor  as  fast  as  when  asso- 

ciated.    In  a  month,  a  squad  divided  into  pairs  will  dig  at  least 

twenty  per  cent,  more  than  when  arranged  in  divisions  of  three, 

and  much  more  than  when  placed  one  to  each  hole.     When  in 

pairs,  each  brings  into  action  increased  vigor  after  a  little  rest. 

The  labor  in  digging  a  telegraph  hole  is  severe  on  the  back, 

and  no  man  can  toil  the  whole  day  without  either  an  occasional 

rest  or  slowness  in  his  work.     When  in  pairs,  the  necessary 

rest  is  given,  and  each  renews  work  strengthened  for  quick  ac- 

tion.    But  this  rest  is  not  half  the  time,  nor  need  it  be  more 

than  ten  per  cent,  of  the  time,  as  will  be  seen  by  the  process  of 

work. 

After  the  hole,  has  been  located,  the  men  commence  by  cut- 
ting the  earth  with  the  digger  to  the  extent  of  the  size  of  the 
hole  at  the  top,  usually  about  fifteen  inches  diameter.  The 
earth  being  loosened  about  a  foot  deep,  the  other  man  with  the 
shovel  removes  it  from  the  hole.  The  digger  is  again  applied, 
and  the  shovel  again  removes  the  earth,  and  so  on,  until  the 


670  CONSTRUCTION    OF    THE    AMERICAN    LINES. 

hole  is  about  three  feet  deep.  One  of  the  men  then  takes  the 
auger  represented  in  fig.  2,  the  blade  or  flange  of  which  is  con- 
structed as  seen  by  the  side  and  top  views,  and  bores  the  hole 
to  the  proper  depth,  which  usually  is  about  five  feet.  When 
the  earth  is  very  compact,  four  and  a  half  feet  will  answer.  In 
gravel,  three  and  a  half  or  four  feet  is  found  to  be  sufficient. 

At  the  time  one  of  the  men  commences  with  the  auger  to 
finish  the  hole,  the  other  man  proceeds  to  the  next  hole  in 
course,  with  shovel  and  digger,  and  commences  a  new  hole. 
He  here  works  alone,  alternately  with  the  shovel  and  digger, 
until  his  companion  arrives  from  the  former  hole,  which  has 
been  finished  by  the  auger ;  he  joins  in  digging  the  hole 
number  two,  as  had  been  done  at  number  one.  In  this  way, 
the  holes  are  dug  and  left  ready  for  the  pole. 

During  this  operation,  the  boss  is  busy  locating  the  holes,  and 
occasionally  assisting  in  digging  a  hole  ;  for  example,  when  one 
of  a  pair  is  left  to  finish  a  hole  with  the  auger,  the  other  is  alone 
at  the  next  hole  in  the  use  of  the  digger  and  the  shovel.  Here 
the  boss  has  an  opportunity  to  aid  with  either  of  these  tools, 
and  in  thus  assisting,  he  becomes  acquainted  with  the  effi- 
ciency of  his  men ;  and,  after  a  few  days'  service,  he  can  readily 
determine  how  many  holes  his  squad  ought  to  dig  per  day. 

In  rocky  earth,  the  auger  cannot  be  used,  and  the  entire  hole 
has  to  be  dug  with  the  digger.  In  such  cases,  the  average 
holes  per  day  often  do  not  exceed  from  twelve  to  twenty  per 
pair  of  men.  But  in  ordinary  earth,  a  squad  of  nine  men,  with 
twenty-two  holes  per  mile,  can  finish  from  six  to  ten  miles 
per  day. 

I  have  never  found  it  economical  to  have  more  than  nine 
men  in  a  squad,  nor  more  than  one  boss  for  the  same  men.  T 
have  experimented  on  this  fully,  extending  as  high  as  forty  men 
in  the  same  squad,  with  a  boss  and  two  or  more  assistants. 
Whenever  I  exceeded  nine  men,  I  have  found  a  loss,  as  a  sure 
consequence.  A  gang  of  less  than  nine  men  will  prove  eco- 
nomical, but  the  speed  will  not  be  sufficient  for  the  pole  squad, 
soon  to  follow. 

After  the  holes  are  dug,  the  poles  should  be  erected  as  soon 
as  possible,  and  at  least  within  a  few  days,  for  the  reason,  that 
a  rain  may  fall  and  fill  the  holes  with  water  ;  and  also  to  avoid 
damage  to  man  and  beast. 

In  regard  to  the  first,  I  deem  it  proper  to  add,  that  after  a 
hole  has  been  filled  with  water,  the  pole  cannot  immediately 
be  set  solid.  It  is  true  the  water  may  be  taken  out,  as  I  have 
had  done  in  thousands  of  cases,  but  the  earth  is  left  saturated 
with  water,  and,  in  fact,  is  a  mere  casing  of  mud.  But,  in  the 


ORGANIZATION    FOR    DIGGING    THE    HOLES.  671 

winter  season,  the  water  might  freeze,  and  in  that  case  the  hole 
is  filled  with  ice,  which  is  as  difficult  to  remove  as  to  dig  a  new 
hole.  In  1847,  I  had  dug  some  forty  miles  of  holes,  and  a  rain 
fell,  filling  many  of  them  with  water ;  cold  weather  followed, 
and  the  water  was  solidly  frozen  in  each  hole.  In  that  case,  I 
found  it  less  expensive  to  have  new  holes  dug,  and  the  old  ones 
were  abandoned.  But  the  loss  of  the  first  holes  was  not  all 
that  was  sustained  ;  there  was  a  more  serious  consequence. 
After  warm  weather  had  softened  the  ice,  a  traveller's  horse 
stepped  into  one  of  the  holes  and  broke  his  leg.  The  case  was 
brought  before  a  legal  tribunal ;  the  traveller  demanding  dam- 
ages. The  telegraph  company  pleaded  that  it  was  not  respon- 
sible, as  the  digging  of  the  holes  was  necessary  in  the  construc- 
tion of  the  line  authorized  by  the  act  of  the  legislature ;  and, 
besides,  the  holes  were  within  the  limits  belonging  to  the  road 
company.  The  tribunal  held  that  the  company  was  not  liable, 
as  the  digging  of  the  holes  and  the  erection  of  the  poles  had 
been  given  under  contract  to  other  parties.  Action  was  then 
brought  by  the  traveller  against  the  road  company,  and  the  tri- 
bunal decided  that  the  law  required  the  company  to  keep  in  good 
order  a  travelling  way  of  a  given  number  of  feet  wide.  The 
telegraph  hole  was  not  in  that  way,  but  was  some  feet  from  it, 
and  as  the  traveller  had  departed  from  the  proper  and  common 
highway,  the  road  company  was  not  at  fault.  From  these  facts, 
it  will  be  seen  that  the  law  fully  protects  the  telegraph  and 
the  road  companies  ;  but  there  may  be  abuses  of  this  privilege, 
and  abuses  of  all  kinds  should  be  most  studiously  avoided. 
Notwithstanding  the  law  cannot  give  the  traveller  any  damage 
for  the  loss  of  his  horse,  I  have  always  found  it  best  to  soften 
the  losses,  by  paying  something,  thereby  voluntarily  sharing  in 
the  misfortune.  This  amelioration  begets  friends,  and  tran- 
quillizes even  the  most  vicious  and  revengeful  heart.  The  world 
must  be  taken  and  considered  as  it  is,  and  not  as  it  ought  to  be. 
Justice  would  not  require  the  telegraph  to  pay  for  the  loss  of 
the  horse ;  but  man's  depravity  often  impels  him  |o  deeds  of 
wrong.  In  the  dark  hour  of  night,  revenge  might  be  satisfied 
by  cutting  the  wire,  and  forcing  upon  the  company  a  loss 
greater  than  the  value  of  the  horse.  Providence,  in  the  end, 
however,  brings  about  a  retribution,  as  an  atonement  for  the 
offended  law ;  this  atonement,  some  telegraphers  might  say, 
reaches  not  the  thing  ponderable. 

In  America,  it  is  too  often  the  case,  that  when  a  man  feels 
that  the  law  has  not  sustained  his  imagined  rights,  commen- 
surate with  an  excited  conviction,  he  seeks  revenge  through  a 
more  clandestine  course,  by  the  execution  of  some  personal  in- 


672 


CONSTRUCTION    OF    THE    AMERICAN    LINES. 


fliction.  In  Europe,  where  society  is  taught  to  reverence  the 
law,  and  yield  in  all  cases  to  the  decrees  of  fate,  however  un- 
just at  the  time,  in  order  to  attain  the  greatest  good  for  the 
greatest  number,  the  lines  are  not  so  much  jeoparded,  nor 
liable  to  malicious  interruptions.  A  universal  respect  for  the 
telegraph  throughout  the  world,  is  a  u  consummation  devoutly 
to  be  wished." 

ERECTION    OF    TELEGRAPH    POLES.  • 

The  implements  necessary  for  the  erection  of  a  telegraph 
pole  are,  the  pike-pole,  fig.  3,  made  of  an  ordinary  pole,  about 
ten  feet  long,  with  a  sharp-pointed  iron  fastened  in  one  end ; 

Fig  3. 


around  this  end  of  the  pole  is  placed  an  iron  band,  to  prevent 
splitting ;  the  rest-board,  fig.  4,  being  a  plank  about  six  or 
eight  feet  long,  ten  inches  wide,  one  inch  thick,  and  concaved 

^ '  <lg'  t'  foot-board,  fig.  5,  about  five  feet  long,  ten  inches 
wide,  and  two  inches  thick,  on  one  side  a  little 
hollowed  ;  the  cant-hook,  fig.  6,  made  of  timber, 
five  feet  long  and  about  three  inches  square  at 
the  largest  end,  with  handle  end  round;  and 
about  ten  inches  from  the  larger  end  a  flat  iron 
hook  is  fastened  with  a  bolt.  This  iron  hook 
can  be  moved,  as  will  be  seen,  by  the  holes  in  it ; 
the  bolt  is  held  firm  by  a  screw  nut,  at  one 
end,  and  a  flat  head  at  the  other  end.  The  pole- 
lifter,  fig.  7,  made  as  a  double  cant-hook,  excepting  that  the 
hooks  are  placed  near  the  centre  of  the  lever.  This  wooden 
rod  or  lever  is  about  six  feet  long.  The  rammer  is  made  of  a 

Fig.  6. 


round  piece  of  wood  about  six  feet  long,  about  two  and  a  half 
inches  in  diameter  at  the  little  end,  and  about  four  inches  in 
diameter  at  th«  larger  end.  Around  the  larger  end  is  placed  a 


ERECTION    OF    TELEGRAPH    POLES.  673 

heavy  iron  band.      Besides  these  tools,  an  ordinary  farmer's 
shovel  and  pick  are  required. 

The  pole-squad  should  consist  of  ten  men,  one  of  whom  acts 
as  boss,  six  as  pike-pole-men,  one  as  foot-board-man,  and  two 
as  pole-setters. 

Fig.  T. 


Having  described  the  different  tools  and  the  number  of 
men  required  for  the  erection  of  telegraph  poles,  I  will  now 
explain  the  proceeding  in  that  formality. 

On  arriving  at  the  hole,  the  first  step  to  be  taken  is,  to  place 
the  pole  in  the  proper  position  for  its  elevation.  The  butt  end 
must  lie  over  the  edge  of  the  hole,  and  the  pole  must  be  placed 
so  as  to  be  easy  to  erect  where  the  ground  is  uneven.  Four 
men  take  the  pole-lifter,  fig.  7,  and,  grasping  the  butt  end  of 
the  pole  with  the  iron  hooks,  they  lift  the  end  of  the  pole  to  the 
proper  position  at  the  hole.  Two  of  the  men  then  proceed  to 
adjust  the  other  end  of  the  pole  with  the,  lifter  ;  the  other  two 
having  prepared  themselves  with  their  pike-poles,  fig.  3,  to  be 
ready  for  their  use.  When  the  pole  is  properly  placed,  the 
men  with  their  hands  elevate  the  little  end  about  six  or  eight 
feet  high.  The  rest-board,  fig.  4,  is  then  placed  under  it ;  the 
foot-board -man  places  his  board,  fig.  5,  in  the  hole,  about  three 
feet  deep,  opposite  the  foot  of  the  pole,  as  seen  in  fig.  8.  The 
men  then  change  their  positions,  placing  their  shoulders  under 
the  pole  nearer  the  hole,  when,  from  a  stooping  position,  they 
come  to  a  perpendicular ;  the  rest-board  is  then  brought  nearer 
the  hole.  By  this  time  the  pole  is  at  an  angle  of  45°  The 
pike-poles  are  then  taken  and  placed  under  the  pole,  as  seen  in 
fig  8,  combining  angular  forces  to  elevate  the  pole  to  the  per- 
pendicular. When  the  pole  is  thus  placed,  the  cant-hook,  fig. 
6,  is  applied  to  the  pole,  about  ten  inches  above  the  surface  of 
the  ground,  and  one  man  can  turn  the  pole  in  its  upright  posi- 
tion, so  that  the  previously  adjusted  insulator  at  its  top  will  be 
on  a  line  as  required  for  the  wire.  The  instant  the  pole  is 
brought  to  a  perpendicular,  three  of  the  men  with  their  pike- 
poles  hold  it  upright  for  the  application  of  the  cant-hook,  and 

43 


674 


CONSTRUCTION    OF    THE    AMERICAN    LINES. 


for  the  pole-setters  to  fill  the  hole  with  the  earth  or  stones  suf- 
ficient to  keep  it  in  the  proper  position.  The  other  men  pass 
on  to  the  next  hole,  and  proceed  to  arrange  the  pole  and  elevate 
it  preparatory  to  the  application  of  the  pike-poles.  One  of  the 

Fig.  8. 


two  pole-setters  fills  in  the  earth,  and  the  other  rams  it  to  a 
solid  state.  The  earth  should  be  elevated  a  little  around  the 
pole  at  the  surface  of  the  ground,  to  allow  for  the  earth  to  sink 
to  a  level,  and  to  cause  the  water  to  run  off,  and  not  settle  in 
a  puddle  around  the  foot  of  the  pole.  By  the  time  the  hole  is 
filled,  the  next  pole  in  course  is  ready,  and  so  on. 

By  these  facts,  it  will  be  seen  that  there  will  be  no  loss  of 
time.  Every  man  has  to  be  on  the  active  move,  in  order  to 
maintain  his  position.  The  boss  usually  takes  the  foot-board, 
or  the  rest-board,  which  gives  him  an  opportunity  to  see  his 
men,  and  to  give  the  commands  from  time  to  time.  With  ex- 


ERECTION    OF    TELEGRAPH    POLES.  675 

pert  men,  properly  organized,  working  ten  hours  per  day,  a 
corps  of  men  thus  described  can  erect  a  pole  in  four  or  five 
minutes.  When  the  earth  is  frozen,  an  additional  pole-setter  is 
required.  There  is  no  position  in  the  raising  of  the  pole  more 
responsible  than  the  foot-board  man ;  he  must  be  careful  not 
to  allow  the  pole  to  slip  either  to  the  right  or  to  the  left  from 
the  board  :  because,  if  it  does,  the  end  is  forced  into  the  side  of 
the  hole,  and  the  pole  becomes  difficult  to  raise,  the  pike-pole  men 
lose  their  angular  force,  and  the  pole  falls.  By  pressing  his  foot 
upon  the  pole,  as  in  fig.  8,  he  can  greatly  facilitate  its  erection. 

Unless  the  squad  observe  proper  care  an  accident  may  hap- 
pen in  the  raising  of  the  pole,  by  its  fall  as  above  mentioned  ; 
though  I  never  knew  of  but  one  case  which  was  fatal.  In 
1847,  Messrs.  Tanner  &  ShafFner  were  in  haste  to  erect  some 
two  hundred  and  eighty  miles  of  line,  through  Kentucky  and 
Tennessee,  and  a  large  number  of  men  had  to  be  employed. 
There  were  several  squads  for  each  department  of  the  business. 
One  of  the  pole  squads  was  composed  of  men  inexperienced  in 
the  business,  and  the  third  pole  attempted  to  be  raised,  when 
between  45°  and  90° — the  pike-pole-men  not  applying  their 
force  properly — fell  and  killed  one  of  the  men.  This  melan- 
choly accident  caused  the  men  to  disperse  and  abandon  the 
business. 

When  the  earth  cannot  be  rammed  compact  around  the  pole, 
and  it  is  not  possible  to  get  stones  or  gravel  Fig.  9. 

to  aid  in  setting  it  solid,  it  is  usual  to  use 
braces  to  prop  the  pole.  One,  two,  three,  or 
more  braces  are  used,  of  indefinite  lengths 
or  sizes,  as  seen  in  fig.  9.  Rough  sap- 
plings,  some  four  or  more  inches  in  diam- 
eter, are  generally  cut,  and  with  one  end 
set  in  the  earth,  and  another  in  a  notch 
cut  in  the  pole,  or  nailed  to  it,  or  fastened 
with  a  wooden  pin,  the  brace  forming  the 
hypotenuse  of  a  right-angled  triangle,  are 
all  that  have  been  deemed  necessary  on  the 
provincial  highways  in  America.  Some- 
times sawed  scantlings,  four  inches  in 
diameter,  are  employed  as  braces,  four  to  each  pole,  and  the 
lower  end  nailed  or  fastened  to  log  sills  arranged  around  the 
pole,  about  four  feet  distant  from  the  foot  of  the  pole. 

As  a  general  practice,  the  bracing  of  posts  is  avoided,  by 
changing  the  location  of  the  pole,  as  experience  has  taught  that 
it  is  more  economical  to  make  the  line  a  little  more  circuitous 
than  to  have  braced  poles. 


676 


CONSTRUCTION    OF  THE    AMERICAN    LINES. 


Fig.  10, 


With  a  view  to  economize  in  labor  on  a  line  commenced  by 
Mr.  Tanner  and  myself,  in  1847,  I  caused  to  be  tried  the  erec- 
tion of  poles  with  a  small  pair  of  shears.  This  latter  proved 
to  be  quite  a  success ;  but  with  the  shears,  nearly  the  same 
number  of  men  were  required,  and  not  half  the  speed,  as  in  the 
erection  with  the  pike-poles. 

The  poles  along 
the  ordinary  high- 
ways are  very  plain, 
but  in  some  of  the 
cities  much  effort 
has  been  made  to 
ornament  them, 
especially  at  the  sta- 
tions, so  that  they 
might  serve  as  signs 
to  distinguish  the 
places.  In  former 
years,  when  there 
was  much  competi- 
tion between  com- 
panies, the  spirit  of 
rivalry  extended  to 
the  poles  erected  in 
the  cities.  Fig.  10 
represents  the  Lou- 
isville station  pole. 
The  base  and  fluted 
column  were  made 
of  iron;  the  round 
shaft  above  and  the 
cross-arms  are  of 
wood,  and  neatly 
painted.  At  St.  Lou- 
is, one  of  the  com- 
panies  was  still 
more  extravagant, 
and  had  erected  a 
massive  ionic  col- 
umn, some  twenty 
feet  high,  and  upon 
it  was  placed  a  full- 
sized  statue  of 
Franklin,  with  the 
line  wires  passing 
through  one  of  his 


SUSPENSION    OF    THE    TELEGRAPH    WIRE.  677 

hands!  Another  office  had  a  large  golden  eagle,  with  out- 
stretched wings,  ready  to  soar  off  to  some  poetic  region,  the 
most  distant  from  economy. 

SUSPENSION  OF    THE    TELEGRAPH    WIRE. 

The  telegraph  wire  is  prepared  at  the  manufactories  in  any 
required  lengths.  For  some  lines,  it  is  prepared  in  half  mile 
and  mile  hanks.  The  greater  number  of  lines  have  had  it 
wound  on  prepared  reels.  These  reels  have  a  drum  about 
eight  inches  in  diameter,  with  x  ends,  made  of  oak  scantlings, 
four  inches  in  diameter,  as  represented  in  fig.  11.  The  reels 
are  about  three  feet  long,  and  upon  them  is  Fig.  11. 
wound  from  three  to  eight  miles,  the  average 
about  five  miles.  Each  joint  is  well  soldered, 
and  a  whole  strand  of  the  quantity  on  the  reel 
is  continuous.  Fig.  12  represents  one  of  these 
reels,  mounted  on  a  wagon.  The  reels  are  dis- 
tributed along  the  line  at  proper  distances. 
Often  they  havs  laid  upon  the  ground  along  the  open  highways, 
and  in  the  forests,  for  many  days,  without  any  covering.  To 
prevent  the  wire  from 
oxidation,  it  was  my  prac- 
tice to  have  the  wire  well 
covered  with  linseed  oil, 
at  the  manufactory,  and 
again  before  distributing 
the  reels  on  the  route, 
cover  the  outer  layers  of 
the  wire  with  the  same 
kind  of  oil.  When  this 
precaution  was  taken,  the 
wire  -was  always  found  free  from  rust ;  and,  besides;  it  pre- 
served it  from  decay  when  stretched.  This  was  the  case  with 
wire  not  galvanized.  In  later  years,  many  of  the  lines  have 
been  putting  up  galvanized  wire.  The  "  wire-squad"  requires 
a  wagon,  drawn  by  two  horses.  On  the  wagon  is  mounted  a 
frame  work  for  the  suspension  of  the  reel,  as  seen  in  fig.  12. 
An  iron  rod,  one  and  a  half  inches  in  diameter,  runs  through 
the  centre  of  the  reel,  which  serves  as  an  axle.  Through  the 
hole  in  the  cross,  fig.  11,  is  ruij  the  axle.  This  axle  rests  and 
turns  in  metallic  boxes  fitted  in  the  upright  beams  of  the  frame- 
work in  the  wagon,  as  seen  in  fig.  12.  The  arrangement  is  the 
same  as  the  old-fashioned  windlass.  The  whole  mechanism 
for  the  suspension  ofthe  reel  is  rude,  plain,  and  cheap,  costing 


678  CONSTRUCTION    OF    THE    AMERICAN    LINES. 

not  more  than  some  ten  dollars.  Fig.  12  represents  a  section 
of  the  wagon. 

Another  wagon  is  required  for  carrying  insulators  and  divers 
tools  necessary  in  the  business.  Two  ladders,  two  axes,  four 
hatchets,  vices,  pincers,  soldering  apparatus,  nails,  and  a  few 
spare  tools  are  necessary.  These  articles  embrace  all  that 
have  been  required  on  the  provincial  routes,  especially  through 
forest  countries. 

The  wire  corps  is  composed  of  at  least  thirteen  men,  viz. : 
one  boss,  two  principal  ladder-men,  two  assistant  ladder-men, 
two  trimmers,  two  teamsters,  and  four  wire-pullers.  The  boss 
has  the  direction  of  the  squad ;  the  principal  ladder-men 
arrange  the  wire  and  the  insulators  on  the  poles  ;  the  assistant 
ladder-rnen  help  in  carrying  the  ladder  and  holding  it  firm,  when 
the  principal  is  mounted  upon  it ;  the  trimmers  cut  off  the 
branches  of  the  trees  on  the  line  of  the  wire,  and  cut  down  all 
the  undergrowth  beneath  the  wire  ;  the  teamsters  have  the 
charge  of  their  wagons,  and,  besides,  aid  in  other  work,  as  direct- 
ed by  the  boss  ;  and  the  wire-pullers  transfer  the  wire  from  the 
reel,  as  it  unwinds,  to  the  poles,  and,  after  being  placed  in  the 
insulators,  it  is  drawn  by  them  taut,  so  that  occasionally  the 
principal  wire-men  may  key  the  wire  at  any  given  pole. 

Now  this  process  contemplates  the  use  of  insulators,  such  as 
fig.  13,  which  are  fitted  in  the  pole  as  in  fig.  14.  This  class  of 

Fig.  14. 


insulators  has  been  principally  used  on  the  lines  traversing 
forest  regions,  so  that  when  a  tree  falls  upon  the  wire  as  in  fig. 
15,  it  can  slide  through  and  not  break.  If  tied  to  the  insula- 
tor the  wire  would  break  under  the  weight,  at  the  post. 

When  the  wire  is  stretched  upon  the  poles  from  hanks  there 
must  be  additional  assistance  /or  the  handling  of  the  small 
coils,  and  when  the  wire  is  tied  to  every  insulator  there  would 
be  economy  in  the  employment  of  more  ladder-men.  On  lines 
where  the  wire  is  fastened  at  each  pole,  the  routes  are  more 
free  from  forest  limbs  and  undergrowth.  Along  the  railways 


SUSPENSION   OF    THE    TELEGRAPH    WIRE. 


679 


there  is  not  much  trimming  required,  so  that  there  need  be  no 
especial  men  engaged  for  that  particular  service. 

Fig.  15. 


I  have  stated  that  there  will  be  required  four  wire-pullers  on 
open  insulator  lines,  but  practically,  nearly  the  whole  force  as- 
sist. The  wire  is  first  placed  in  the  insulator  and  it  hangs 
loosely  between  the  poles.  After  a  half  mile  is  thus  arranged, 
nearly  the  whole  force  assist  in  drawing  it  taut.  The  wire 
runs  through  the  insulator  in  the  case  of  fig,  13,  and  over  the 
arm,  as  represented  in  fig.  16.  "When  the  wire  is  drawn  nearly 


Fig 


straight,  it  is  "  made  fast "  to  a  stump,  a  tree,  or  something  else. 
The  wire-men  again  proceed  in  arranging  another  section  upon 
the  poles,  assisted  by  one  of  the  ladders.  The  other  ladder  is 
at  the  same  time  engaged  in  tying  the  wire  to  the  insulator  in 
the  one  case,  or  in  keying  it  in  the  other  place  to  the  last  insu- 
lator next  to  the  place  where  the  wire  is  "  made  fast"  to  the 


680  CONSTRUCTION    OF    THE    AMERICAN    LINES. 

stump  or  otherwise.  This  key  is  a  small  iron  in  the  shape  of  a 
button,  with  a  groove  through  the  flange  from  the  side  to  the 
centre.  The  wire  passes  into  this  groove  and  a  small  piece  of 
iron  is  driven  into  it,  which  binds  the  wire.  Another  mode 
is,  simply  tying  upon  the  wire  two  or  more  nails,  with  a  small 
wire,  which  will  prevent  the  line  wire  from  passing  through  the 
insulator  farther  than  the  nails. 

On  some  routes  the  wire-men  can  be  dispensed  with,  by 
boring  holes  in  the  arms  of  the  x  ends  (fig.  11)  of  the  reels. 
By  placing  an  iron  rod  into  these  holes,  the  rod  serves  as  a 
lever,  so  that,  with  a  catch  wheel  attached,  the  teamster  alone 
can  rewind  the  wire  on  the  reel,  arranging  the  wire  as  taut  as 
required.  On  railways  a  reel  of  this  kind  can  be  fixed  upon  a 
hand-car,  and  employed  for  the  purposes  above  described.  Or- 
dinarily, however,  to  avoid  accident,  the  common  wagon  is  the 
best  to  be  used  on  any  kind  of  road. 

Such  is  the  organization  of  a  wire  squad,  and  the  mode  of 
putting  up  the  wire,  on  most  of  the  lines  that  have  been  con- 
structed in  America.  Such  an  organization  can  put  up  from 
six  to  ten  miles  of  wire  per  day,  a  speed  little  faster  than  the 
speed  of  the  digging  of  the  holes  and  the  erection  of  the  poles. 
It  has  been  usual  to  allow  the  poles  to  be  put  up  some  miles  in 
advance,  so  that  the  whole  line  will  be  finished  at  about  the 
same  time.  The  speed  of  putting  up  of  the  wire  can  be  reduced 
by  dispensing  with  a  part  of  the  force. 

FIXING    THE    INSULATORS    ON    THE    POLES. 

In  consequence  of  there  being  no  uniform  insulator  employed 
on  the  telegraph  lines,  a  description  of  the  adjustment  of  the 
pole  for  insulation  can  not  be  other  than  but  general.  I  will 
therefore  refer  briefly  to  the  manner  of  arranging  the  two  dif- 
ferent classes  of  insulators,  viz.,  1st,  the  open  groove  insulator, 
and  2d,  the  tie  insulator. 

The  open  groove  insulators  are  put  upon  lines  where  it  is 
desired  that  the  wire  shall  not  be  made  fast  or  tied  at  each 
pole.  In  the  use  of  this  class  the  pole  must  be  adjusted  for  the 
glass  before  erection.  In  the  case  of  fig.  13,  a  square  groove  is 
morticed  through  the  top  of  the  pole.  This  is  done  by  boring 
an  auger  hole,  the  size  of  the  glass  to  be  used  ;  with  a  saw  a 
block  is  cut  out  from  the  end  of  the  pole  to  the  auger  hole,  so 
that  the  glass  can  rest  in  the  groove,  with  its  upper  side  even 
with  the  top  of  the  pole,  as  seen  in  fig.  14.  When  the  pole  is 
thus  prepared  it  is  ready  for  erection.  The  adjustment  of  the 
pole  for  the  glass  is  usually  done  after  they  are  distributed  at 
the  holes. 


THE  TIMBER  AND  PREPARATION  OF 
TELEGRAPH  POLES. 


CHAPTER   XLVIII. 

The  Size,  Preparation,  and  Durability  of  Telegraph  Poles,  including  the  Eed 
Cedar,  White-Cedar,  Walnut,  Poplar,  Pine,  White-Oak,  Black-Oak,  Post- 
Oak,  Chestnut,  Honey  Locust,  Cotton  Wood,  Sycamore,  and  other  Tim- 
bers. 

POLES    ON    THE    AMERICAN    TELEGRAPH    LINES. 

I  PROPOSE  now  to  discuss  the  materials  used  for  telegraph 
poles,  and  the  different  modes  of  their  preparation  for  that  ser- 
vice. All  countries  do  not  employ  the  same  timbers  and  modes 
of  arrangement,  but  this  state  of  facts  is  not  a  matter  of  choice ; 
it  is  owing  to  the  existence  or  non-existence  of  the  different 
kinds  of  wood  in  the  respective  countries.  In  America  there 
is  a  much  greater  variety  of  wood,  than  is  to  be  found  on  the 
continent  of  Europe.  In  the  Northern  States  of  America,  there 
is  not  that  variety  that  there  is  to  be  found  in  the  Southwest- 
ern. In  the  former,  telegraph  poles  are  mostly  of  the  white-oak, 
and  the  chestnut ;  and  in  the  latter,  they  are  of  the  white-oak, 
post-oak,  red-cedar,  black- walnut,  honey-locust,  ash,  sassafras, 
and  elm.  In  England,  the  larch  is  the  most  common.  In 
Russia,  the  pine ;  in  France,  the  pine,  the  alder,  poplar,  and 
other  white  woods  ;  in  Grermany,  the  spruce  and  pine,  and  in 
India,  the  bamboo. 

These  timbers  differ  as  to  duration,  when  placed  in  the 
earth.  The  pine  of  Europe,  however,  does  not  decay  as  rapidly 
as  the  pine  of  America,  and,  therefore,  the  rejection  of  that 
wood  in  America,  from  service,  in  the  construction  of  telegraph 
lines,  must  not  arbitrarily  cause  a  depreciation  of  the  Euro- 
pean pine,  in  the  mind  of  the  reader.  The  alder  of  France  is 
not  the  same  as  the  common  alder  of  America — in  the  former 
country  it  is  a  tree,  but  in  the  latter  it  is  a  bush,  seldom  more 
than  two  to  three  inches  in  diameter,  at  its  base. 

681 


682  PRESERVATION    OF    TELEGRAPH    POLES. 

The  red-cedar  and  the  black-locust  decay  less  than  any  of 
the  kinds  of  wood  mentioned.  The  chestnut,  the  sassafras, 
and  the  post-oak,  are  next,  as  to  durability. 

Until  within  the  past  five  years,  in  America,  but  little  pains 
have  been  taken  in  the  preparation  of  poles  before  setting  them 
in  the  earth.  Heretofore,  the  lines  have  been  erected  with  such 
rapidity,  that  the  timber  could  not  be  prepared  for  permanency. 
Often,  they  have  been  placed  in  the  earth  the  same  day,  and 
the  same  hour  that  they  were  cut.  In  later  years,  the  custom 
of  stripping  the  bark  off  has  been  adopted,  especially,  by  the 
House  telegraph  companies. 

I  have  often  observed  the  decay  of  different  kinds  of  wood 
used  for  telegraph  poles.  Those  cut  in  the  winter,  and  set  in 
the  ground  immediately,  in  the  spring  sprout,  and  considerable 
foliage  grows  upon  them.  This  was  the  case  in  the  Southern 
climate  of  America.  The  second  year,  however,  there  was  no 
foliage,  and  the  wood  was  not  only  dead,  but  in  rapid  process 
of  decay.  The  sap  had  fermented,  and,  on  chewing  the  wood, 
I  found  it  quite  sour.  Poles  which  have  been  stripped  of  the 
bark  die  immediately  ;  the  sap  evaporates,  and  the  poles  dry 
or  become  seasoned,  and,  when  planted,  they  prove  more  last- 
ing. Some  years  ago,  I  had  holes  bored  in  the  pole  at  the  sur- 
face of  the  earth  and  filled  with  salt,  confining  it  in  the  hole 
with  a  plug  or  stopper.  After  three  years,  I  was  unable  to 
see  any  benefit,  except  for  a  few  inches  at  the  place  of  the  salt. 
Around  other  poles,  freshly  planted,  I  poured  some  brine,  satu- 
rating the  pole  and  the  earth. 

Stock  running  at  large,  so  common  in  America,  would  eat 
the  earth  for  the  salt,  and  the  experiment  gave  me  some  annoy- 
ance. I  was  compelled  to  place  around  the  pole  large  stones, 
to  prevent  the  earth  and  the  bottom  of  the  pole  from  being 
eaten  away.  This  process,  pickled  and  preserved  the  poles,  and 
they  have  been  standing  for  nine  years.  I  also  made  an  experi- 
ment with  charcoal.  I  had  placed  around  the  pole  in  the  earth, 
about  three  inches  of  pulverized  charcoal.  The  pole  decayed 
at  the  surface  of  the  earth  as  soon  as  others  not  so  prepared  ; 
the  charcoal  did  not  preserve  the  timber  in  any  perceptible 
degree.  A  few  post-oak  poles,  well  seasoned,  planted  in  1849, 
are  still  standing,  having  but  one  half  decayed  at  the  surface 
of  the  earth ;  but  in  the  earth,  and  above,  they  are  sold.  These 
poles  were  10  inches  in  diameter  at  the  base,  and  5  inches  at 
the  top,  and  thirty  feet  long. 

In  connection  with  this  subject,  the  climate  in  which  the 
timber  is  grown  must  be  considered.  In  the  northern  climate, 
timber  grows  slow  and  compact.  The  wood  is  not  so  porous, 


DURABILITY    OF    TELEGRAPH    POLES.  683 

nor  does  it  have  so  great  quantity  of  sap.  The  bark  is  gener- 
ally thin,  and  the  sappy  or  white  wood,  is  but  a  thin  belt 
around  the  interior  heart  or  dark  wood.  Woodmen  do  not 
consider  all  the  dark  wood  beyond  the  sappy  part  the  heart.  For 
example,  take  an  oak-tree,  two  feet  in  diameter,  a  size  very 
ordinary  in  America,  and  first  is  the  bark,  then  the  sappy  or 
white  wood  belting  the  tree,  about  three  inches  in  diameter, 
then  follows  the  dark,  or  red  chip,  until  the  heart  is  reached, 
which  is  generally  in  the  centre  of  the  tree.  This  heart  is  solid 
and  tough.  The  dark  or  red  wood  is  penetrated  by  sap.  In 
some  seasons  of  the  year,  I  have  noticed,  when  felling  the  oak, 
the  walnut,  and  many  other  kinds  of  timber,  the  sap  to  run  in 
little  streams  from  the  white  and  the  red  wood  alike.  The 
post-oak  is  much  like  white-oak,  but  it  is  a  tree  of  slow  growth, 
and  is  to  be  found  mostly  on  dry  and  gravel  uplands.  It  is 
more  durable  than  the  white-oak,  in  the  earth.  Cedar  and 
locust  have  but  very  little  sap,  and  the  fibres  are  closely  inter- 
woven, so  that  there  can  be  but  little  absorption.  It  is  a  say- 
ing, that  "  cedar  and  locust  never  decay."  These  woods  can 
be  regarded  as  the  most  durable  that  we  have  in  America. 
Poles,  ten  inches  in  diameter  at  the  base,  will  remain  good, 
thirty  or  forty  years  in  the  earth.  If  the  bark  is  left  on  the 
pole,  it  will  sooner  or  later  decay,  and  the  solid  wood  is  left, 
and  weathers  the  storms  and  seasons  for  a  lifetime.  All  kinds 
of  wood  will  be  more  durable  when  stripped  of  the  bark.  Chest- 
nut and  sassafras  will  hold  out  from  ten  to  fifteen  years. 
White-oak,  post-oak,  honey-locust,  ash,  and  black- walnut,  about 
six  to  ten  years.  White-pine  and  poplar,  about,  three  years  ; 
black-oak,  red-oak,  and  sycamore,  about  two  years.  All  kinds 
of  fruit-tree  wood,  one  to  two  years.  The  pitch  or  yellow  pine 
pole  is  quite  durable  in  the  earth.  The, turpentine  or  rosin  does 
not  ferment,  but  it  forms  a  plastic  throughout  the  timber,  and 
prevents  the  absorption  of  moisture,  and  thus  it  is  preserved 
from  decay.  Much  of  the  rosin,  when  the  pole  is  exposed  to  the 
sun,  oozes  out,  and  the  exterior  of  the  pole  becomes  coated 
with  it. 

The  durability  of  the  different  kinds  of  timber  mentioned, 
when  used  for  telegraph  poles,  depends  much  upon  the  soil  in 
which  they  are  set.  When  planted  in  light  alluvial  soil,  the 
decay  is  much  more  rapid  than  when  placed  in  wet  clay.  In 
the  former  case,  worms  easily  get  through  the  earth  to  the 
pole,  and,  besides,  the  pole  is  more  exposed,  and  absorbs  the 
moisture  of  the  earth  with  more  rapidity ;  but,  in  the  latter 
case,  the  clay  serves  as  a  plaster,  filling  up  the  cavities  of 
the  wood,  so  that  water  cannot  penetrate  it.  In  such  earth, 


684  TELEGRAPH    POLES    ON    AMERICAN    LINES. 

I  have  frequently  found  the  hickory  wood  petrified,  making  ex- 
cellent razor  hones,  one  of  which  I  have  had  in  service  for 
twenty-five  years.  I  have  already  stated  that  it  was  impor- 
tant to  strip  the  pole  of  its  bark,  because  if  it  is  not  taken  off, 
worms  shelter  under  the  bark,  and  make  rapid  work  eating 
away  the  wood,  to  reach  the  solubles  buried  in  its  recesses. 
They  penetrate  through  the  fibre  in  every  direction,  until  the 
nourishment  is  exhausted,  when  the  worm  dies  from  starva- 
tion. The  thousands  of  holes  made  by  the  worms  aid  to  dif- 
fuse throughout  the  wood  the  moisture  of  the  seasons,  and  in 
this  way,  in  a  few  months,  the  pole  decays,  and  yields  to  an 
ordinary  strain  of  the  wire,  or  to  the  force  of  the  wind. 

The  white-cedar  has  been  used  in  some  sections  of  the 
United  States,  but  it  gives  but  little  service.  It  is  composed 
mostly  of  the  sappy  or  white  wood,  differing  from  the  red-cedar, 
which  has  not  more  white  wood  than  the  thickness  of  a  knife- 
blade. 

Some  companies  have  had  poles  sawed  from  the  large  white- 
oak  of  the  forest — large  at  one  end,  and  tapering  to  the  other. 
The  poles  were  sawed  square,  and  they  gave  promise  of  being 
very  serviceable.  Their  cost  was  about  five  dollars  each, 
which  was  at  once  a  bar  to  their  general  use.  Their  durability 
has  not  been  equal  to  the  round  sapling  of  the  same  locality, 
and  of  the  same  wood. 

In  1848,  the  Magnetic  Company  constructed  a  new  line  of 
poles  from  Washington  to  Baltimore,  in  replacement  of  the 
poles  erected  as  an  experimental  line  in  1844.  These  new 
poles  were  of  chestnut,  stripped  of  their  bark,  and  well  charred 
at  the  earth  end.  The  soil  on  this  line  is  sandy,  or  gravel  in- 
termixed with  clay.  Many  of  these  poles  remain  to  the  present 
time.  Their  diameter  at  the  base  is  about  eight  inches. 

As  I  have  stated  herein  before,  the  telegraph  lines  in  Amer- 
ica have  been  constructed  with  such  rapidity,  that  it  was  im- 
possible to  procure  poles  properly  prepared,  for  permanency.  I 
have  known  lines  erected  at  an  ordinary  rate  of  one  hundred 
miles  per  month,  by  one  corps  of  workmen.  While  one  set 
of  workmen  were  digging  the  holes,  another  was  cutting  and 
hauling  the  poles,  another  was  fitting  the  insulators,  another 
would  raise  the  poles,  and  the  last  would  stretch  the  wire  on 
them.  In  this  way  I  have  superintended  the  construction  of 
ten  miles  in  a  day.  This  rapidity  was  occasioned  by  rivalry. 
The  main  object  of  the  rival  companies  was  to  reach  certain 
cities  first,  regardless  of  every  consequence. 

The  House  telegraph  lines  are  more  modern,  and  are  better 
built.  All  the  poles  were  selected  with  much  care,  of  good 


FOREST-TREES    USED    AS    TELEGRAPH    SUPPORTERS.  685 

timber,  well  stripped  of  the  bark,  seasoned  in  the  sun,  at  least 
ten  inches  in  diameter  at  butt,  and  five  inches  at  top,  well  set 
in  the  earth,  and  on  a  right  line  to  avoid  the  strain  of  the  wire 
on  angles. 

In  the  early  days  of  telegraphing,  especially  on  rival  routes, 
when  the  lines  traversed  forests,  but  little  care  was  taken  in 
the  selection  of  poles.  The  great  quantity  growing  in  prox- 
imity was  an  excuse  for  slight  in  the  first  building,  the  impres- 
sion being  "  that  the  poles  were  readily  replaced,  in  case  of 
decay,  and  time  should  not  be  wasted  on  first  construction." 
The  people  "  ahead,"  always  anxious  for  the  completion  of  the 
telegraph,  often  had  an  influence  in  causing  the  constructors 
of  the  line  to  erect  poles  of  inferior  wood  and  size,  and  to  use 
any  means,  however  frail,  to  consummate  an  electric  connec- 
tion. 

On  many  lines  the  forest-trees  serve  for  posts,  to  which 
brackets  or  cleets  are  fastened,  and  in  or  on  them  insulators 
are  fitted.  These  brackets  or  cleets  are  nailed  to  the  body  or 
limb  of  a  tree.  On  one  section  of  a  line,  embracing  about 
sixty  miles,  I  noticed  that  on  more  than  one  half  of  the  route 
trees  were  used,  and  on  a  section  of  six  miles  there  was  not  a 
post.  The  trees  were  large,  from  one  to  five  feet  in  diameter 
at  base,  very  high,  and  with  outspread  branches,  shading  the 
earth.  The  sun's  rays  could  not  penetrate  through  their  fo- 
liage, to  warm  and  vivify  the  small  growth  beneath.  Weeds 
grown  there  were  few,  delicate,  and  frail.  Small  wood  growth 
was  seldom  to  be  seen.  There  was  nothing  to  disturb  the 
wires  thus  attached  to  the  stately  oak.  The  telegraph  wires, 
sometimes,  in  America,  traverse  gloomy  mantled  forest  regions, 
where  the  foot  of  man  never  had  trod  before.  In  some  of  these 
mountain  ranges,  the  cliffs  or  precipices,  to  ascend  or  descend, 
were  difficult.  The  wagons  were  taken  to  pieces,  and  elevat- 
ed or  let  down,  as  the  case  required,  with- ropes,  or  by  strands 
of  wire. 

A  few  years  in  the  "Western  States  of  America,  makes  a  won- 
derful change  in  the  appearance  of  the  country,  as  to  its  set- 
tlement. Through  many  of  the  dense  forests  and  widespread 
prairies,  where  ten  years  ago  the  wire  was  run  for  miles> 
without  passing  a  habitation,  now  the  rail-trains  are  hourly 
sweeping  through  villages,  arid  the  wire  is  no  longer  the  soli- 
tary evidence  of  civilization.  Farms  have  sprung  up  as  with 
magic.  To  these  railways  have  been  transferred  the  telegraphs, 
and  the  meanderings  from  tree  to  tree  are  done  away  with,  and 
the  iron  strand  is  stretched  on  methodically-set  poles  of  the 


686  TELEGRAPH    POLES    ON    AMERICAN    LINES. 

best  of  timber.  On  many  of  these  railways  much  care  has 
been  taken  to  procure  durable  wood.  On  the  routes  through 
Illinois  I  have  recently  noticed  that  the  lines  were  nearly  en- 
tirely built  of  red-cedar,  brought  by  water  and  rail  from  some 
section,  hundreds  of  miles  distant.  Such  poles  are  durable, 
and  .will  need  no  replacement  in  the  present  generation.  They 
cost  from  three  to  five  dollars,  according  to  expense  of  trans- 
portation. In  1849,  I  had  cut  two  thousand  cedar  poles  in 
middle  Tennessee.  I  paid  for  them  standing,  50  cents  each. 
"When  cut  they  were  placed  on  rafts,  and  floated  to  the  mouth 
of  the  Ohio  river,  where  they  were  transferred  to  a  steamer, 
and  carried  to  St.  Louis,  as  cargo.  From  there  they  were 
carried  by  wagon,  and  delivered  on  the  route  of  the  line. 
They  were  from  thirty  to  thirty-five  feet  long,  and  about  eight 
inches  diameter  at  base,  and  at  least  five  inches  diameter  at 
top.  The  average  cost  was  five  dollars  each.  These  poles  are 
at  this  time  as  solid  as  they  were  the  day  they  were  set  in  the 
earth. 

The  cost  of  telegraph  poles  depends  upon  the  kind  of  timber, 
the  size,  and  the  quantity  growing  on  the  given  section  of  the 
country.  An  average  may  be  considered  at  one  dollar  and 
fifty  cents,  Spanish,  delivered  on  the  route.  The  cost  of  strip- 
ping the  poles  of  bark  from  ten  to  twenty  cents  each,  depend- 
ing upon  the  kind  of  timber.  A  rough  post-oak  is  more  diffi- 
cult to  unbark  and  neatly  dress,  than  the  walnut,  the  cedar, 
chestnut,  and  other  kinds  of  wood. 

Early  in  1848,  I  constructed  a  section  of  the  great  New- 
Orleans  line  in  the  West,  and  being  pressed  for  posts,  I  pur- 
chased a  large  number  of  oar  poles,  used  on  the  flat  boats 
which  had  descended  the  Ohio  river  with  coal,  corn,  or  other 
things  of  trade.  The  poles  were  of  pine  and  white  poplar,  but 
generally  well  seasoned.  The  poplar  of  America  is  a  porous 
wood,  and  absorbs  a  large  quantity  of  water,  which  causes  its 
early  decay.  I  purchased  some  coal-tar  from  a  gas  estab- 
lishment, and  had  it  spread  upon  the  butt  end  of  each  pole 
about  six  feet  high.  It  required  about  a  half  gallon  of  the  tar, 
per  pole.  The  coating,  and  all  the  expense  accompanying  the 
operation,  cost  about  thirty  cents  for  each  pole.  In  1853,  those 
poles,  thus  coated  with  coal  tar,  were  solid,  and  scarcely  any 
decay  could  be  seen.  Poles  of  the  same  wood,  and  set  at  the 
same  time,  not  coated,  had  to  be  replaced  in  1852.  Had  the 
poles  been  green,  and  freshly  cut,  they  would  not  have  lasted 
more  than  two  or  three  years. 

The  telegraph  poles  in  America  are  not  so  well  prepared  as 


SETTING    OP    TELEGRAPH    POLES.  687 

they  are  in  Europe,  although  there  is  no  reason  why  they 
should  not  be,  and  of  better  timber,  and  more  substantial. 
The  sorts  of  timber  are  more  general  and  abundant.  There  is 
every  facility  necessary  for  their  proper  preparation,  and  there 
is  no  country  demanding  permanency  of  structure  more  than 
the  telegraphs  of  America. 

Along  the  ordinary  roads  the  length  of  the  pole  is  from 
twenty-five  to  thirty  feet,  size  at  base  ten  to  twelve  inches  in 
diameter,  and  at  top  five  to  six  inches  in  diameter.  They  are 
placed  from  eighty  to  one  hundred  yards  apart,  and  set  with 
the  windings  of  the  road.  On  some  lines  an  effort  has  been 
made  to  set  the  poles  on  a  straight  line  as  much  as  possible, 
and  at  curves  or  angles  in  the  road,  the  poles  are  set  so  as  to 
divide  the  strain  on  as  many  of  them  as  possible ;  more  ordi- 
narily, however,  a  good  substantial  pole  is  selected  for  the 
angle,  and  set  at  about  fifteen  degrees  from  a  perpendicular, 
so  that  the  strain  of  the  wire  will  bring  the  pole  to  an  upright 
position. 

In  good  soft  ground  the  poles  are  set  about  four  and  a  half 
to  five  feet ;  in  hard  gravel  about  four  feet ;  in  rocky  places 
about  three  feet.  I  never  knew  of  holes  drilled  in  the  rock  for 
telegraph  poles,  except  perhaps  in  Nashville,  Tennessee,  where 
many  of  the  streets  are  natural  rock  beds.  In  loose  rocky 
places,  a  hole  some  one  or  two  feet  is  opened  with  a  crow-bar, 
and  when  the  pole  is  set  in  it,  rocks  are  piled  up  around  it 
some  three  or  four  feet  high.  This  requires  less  time  than 
blasting  a  hole  through  the  rocks,  and  it  fully  serves  the  pur- 
poses. Where  the  soil  is  marshy,  braces  are  framed  around 
the  pole,  but  of  these  more  particular  descriptions  will  be 
found  in  the  chapter  on  the  construction  of  telegraph  lines  in 
America. 

Along  the  Western  and  Southern  rivers,  the  cotton- wood  sap- 
ling abounds  in  great  quantities,  but  the  wood  very  soon  de- 
cays, and  on  that  account  it  has  never  been  employed  for  tel- 
egraph poles.  I  am  of  the  opinion  that  if  they  were  injected 
with  the  sulphate  of  copper,  as  hereinafter  described,  they 
might  be  made  of  very  great  service,  and  prove  economical  to 
many  companies  throughout  the  southwestern  country  of  the 
United  States. 


CHAPTER    XLIX. 

Poles  on  the  French  Telegraph  Lines — Their  Preparation — Injection  with  SuL 
phate  of  Copper — Size,  Cost,  and  Durability  of  the  Different  Kinds  of  "Wood 

POLES    ON    THE    FRENCH    TELEGRAPH    LINES. 

IN  France,  on  the  early  established  lines  of  telegraph,  the 
posts  were  ordinarily  about  twenty  feet  high,  except  at  rail- 
way crossings,  and  through  villages,  where  they  were  some 
thirty  feet.  These  lines  were  upon  the  railways.  In  1854- 
'57,  I  noticed  on  the  railway  from  Paris  to  Versailles,  very 
small  poles,  not  more  than  fifteen  feet  high,  and  some  two 
and  a  half  inches  in  diameter  at  top.  These  poles  had  some 
two  or  three  wires  on  them.  Comparing  this  line  with  the 
others  of  France,  it  was  clearly  to  be  seen  that  it  was  not  even 
the  ordinary  line,  as  to  substantiality.  As  a  general  thing, 
however,  the  poles  on  all  the  telegraph  lines  in  France,  are 
small,  straight,  and  slender,  nicely  barked,  planed,  and  often 
neatly  painted,  having  on  one  set  of  poles  sometimes  as  many 
as  twelve  wires. 

When  the  lines  were  constructed  on  the  public  highways, 
or  common  roads,  the  minimum  height  of  the  pole  was  estab- 
lished at  twenty-five  feet,  and  through  villages  at  from  thirty 
to  forty  feet.  The  wood  employed  for  telegraph  poles  is 
mostly  pine  saplings  ;  on  some  lines  alder  and  poplar,  and 
other  kinds  of  white  wood,  are  used.  The  alder  is  different 
from  the  American  wood  or  bush  known  by  that  name.  There 
are  no  fixed  dimensions  for  the  poles.  The  prices  paid  for  poles 
are  as  follows,  viz.  : 


Height. 

Diameter  40  inches 
from  base. 

Diameter  at  the  top. 

Price. 

40  feet. 

10  inches. 

5  inches. 

15  francs. 

36    " 

9*      ' 

5        ' 

12      « 

32    " 

8       - 

4        ' 

4i    » 

27    " 

7       ' 

4         { 

8*    " 

25    " 

6        ' 

3i       { 

3      " 

20    " 

5        ' 

3*       < 

2      " 

In  sections  of  the  country  where  wood  for  fuel  is  cheap,  the 
earth  end  of  the  pole  is  charred  ;  in  other  sections  it  is  coated 

688 


PREPARATION    OF    TELEGRAPH    POLES. 

with  tar  as  far  up  the  pole  as  forty  inches  above  the  surface 
of  the  earth.  In  latter  years,  the  poles  are  generally  impreg- 
nated with  a  solution  of  sulphate  of  copper,  for  the  particulars 
of  which  I  am  indebted  to  Mr.  Blavier. 

The  process  of  injecting  the  posts  is  simple,  and  easy  of 
execution  on  any  route  of  the  telegraph.  To  repeat,  in 
part,  what  I  have  stated  in  the  preceding  chapter,  wood,  ex- 
posed to  air  and  moisture,  very  soon  decays,  first  the  white  or 
sap  wood,  and  then  follows,  but  in  a  less  rapid  degree,  the 
dark  wood,  or  the  heart.  The  alteration  is  the  result  of  the 
soluble  substances  contained  in  the  wood,  which,  under  the  ac- 
tion of  moisture  and  heat,  ferment,  decompose,  and  form  acids. 
Rottenness  is,  also,  produced  by  worms  and  insects  which  feed 
upon  the  soluble  substances,  and  gnaw  the  woody  fibres.  Wood 
containing  the  greater  quantity  of  sap,  the  earlier  decays; 
while,  on  the  contrary,  wood  with  little  sap,  such  as  red-cedar, 
black-locust,  &c.,  remains  solid  for  a  very  long  time.  It  has  been 
found  that  by  causing  the  wood  to  be  penetrated,  in  every  di- 
rection, by  a  solution  of  a  metallic  salt,  the  sap  is  forced  out, 
and  the  imperishable  substances,  precipitated  into  the  cavities 
of  the  wood,  penetrating  its  fibres,  so  as  to  form  in  the  interior 
an  unalterable  compound,  renders  the  wood  more  permanent. 
The  principal  cause  of  destruction  being  thus  removed,  the 
wood  remains  unchanged  for  an  indefinite  time,  even  under  the 
most  unfavorable  circumstances. 

Mr.  Blavier  gives  great  credit  to  the  success  of  Dr.  Bouche- 
rie,  who  has  given  the  subject  much  study  and  particular  at- 
tention ;  and  from  the  facts  gathered  on  my  repeated  visits  to 
France,  I  am  led  to  suppose  the  great  desideratum  has  been 
attained.  He  has  made  many  experiments,  and  he  has  an- 
nounced his  preference  for  the  material  known  as  the  sulphate 
of  copper.  The  best  solution  he  found  to  consist  of  one  pound 
of  copper  to  one  huridred  pounds  of  water.  Among  the  materi- 
als which  he  tried  were  the  pyrolignite  of  iron,  sulphate  of 
zinc,  and  acetate  of  lead,  but  none  of  these  equaled  the  sul- 
phate of  copper. 

The  mere  soaking  of  the  wood  in  the  solution  does  not  an- 
swer the  purpose.  The  sulphate  must  penetrate  into  all  the 
pores,  and  take  the  place  of  the  sap  and  other  liquids  in  the 
wood.  In  order  to  properly  inject  a  cubic  metre,  or  about  three 
and  a  half  cubic  feet  of  wood,  about  five  and  a  half  kilogrammes, 
or  about  twelve  pounds  of  sulphate  of  copper  is  required. 

All  parts  of  the  wood  are  not  susceptible  of  undergoing  an 
injection  to  the  same  and  equal  extent.  A  tree  is  formed  of 
two  parts,  the  heart  and  the  sap-wood.  The  sap-wood  is  trav- 

44 


690      .  TELEGRAPH    POLES    ON    FRENCH    LINES. 

ersed  by  the  solution  with  facility,  but  not  so  with  the  black  - 
wood,  or  the  heart  of  the  tree.  The  post-oak  absorbs  the  solu- 
tion beyond  the  sap-wood,  with  difficulty,  if  at  all.  Wherever 
the  sap  runs,  the  solution  will  penetrate.  Cedar  and  locust  are 
durable  in  the  earth,  because  they  are  mostly  free  from  it. 
the  fibres  being  too  compact  to  admit  of  the  passage  of  the 
water,  except  around  the  surface,  and,  on  this  account,  there 
can  be  no  fermentation,  either  by  the  sap,  or  water  absorbed 
from  the  earth,  for  neither  can  penetrate  its  compact  mass. 
Woods  best  adapted  to  injection  are  the  pine,  spruce,  alder, 
poplar,  cotton- wood,  and,  in  general,  all  the  white  timbers, 
which  are  mostly  formed  of  sap-wood. 

This  injection  may  be  effected  in  different  ways.  It  takes 
place  more  or  less  rapidly  according  to  the  nature  of  the  wood, 
its  age,  and  the  time  of  the  year.  The  most  favorable  season 
is  when  the  sap  is  ascending.  The  periods  of  the  year  when 
the  least  favorable,  are  July,  August,  and  the  winter,  when  it 
freezes. 

Mr.  Blavier  considers  the  preparation  as  one  of  the  most 
beautiful  and  useful  discoveries  of  the  century;  and  much 
credit  is  due  to  the  administration  of  the  telegraphs  in  France, 
for  adopting  it,  and  causing  its  general  application.  It  has 
well  subserved  the  purposes  desired,  although  the  extent  of  its 
usefulness  has  not  yet  been  established,  as  will  be  seen  from 
the  results  hereinafter  explained. 

In  France  small  sheds  or  shanties  are  constructed  near  the 
forest  where  the  poles  and  water  are  easily  obtained.  The  pro- 
cess of  injection,  however,  is  not  required  to  be  under  a  shel- 
ter, and  may  be  done  with  none  other  shelter  than  the  broad- 
spread  canopy  of  the  heavens. 

The  tree  being  cut  and  stripped  of  its  branches,  is  carried  to 
the  sheds,  where  it  is  prepared  for  the  injecting  process. 
The  wood  should  not  be  cut  more  than  three  or  four  days  be- 
fore the  time  of  injection  ;  the  sooner  after  being  cut  the  bet- 
ter. At  first  the  solution  was  made  to  penetrate  by  its  own 
weight,  aided  by  the  ascensional  force  of  the  sap.  In  the 
shanty  was  placed  the  reservoir  of  the  liquid,  at  a  certain  height, 
so  as  to  give  to  the  solution  a  considerable  pressure.  This  first 
method  is  still  in  use,  the  arrangements  being  very  simple,  and 
answering  the  wants  of  the  administration,  particularly  in 
places  where  but  a  small  number  of  posts  are  to  be  pre- 
pared. 

For  the  purpose  of  injecting  posts,  the  dimensions  of  which 
exceed  twenty-five  feet  long,  a  scaffold  is  erected  about  thirteen 
feet  high,  from  three  to  seven  feet  wide,  and  of  a  length  vary- 


INJECTION    OF    POLES    WITH    SULPHATE    OF    COPPER. 
Fig.   1, 


691 


ing  according  to  the  number  of  posts  to  be  prepared  at  one 
time,  as  seen  in  fig.  1. 

Against  the  two  sides  of  this  scaffold,  the  poles  a  a  are 
leaned  at  such  an  inclination,  that  their  upper  part  may  be 
within  easy  reach  on  scaffold  floor  c.  The  small  or  upper  end 
of  the  pole  rests  in  a  little  ditch  of  the  earth,  d  d,  sloped  to  fit 
the  angle  of  the  pole.  This  ditch  may  be  a  trough  made  o£ 
plank  or  iron.  This  trough  empties  the  liquid  coming  through 
the  posts  into  casks. 

On  the  side,  and  above  the  scaffold,  is  a  framework  with  a 
pulley  and  a  bucket,  by  means  of  which  is  drawn  up  the  solu- 
tion from  a  reservoir,  b,  situated  on  the  earth. 

The  posts  are  drawn  up  with  their  bark  on.  The  summit  of 
the  tree,  or  the  top  end  of  the  pole,  is  placed  at  the  ground, 
and  the  large  end  on  the  scaffold,  so  as  to  give  the  movement 
of  the  liquid  the  natural  course  with  the  sap.  A  thin  slice  is 
sawed  off  the  butt  or  foot  end  of  the  pole,  to  give  a  free  egress 
for  the  liquid.  The  butt  end  is  given  the  form  of  a  frustum  of 
a  cone,  to  \vhich  is  fitted  a  lead  receiver  made  of  two  frustums  of 
cones  united.  The  axis  of  the  upper  cone  is  always,  vertical. 
These  caps  or  receivers  made  of  lead,  about  four  fifths  of  an  inch 
thick,  must  fit  perfectly  tight  to  the  pole,  so  that  the  liquid  can 
not  leak  out  and  waste ;  and  in  order  to  accomplish  this,  the 
butt  end  of  the  post  is  surrounded  with  soft  clay  before  the 
liquid  is  put  in  the  receivers.  This  capping  of  the  post  is  gen- 
erally done  before  they  are  raised-  upon  the  scaffold.  As  soon 
as  the  posts  are  placed  as  indicated  in  the  figure,  the  injection 
commences. 

The  lead  caps  are  filled  with  a  solution  of  the  sulphate  of 
copper  taken  from  the  reservoir. 

This  liquid  must  contain  one  pound  of  the  sulphate  to  one 
hundred  pounds  of  water.  In  order  to  make  the  solution  easily, 


692  TELEGRAPH    POLES    ON    FRENCH    LINES. 

it  is  best  to  first  prepare  in  a  special  cask  a  concentration  of 
the  liquid,  having  about  two  and  a  quarter  pounds  of  the  sul- 
phate for  about  twelve  gallons  of  water.  It  is  sufficient  to  take 
from  the  cask  ten  parts  for  one  hundred  parts  of  water,  which 
is  put  into  the  reservoir  situated  at  the  foot  of  the  scaffold. 

In  proportion  as  the  liquid  in  the  lead  caps  passes  off,  it  must 
be  replaced.  The  workmen  charged  with  this  labor  must 
visit  them  several  times  during  the  night,  in  order  that  they 
may  not  be  left  empty.  The  caps,  however,  may  be  made 
large  enough  to  hold  a  sufficient  quantity  of  the  solution  to  run 
all  night.  When  once  the  injection  commences,  it  ought  not 
to  be  stopped. 

After  several  hours  the  sap  is  seen  to  flow  in  the  little  gutter 
or  trough  at  the  little  or  top  end  of  the  pole.  When  this  is  seen, 
the  injection  is  not  yet  completed,  and  it  is  only  when  the  sul- 
phate of  copper  is  seen  flowing  out  of  the  pole,  that  the  injec- 
tion has  been  perfected.  For  a  pole  twenty  feet  long,  the  in- 
jection requires  thirty-six  to  forty-eight  hours.  For  a  pole 
thirty-two  feet  long,  at  least  five  to  six  days.  It  frequently 
happens,  at  the  commencement,  that  the  operation  of  absorp- 
tion does  not  take  place,  on  account  of  the  collection  of  the 
rosin  of  the  pine  at  the  butt  end  of  the  pole.  This  is  easily 
remedied  by  sawing  off  a  slice  at  the  end,  and  the  replacement 
of  the  lead  cap.  This  difficulty  may  be  avoided  by  allowing 
the  end  of  the  pole  to  soak  several  hours  in  a  vat  or  pool  of  the 
sulphate  solutionj  when  the  poles  are  brought  to  the  shanty  or 
shed.  A  slice  should  always  be  sawed  off  the  end  of  the  pole, 
before  capped  for  injection.  The  liquid  that  runs  from  the 
gutter  or  trough,  will  answer  to  soak  the  end  of  the  pole,  as 
preparatory  before  injection. 

When  the  post  is  properly  injected,  it  is  known  by  striking 
at  the  small  end  with  a  hatchet,  and  the  greenish  hue  of  the 
sulphate  is  seen.  The  fact  can  be  ascertained  also  by  employ- 
ing the  cyanuret  of  potassium.  By  rubbing  this  substance  on 
an  unbarked  part  of  the  pole,  the  wood  will  become  red. 

This  mode  is  carried  on  to  a  very  great  extent  in  the  provin- 
ces of  France,  but  a  new  mode  in  the  application  of  the  sul- 
phate has  been  adopted,  where  many  poles  are  to  be  injected. 
This  new  mode  requires  less  labor,  and  the  injection  is  more 
rapid,  the  solution  of  copper  being  pressed  by  a  considerable 
force,  so  that  it  will  penetrate  rapidly  into  all  parts  of  the  wood, 
and  completely  drives  out  the  sap. 

In  figure  2,  it  will  be  seen  that  the  reservoir  R  is  placed 
upon  a  scaffold  of  about  twenty-five  feet  high.  It  is  fed  by  the 
casks  g  g  g*,  in  which  the  solution  of  the  sulphate  of  copper  is 


INJECTION    OF    POLES    WITH    SULPHATE    OP    COPPER.  693 

Fig,  2, 


prepared.  The  sulphate  is  raised  into  the  reservoir  by  means 
of  a  pump  or  bucket.  A  lead  or  copper  pipe  passes  from  the 
reservoir  to  another  similar  pipe  placed  horizontally.  The 
length  of  the  latter  pipe  is  proportional  to  the  number  of  posts 
to  be  injected,  say  one  hundred  feet  for  one  hundred  posts. 
From  this  latter  pipe  branch  out  gutta-percha  pipes  terminated 
by  a  copper  or  wooden  faucet,  by  which  the  liquid  is  introduced 
into  the  posts. 

The  posts  to  be  injected,  p  p  p,  are  all  placed  parallel,  and  in 
a  direction  perpendicular  to  the  main  pipe,  the  tip-ends  rest 
upon  the  earth,  on  the  border  of  the  little  gutter  or  trough  into 
which  the  liquid  is  to  pass  away.  The  butt  or  bottom  ends  of 
the  posts  rest  upon  a  beam  raised  a  little  over  .three  feet  above 
the  ground,  in  order  to  enable  the  workmen  to  put  on  the  caps 
or  receivers  conveniently.  In  order  to  cap  the  posts,  there  is 
placed  upon  the  upper  face,  or  butt  end,  after  the  slice  is  sawed 
off,  to  allow  an  early  absorption,  a  piece  of  plank  made  from 


694 


TELEGRAPH    POLES    ON    FRENCH    LINES. 


IffiX 


the  heart  of  oak,  fig.  3,  a,  which 
is  strongly  pressed  against  a  band 
of  India-rubber  at  the  base  of  the 
pole.  This  is  evidently  the  most 
important  part  of  the  operation, 
for  it  is  indispensably  necessary 
that  the  liquid,  acting  under  a 
strong  pressure,  shall  not  escape 
at  the  butt  end  of  the  pole,  when 
in  process  of  injection.  At  first 
this  piece  of  oak  plank  was 
screwed  on  by  a  strong  copper 
screw,  to  the  post.  At  present  a 
piece  of  solid  wood  is  placed  across 
the  oak  board,  or  cap,  and  this  cross  piece  is  fastened  to  the 
pole  by  two  iron  rods  or  spikes,  &,  which  are  driven  into  the 
posts.  By  lightening  these  rods,  a  heavy  pressure  is  thrown  on 
to  the  oak-board,  and  the  India-rubber. 

All  escape  of  the  liquid  is  prevented  by  a  circular  groove 
made  in  the  head,  or  butt  of  the  pole,  on  which  the  India-rub- 
ber band  is  put.  The  faucet,  attached  to  the  distribution  tube 
by  a  gutta-percha  pipe,  c,  is  introduced  into  the  oak  plank 
through  a  hole.  The  liquid  thus  submitted  at  the  base  of  the 
post,  to  a  pressure  of  about  twenty-five  feet  high,  penetrates 
with  great  force  into  the  wood,  and  at  the  very  moment  the 
communication  with  the  reservoir,  d,  is  established,  the  sap  is 
seen  to  run  out  at  the  little  end  of  the  pole.  The  injection  of 
a  telegraph  pole  about  twenty-seven  feet  long,  requires,  on  an 
average,  about  three  days. 

In  order  that  the  injection  should  be  complete,  each  post 
ought  to  absorb  a  quantity  of  the  sulphate  of  copper  propor- 
tioned to  its  solution,  calculated  at  the  rate  of  about  twelve 
pints  for  forty  cubic  inches. 

The  metals  used  in  the  preparation  of  the  pole  for  injection, 
should  be  copper  or  lead,  or  iron  galvanized  with  zinc  or  cop- 
per. The  object  of  adopting  the  oak-wood  head-piece,  is  be- 
cause it  is  impenetrable  to  the  solution. 

When  the  injection  is  completed,  the  faucets  are  closed,  the 
caps  are  taken  off,  and  the  post  is  placed  in  a  frame,  in  order 
to  unbark  it,  to  cut  off  the  knots,  and  to  shape  it  with  a  plane, 
as  a  finish. 

It  is  well  not  to  set  the  pole  immediately  after  injection,  be- 
cause it  will  absorb  a  large  quantity  of  water  with  the  copper, 
and  if  they  are  placed  vertically  before  drying,  a  part  of  the 
water,  containing  in  suspension  the  sulphate  of  copper,  would 


COST  OF  POLES  AND  PREPARATION.  695 

descend  by  its  own  weight,  and  carry  with  it  a  portion  of  the 
sulphate  of  copper. 

The  expense  of  injection,  comprehending  the  cost  of  the  sul- 
phate, the  sheds,  labor,  &c.,  is  as  follows : 

For  Posts  32  feet  long 50  cents. 

"      •'      25         "        20      " 

»      "      20         "         20      " 

The  durability  of  posts  injected  with  sulphate  of  copper,  has 
not  yet  been  determined.  Mr.  Blavier  says  that  posts  erected 
in  1849,  are  almost  all  in  good  condition,  while  on  the  other 
hand,  poles  not  injected  have  decayed,  and  had  to  be  replaced 
about  every  three  years.  While  at  Metz,  in  1857, 1  was  informed 
that  many  of  the  poles  on  that  line  not  injected,  decayed  in 
two  years.  At  Strasbourg  I  was  informed  that  poles  charred, 
and  not  injected,  decayed  in  about  three  years.  The  same  in- 
formation was  given  me  at  Lille,  Havre,  Rouen,  Nancy,  and 
at  different  parts  of  France. 

Poles  from  twenty  to  twenty-five  feet  long  are  put  in  the 
ground  about  five  feet.  Poles  from  twenty-seven  to  thirty- 
three  feet  long,  six  and  a  half  feet.  The  holes  are  made  ordi- 
narily with  a  pick  and  a  spade.  The  earth  is  put  in  the  holes 
when  the  poles  are  set,  in  layers  of  twelve  inches,  and  made 
solid  with  a  pestle  or  rammer.  In  rocky  places  the  holes  are 
drilled  from  twenty  to  twenty-four  inches  deep,  and  the  foot  is 
cemented  with  lime. 

In  ordinary  land  the  setting  of  posts  twenty  to  thirty  feet 
long,  costs  about  twenty  cents  ;,  poles  twenty-seven  feet,  about 
thirty  cents,  and  poles  thirty-two  feet  long,  about  forty  cents. 
Where  the  land  is  difficult  to  dig,  the  cost  is  increased.  In 
rocky  places,  requiring  the  post  to  be  cemented,  the  price  is 
about  one  dollar  and  a  half,  Spanish.  The  tops  of  the  poles 
are  pointed,  in  order  to  turn  off  the  water.  Two  coats  of  paint 
are  put  on  them  generally,  one  before  they  are  set,  and  one 
after.  The  price  of  painting  is  according  to  size,  from  twenty 
to  forty  cents  each. 

The  following  are  the  average  prices  paid  for  the  poles  de- 
livered at  the  shanty  for  injection,  and  for  their  setting  and 
painting,  viz.  : 

20  ft.  long.  25  ft.  long.  32  ft.  long 

On  Delivery ...  40  60  80 

Injection 20  30   ...  50 

Setting 20  30  40 

Painting 20  30     40 

Totals...  ..  $1  00  $1  50  $2  10 


CHAPTER    L. 

Poles  on  the  English  and  other  European  Lines — Baltic  Squared  Timber — 
Saplings  of  Larch,  Pine,  Spruce,  &c. — Poles  on  the  Hindostan  Lines — 
Bamboo,  Iron- Wood,  Teak,  Saul,  and  other  Timbers — Their  Preparation 
and  Durability. 


POLES    ON    THE    ENGLISH    TELEGRAPH    LINES. 

IN  Great  Britain  of  the  timber  for  telegraph  poles,  the  most 
acceptable  is  the  larch.  In  former  years  they  were  of  Memel 
squared  timber,  chamfered  down  the  sides.  The  following 
table  shows  the  dimensions  of  the  posts  made  from  the  Baltic 
timber : 


LENGTH. 

AT   BASE. 

AT   TOP. 

Drawing  Posts. 

Intermediate 
Posts. 

Drawing  Posts. 

Intermediate 
Posts. 

18  feet. 
22     " 

28      « 

9  in.  x     8  in. 
10  "  x     8  " 
11  "  x  10  •' 

6  in.  x  6  in. 

7   "   x  6    « 
8   «    x  7    •« 

7  in.  x6)£  in. 
7  "    x  6%    " 
7  «    x6X    " 

5J$  in.  x4^  in. 
5J*   "    x4>£    « 
5X   "    x4}£    « 

These  poles  have  been  superseded  by  the  round  sapling 
wood,  which  is  preferable  to  the  Baltic  cut  or  sawed  timber. 
The  saplings  are  cheaper,  and  more  readily  obtained,  and  if 
straight  and  well  selected,  stronger  than  the  sawed  pole. 
There  has  not  been  time  sufficient  since  the  adoption  of  the  round 
poles,  to  test  their  relative  durability.  Gate-posts  have  been 
tried  of  the  two,  however,  in  wet  and  dry  places,  and  the  larch 
sapling  has  proved  to  be  the  most  serviceable.  The  Baltic 
timber  decays  in  about  six  years,  so  that  they  had  to  be  cut  off 
at  the  surface  of  the  earth,  and  reset  at  a  less  length.  This 
reduction  would  bring  the  pole  to  about  ten  feet  above  ground. 
This  height  might  be  considered  as  too  low,  and  liable  to  in- 
terruption by  mischievous  persons  ;  but  in  England  the  laws 
are  rigid,  and  as  the  lines  are  placed  within  the  railway  fences, 
any  interference  would  be  a  trespass  on  the  railway,  which,  by 
act  of  parliament,  is  no  small  offence.  On  some  lines  where 
these  poles  have  not  been  sufficiently  long  to  admit  of  being  re- 
set, they  have  been  cut  off  at  the  ground,  and  fixed  in  a  cast- 
iron  screw  socket,  similar  to  the  dwarf  screw  pile  used  for 
breakwater  fastenings. 

696 


POLLS    ON   ENGLISH    AND    OTHER    EUROPEAN    LINES.          697 

The  sapling  poles  of  larch,  now  so  generally  used  in  Eng- 
land, on  the  telegraph  lines,  are  eighteen  feet  long,  nine  inches 
in  diameter,  at  the  lower  end,  and  five  and  a  half  to  six  inches 
in  diameter  at  top,  both  ends  measured  after  the  bark  is  taken 
off.  Crossing  poles  for  railways  and  highways,  and  for  villages, 
are  from  twenty  to  twenty-eight  feet  long,  according  to  circum- 
stances. 

After  the  poles  are  neatly  stripped  of  their  bark,  and  allowed 
to  dry  a  short  time  in  the  air  and  sun,  carefully  avoiding  their 
warping,  the  butt  ends  are  well  charred  to  about  a  foot  above 
the  depth  they  are  to  be  fixed  in  the  earth.  This  charred  part 
of  the  pole  is  then  soaked  in  gas  tar  for  about  twelve  hours,  the 
poles  are  placed  in  a  standing  position  in  tanks  filled  with  the 
gas-tar,  arranged  within  a  timber  framework. 

Poles  thus  preserved  will  last  for  many  years,  and  although 
the  expense  is  great  at  first,  the  economy  in  service  will  prove 
of  tenfold  gain.  The  cost  of  these  poles  varies,  depending  upon 
localities,  as  in  some  districts  they  are  plentiful,  while,  on  the 
other  hand,  in  other  districts  they  are  very  scarce,  or  not  to  be 
gotten  at  any  price. 

Poles  of  the  dimensions  mentioned  above  cost  three,  four,  or 
six  shillings  each,  barked,  the  knots  planed  off  smooth,  and  the 
lower  ends  charred  and  tarred.  Twenty-five  are  generally  fixed 
per  mile,  unless  there  are  other  supports,  as  walls,  buildings, 
bridges,  or  viaducts.  In  former  times  thirty  to  thirty- 
two  were  used,  but  a  less  number,  of  late,  has  been  considered 
preferable.  The  poles  have  been  increased  in  size,  and  set 
deeper  in  the  earth,  so  as  to  have  more  strength,  and  few  points 
of  suspension  for  the  wire,  thereby  improving  the  insulation. 

POLES    ON    OTHER    EUROPEAN  LINES. 

In  Prussia  the  pine  and  spruce  are  generally  used  on  the  tel- 
egraph lines.  The  saplings  of  the  wood  are  very  abundant, 
and  are  found  along  most  of  the  routes.  The  poles  are  neatly 
trimmed  of  bark  and  knots.  The  lower  ends  are  well  charred, 
and  in  many  places  they  are  painted.  Much  care  is  taken  to 
season  the  wood  before  setting  in  the  earth,  and  more  recently 
the  injection  system  of  France  has  been  adopted,  and  success- 
fully applied. 

In  Russia,  the  poles  are  of  pine.  No  country  excels  Russia 
in  the  universality  of  substantial  telegraph  poles.  The  pine 
saplings  are  felled  in  the  forest,  and  neatly  barked  and  planed. 
Then  they  are  allowed  to  season  in  the  air  and  sun.  After  this 
they  are  well  charred  at  the  butt  end,  for  at  least  a  foot  above 
the  earth's  surface.  Besides  this  preparation,  they  are  mostly 


698  POLES  ON  THE  HINDOSTAN  LINES. 

'coated  with  gas  or  coal  tar,  and  many  of  them,  even  through 
the  interior  of  Russia,  are  painted  a  lead  color.  They  are  well 
set  in  the  earth  from  four  to  five  feet,  about  twenty-five  feet 
long,  and  at  least  five  inches  in  diameter  at  the  top.  There 
are,  on  an  average,  twenty-five  to  the  mile. 

In  Austria,  the  Grerman  States,  Denmark,  and  Sweden,  the 
poles  are  as  those  hi  Prussia.  In  Denmark,  on  the  island  of 
Zealand,  a  pole  line  has  been  erected  to  supersede  the  under- 
ground line  from  Copenhagen  to  Corsor,  along  the  Royal  Danish 
railway.  I  have  lost  the  details  of  the  expense  of  this  line,  but 
I  well  remember,  on  being  consulted  about  the  building  of  it,  by 
the  very  able  administrator-in- chief,  Mr.  Faber,  the  proposi- 
tions received  estimated  the  poles  at  from  one  to  two  dollars 
each. 

POLES    ON    THE    HINDOSTAN    TELEGRAPH    LINES. 

In  India  the  telegraphs  have  been  constructed  under  the  di- 
rection of  the  distinguished  telegraph  pioneer,  Dr.  O'Shaugh- 
nessy.  In  this  country  there  are  two  kinds  of  lines  ;  the  first 
are  those  put  up  speedily,  as  temporary  or  flying  lines,  in  order 
to  establish  correspondence  between  any  two  or  more  places,  in 
cases  of  emergency,  for  the  government.  On  these  lines  single 
iron  rods,  five  sixteenths  of  an  inch,  galvanized,  1,120  Ibs.  per 
mile,  have  been  run  across  the  country,  supported  on  bamboos, 
palm-trees,  guran  posts,  and  other  light  and  cheap  timbers  avail- 
able in  the  districts,  painted  with  coal  tar,  and  planted  fifty  feet 
apart.  No  insulators  are  used,  the  rod  being  laid  in  the  notches 
cut  in  the  posts.  The  other,  or  second  kind  of  lines,  are  more 
substantial  than  the  first  or  temporary  lines.  On  the  substan- 
tial lines,  sixty  lofty  posts  of  the  best  timber  procurable,  each 
shod  with  an  iron  screw-pile,  penetrating  three  feet  into  the 
ground,  are  erected  to  each  mile.  On  these  posts  insulating 
brackets  of  great  strength  are  fastened,  and  the  iron  wire  or 
rods,  No  1  Birmingham  gauge,  are  keyed  or  braced  so  as  to 
allow,  at  the  lowest  point,  sixteen  feet  above  the  level  of  the 
ground,  to  permit  laden  elephants  to  pass  under  the  lowest  part 
of  the  line. 

These  lines  are  built  of  poles  of  the  iron- wood  from  Arracan, 
which  are  known  to  be  almost  indestructible  by  damp,  fungus, 
or  insects.  This  wood  is  so  hard  that  it  is  cut  with  difficulty 
by  the  axe.  It  is  very  heavy,  and  the  transportation  expensive. 
It  is  used  in  its  sapling  form,  and  the  posts  are,  on  an  average, 
twenty-four  feet  high,  and  five  to  six  inches  diameter  at  the 
base.  The  butt  end  is  tapered  by  the  adze  and  plane,  so  as  to 
fit  closely  into  the  hollow  iron  screw-pile,  in  which  they  are  to 


THE    IRON    SCREW- PILE.  699 

be  inserted  into  the  ground.  When  iron-wood  is  not  procur- 
able, teak,  saul,  or  any  other  good  timber,  is  used.  In  the  moun- 
tains oak  and  pine  are  used.  Deep-rooted  trees,  occurring  on 
the  line,  are  used  freely,  as  in  America,  but  in  India  the  tops 
of  the  trees  and  their  limbs  are  cut  off,  and  the  bark  is  wholly 
removed.  The  toddy  palm-tree  is  used  where  convenient. 
Each  post  is  branded  with  a  letter  or  a  number,  in  some  con- 
spicuous place.  Before  placing  the  posts  in  the  iron  screw-pile, 
the  insulating  cap  and  the  bracket  are  securely  attached  to  the 
post.  When  thus  arranged,  the  pole  is  ready  to  be.  fitted 
into  the  screw-pile.  The  screw-piles  are  used  for  the  double 
purpose  of  protecting  the  timber  from  decay  and  insects,  and 
for  the  great  strength  they  afford  in  resisting  displacement,  by 
shocks  and  strains  of  every  kind.  While  two  men  can  readily 
pull  down  or  displace  a  post  of  equal  size,  planted  in  the  earth 
without  a  pile,  ten  men  cannot  accomplish  this  when  the  screw 
is  used,  without  the  aid  of  shears  and  tackle.  The. screw-pile 
also  greatly  facilitates  the  erection  of  the  posts. 

The  screw-pile  to  be  employed,  is  three  feet  one 
and  a  quarter  inches  long,  and  seven  and  a  half  inch- 
es in  diameter  at  top,  hollow  and  conical.  Its  head  is 
six-sided  externally,  and  round  internally — -thickness 
of  the  iron  three  fifteenths  of  an  inch.  It  tapers  to 
a  point  below.  The  screw-flange  commences  close 
to  the  point,  and  making  three  turns,  terminates  ten 
inches  above  the  point.  The  diameter  of  the  screw- 
flange,  at  its  greatest  width,  is  twelve  inches. 

The  post  and  the  iron  screw-pile  united,  constitute 
the  telegraphic  post.  The  pile  is  screwed  into  the 
ground  by  a  wrought  iron  bar,  with  a  four-sided  open- 
ing at  one  end,  in  which  the  neck  of  the  screw  is  re- 
ceived. This  is  called  a  "spanner."  It  is  nine  feet 
long,  and  fits  closely  to  four  sides  of  the  hexagon  head 
of  the  screw.  The  "  spanner"  is  worked  like  a  capstan  bar, 
and  gives  leverage  for  setting  the  pile  in  the  earth. 

To  screw  down  a  pile,  a  party  of  nine  men  is  required.  One 
of  the  men  commences  by  making  a  hole  in  the  earth  with  a 
crowbar.  This  hole  need  not  be  very  deep,  but  if  the  ground 
is  hard  and  pebbly,  it  must  be  two  to  two  and  a  half  feet  deep. 
The  screw-pile  is  then  placed  quite  upright,  with  its  end  in  this 
hole,  and  the  lever  or  spanner  fixed  on  the  pile  to  screw  it  down. 
Four  men  are  required  at  each  end  of  the  lever,  and  one  man 
should  carefully  attend  to  the  screw,  watching  whether  it  goes 
down  straight.  Everything  being  ready,  the  men  now  go 
round  steadily  and  slowly  ;  there  must  be  no  hurry,  and  care( 


700 


POLES    ON     THE    HINDOSTAN     LINES. 


must  be  taken  to  work  the  lever  as  horizontally  as  possible.  If 
the  men  press  downward  at  one  time  more  than  another,  the 
pressure  will  make  the  screw  go  crooked.  It  is  also  a  great 
object  not  to  let  the  pile  "  wabble,"  as  it  loosens  the  earth.  If 
the  ground  is  very  stiff,  and  the  screw  bites  imperfectly,  it  may 
be  taken  up,  and  the  hole  made  somewhat  deeper  with  the 
crowbar,  or  a  pailful  of  water  may  be  thrown  into  the  hole, 
and  one  or  more  men  should  stand  on  the  head  of  the  pile,  the 
penetration  of  which  is  much  accelerated  by  their  weight.  The 
pile  having  been  screwed  into  the  ground  within  six  inches  of 
the  top,  the  posts  are  now  to  be  erected,  the  intervals  being 
exactly  three  hundred  and  thirty  feet,  or  sixteen  to  the  mile. 
At  that  distance  the  iron  rod  employed  can  be  braced  up  with 
ease  by  the  straining  machine,  so  that  the  deflection  from  the 
horizontal  line,  is  no  more  than  eighteen  inches,  being  scarcely 
perceptible  to  the  naked  eye.  At  this  span,  three  men,  of 
four  hundred  and  twenty  pounds  weight,  have  been  supported 
on  the  rod  in  the  centre  of  the  span,  without  causing  it  any  in- 
jury. After  about  one  hundred  posts  are  erected,  the  iron  rod 
is  lifted  from  the  nearest  bamboo,  and  placed  on  the  centre  of 
the  permanent  post.  This  is  the  process  of  removing  the  iron 
rods  from  the  temporary  posts  to  the  permanent  line.  Each 
end  of  the  section  being  removed,  the  iron  conducting  rod  is 
fastened  to  a  tree  by  a  large  chain  or  to  a  log  of  timber  some 
eight  or  ten  feet  long,  placed  transversely  in  a  trench  four  feet 
deep,  and  the  earth  well  rammed  in  the  trench,  to  hold  fast  the 
log.  The  temporary  posts  may  now  be  removed,  except  inter- 
mediate posts  between  the  permanent  poles,  which  are  re- 
tained until  the  straightening  of  the  line  is  perfected,  and  in 
fact  some  are  kept  all  the  time  on  some  lines,  or  until  the  trans- 
mission of  the  current  is  interrupted  by  them.  On  such  as  are 
retained,  the  iron  rod  is  insulated  as  follows,  viz. :  a  strip  of 
strong  and  cheap  silk  from  Assam,  Bagulpore,  &c.,  one  and  a 
half  inches  wide,  and  thirty-six  inches  long,  is  saturated  with 
a  solution  of  shellac  in  wood  naphtha.  This  strip  of  silk  is 
wound  round  twenty-four  inches  of  the  rod,  smoothly,  and  spi- 
rally, overlapping  one  half  in  each  turn.  This  is  repeated  until 
a  double  layer  is  formed.  When  this  dries,  it  constitutes  a 
flexible  non-conducting  coating,  which  does  not  soften  by  the 
sun's  heat,  and  is  not  affected  by  rain.  The  silk  and  lac 
coating  is  also  given  to  the  rod  where  it  touches  the 
permanent  pole.  When  the  silk  and  lac  are  not  procur- 
able, Madras  cloth,  or  any  strong  and  porous  fabric,  is 
used,  saturated  with  pitch.  From  these  facts  it  will  be 
,seen  that  the  India  lines  are  the  most  substantial  in  the  world. 


REPAIRING  OF  TELEGRAPH  LINES. 


CHAPTER    LI. 

Qualification  and  Duties  of  Repairers — Continuous  and  Uniform  Metallic  Con- 
ductors— The  Joining  of  Telegraph  Wire — Repairing  a  Break  of  the  Line 
Wire — The  Interruption  of  the  Line  by  the  Falling  of  Trees — The  Great 
Sleet  of  1849  and  the  Telegraph  Lines — Destruction  of  the  Telegraph  Lines 
by  Lightning — A  Silk  Cord  Splice  found  in  the  Line — Novel  Cases  of 
Repairing  the  Line — Removal  from  the  Line  of  all  Foreign  Conductors — To 
preserve  the  Insulation  of  Wire — To  Secure  the  Permanency  of  the  Struc- 
ture of  the  Line. 

QUALIFICATION    AND    DUTIES    OF    REPAIRERS. 

THERE  is  no  part  of  the  telegraphic  service  more  important 
than  the  repair  of  the  line.  Unless  it  is  properly  restored, 
when  out  of  order,  difficulties  may  be  experienced  for  months, 
and  even  years  thereafter.  On  a  line  of  some  five  hundred 
miles,  traversing  wild  and  forest  regions,  a  fault  may  escape 
discovery,  perhaps  for  ever.  The  repairer  of  the  line  should 
have  a  reasonable  knowledge  of  the  science  of  electric  currents ; 
and,  as  the  men  engaged  in  this  department  are  generally  of 
but  limited  education,  the  operators  in  the  stations  ought  to 
teach  them  as  much  as  possible  the  science,  so  that  their  effi- 
ciency may  be  the  greater  for  the  general  weal  of  the  company. 
Unfortunately,  however,  the  operators  sometimes  are  too  self- 
ish to  diffuse  knowledge.  They  prefer  to  be  wise  themselves, 
looking  to  an  increase  of  salary.  Such  acquisitive  characters 
ought  to  be  discountenanced  by  the  principals  of  every  tele- 
graphic organization.  In  the  long  and  varied  career  which  I 
have  had  in  telegraphing  in  different  climes  and  on  different 
continents,  I  have  always  endeavored  to  teach  others  to  the 
fullest  extent  of  my  power.  It  has  afforded  me  pleasure,  and 
the  recipient  has  felt  a  sense  of  gratitude.  What  higher  con- 
sideration need  we  have  in  this  world,  than  a  consciousness  of 
"  doing  unto  others  as  we  would  they  should  do  unto  us  ?" 
701 


702  REPAIRING    OF    TELEGRAPH    LINES. 

If  the  repairer  is  ignorant  of  the  necessities  of  the  telegraph, 
he  may  omit  to  do  that  which  ought  to  be  done,  and  he  may 
do  those  things  which  ought  not  to  be  done,  all  resulting  from 
an  ignorance  of  the  established  science.  I  have  too  often  felt  the 
consequences  of  improper  repairing.  Some  years  ago,  while  act- 
ing as  president  of  a  telegraph  range,  I  found  it  economical 
to  employ  men  who  understood  the  full  requirements  of  the 
telegraph. 

The  duties  of  the  repairer  may  be  considered  under  the  fol- 
lowing heads,  viz. : 

1st.  To  maintain  a  continuous  and  uniform  metallic  con- 
ductor. 

2d.  To  remove  from  the  wire  all  foreign  conductors,  whether 
metallic  or  otherwise. 

3d.  To  preserve  a  proper  insulation  of  the  wire. 

4th.  To  secure  the  permanency  of  the  poles  and  other  struc- 
tures of  the  line. 

I  will  now  explain  these  respective  duties ;  and  as  to  the  first, 
to  maintain  a  continuous  and  uniform  metallic  conductor. 
The  voltaic  electricity  employed  for  telegraphic  purposes,  re- 
quires a  uniform  and  continuous  metallic  conductor  from  sta- 
tion to  station.  When  I  say  a  uniform  conductor,  I  do  not 
mean  to  say  that  a  wire  of  different  sizes  and  qualities  will  not 
answer  for  transmitting  telegraphic  intelligence,  but  that  a  uni- 
form metallic  rod  or  wire  will  subserve  the  purposes  better  in 
the  maintenance  of  an  efficient  current  of  electricity.  Much 
might  be  written  on  the  subject ;  but  for  practical  purposes 
I  need  say  but  little  in  illustrating  the  established  philosophy 
in  the  premises. 


Suppose  A  B  is  a  line  of  an  indefinite  length,  the  wires  be- 
tween A  and  a  and  b  and  B  are  the  same  in  size  ;  the  wire 
between  a  and  b  of  a  much  smaller  size  ;  the  batteries  are  at 
A  and  B.  The  wire  between  a  and  b  being  small,  I  will  sup- 
pose, can  conduct  but  half  or  fifty  per  cent,  of  the  electric  cur- 
rent that  the  wires  A  a  and  b  B  can  convey.  Suppose  x  and 
z  are  faulty  points  in  the  wires  A  a  and  b  B. 

Ordinarily  the  small  wire,  a  6,  is  called  a  wire  of  resistance, 
because  the  volume  of  the  current  is  lessened  to  the  conduct- 
ing capacity  of  the  wire,  and  as  it  cannot  equal  the  powers  of 
the  wires  A"  a  and  b  B,  it  is  called  a  resisting  wire.  The  term 
is  objectionable ;  but  it  has  become  a  technicality  in  the  art  of 
telegraphing,  and  I  use  it  as  such. 


CONTINUOUS    AND    UNIFORM    METALLIC    CONDUCTORS.          70S 

In  regard  to  the  conducting  functions  of  the  respective  sec- 
tions given  in  the  example,  there  seems  to  be  a  diversity  of 
opinion.  Some  suppose  the  wire  between  A  and  a  and  b  and  B 
hold  as  fixtures  their  full  quantity  of  the  electric  current. 
Place  between  a  and  b  the  larger  wire,  and  the  current  will  be 
uniform  between  A  and  B.  On  the  other  hand,  it  is  believed  that 
the  batteries  at  A  and  B  only  generate  a  voltaic  current  in 
quantity  or  force,  equal  to  the  conducting  power  of  the  wire ; 
thus,  if  a  battery  of  fifty  cups  fully  charges  the  wire  to  its 
complete  capacity,  whatever  addition  may  be  made  to  the  num- 
ber or  size  of  the  cups  or  cells  of  the  battery,  the  plus  will  be 
inactive,  electrically,  notwithstanding  there  will  be  chemical 
action  on  the  whole  battery. 

It  is  not  material  for  me  to  determine,  at  the  present  time, 
which  of  these  opinions  is  correct.  The  operator  at  the  appa- 
ratus readily  perceives  the  increase  or  the  decrease  of  the  elec- 
tive force  on  the  line  ;  and  when  the  conducting  medium  is 
disturbed,  the  effect  is  instantly  observable  in  the  adjustment 
of  the  relay  magnet  of  the  apparatus.  There  can  be  no  mis- 
take in  the  opinion,  that  lesser  sized  wires  are,  technically,  re- 
sis  tants  to  the  flow  of  the  voltaic  force. 

In  the  diagram  above  given,  the  current  sent  from  A  to  B 
or  from  B  to  A  will  be  effective,  in  proportion  to  the  conducti- 
bility  of  the  wire  between  a  and  b.  Suppose  there  is  a  bad 
joint  at  re,  the  current  transmitted  from  A  through  a  b  will 
reach  x  much  enfeebled,  or  in  other  words,  in  less  quantity  or 
volume.  Much  of  the  current  passes  away  on  the  route,  by 
heat,  fog,  rain,  and  contacts  of  various  kinds.  Besides  this  loss 
of  current,  the  intensity  sufficient  to  overcome  distance  becomes 
lessened.  When,  therefore,  the  current  arrives  at  re,  it  is  so 
feeble,  that  it  is  difficult  for  it  to  overcome  the  fault,  and  in 
such  cases  B  receives  the  dispatch  with  much  difficulty.  If 
there  is  a  fault  at  z,  the  full  voltaic  force  is  hindered,  and  the 
volume  or  quantity  of  the  flow  from  A,  beyond  z,  is  not  com- 
mensurate with  the  exercise  of  the  functions  of  the  battery. 
A  line  thus  situated  is  very  inefficient,  and  the  remedy  for  the 
case  is  only  by  the  repair  of  the  line,  or  by  the  establishment 
of  relay  stations  at  x  and  z,  or  at  some  other  part  of  the  line. 
Suppose  the  line  is  perfect  from  A  to  re,  but  the  fault  at  x  is 
a  metallic  contact,  shorter,  but  inferior  to  the  remainder 
of  the  line.  In  this  case,  B  will  receive,  if  at  all,  with  diffi- 
culty ;  but  A  will  receive  from  the  battery  of  B  with  less  hin- 
dorance.  The  quantity  of  the  current  in  proximity  to  x  is  so 
great,  that  its  intensity  overleaps  the  oxidation,  or  passes 
through  the  inferior  conductor  at  the  point  re,  and  goes  on  to  A 


7.04 


REPAIRING    OF    TELEGRAPH    LINES. 


On  the  other  hand,  the  hattery  at  A  is  too  far  off  to  be  thus 
effective.  It  must  always  be  remembered,  that  there  are  two 
elementary  organizations  of  the  voltaic  force,  namely  quantity 
and  intensity.  Philosophers  have  discussed  these  two  classifi- 
cations in  the  most  extended  sense.  I  will  not  enter  into  a 
discussion  of  them  here,  and  in  their  use,  I  will  be  plain,  though 
at  the  risk  of  criticism.  Some  scientific  gentlemen  dislike  to 
see  technical  terms  made  common,  but  I  have  no  other.alterna- 
tive  left  me.  This  book  is  written  for  the  practical  telegrapher, 
who  has  to  work  day  by  day  in  the  mysterious  agency  of  a 
science,  the  explorations  in  which  have  been  but  limited.  Be- 
sides this  reason,  many  of  the  technicalities  in  the  electric 
science  have  different  definitions,  are  differently  applied,  and 
are  differently  understood  by  scientific  gentlemen.  It  is  my 
aim  to  use  terms  and  language  that  can  be  understood  by  the 
reader,  and  I  hope  my  purpose  will  be  appreciated. 

In  order  to  have  intensity  sufficient  to  overcome  a  given  dis- 
tance, a  commensurate  current  of  quantity  must  be  generated 
by  a  voltaic  battery.  Some  batteries  generate  currents  of 
greater  quantity  and  less  intensity  than  others.  To  attain  the 
greatest  intensity,  scientific  gentlemen  have  been  experiment- 
ing for  many  years,  and  to  some  extent  with  success. 

From  what  I  have  said  in  the  above,  it  will  be  seen  that  it 
is  important  to  maintain  a  uniform  metallic  conductor  on  a  line 
of  telegraph.  To  the  consummation  of  this  end,  it  is  the  duty 
of  every  repairer  to  exert  his  energies,  and  never  to  omit  the 
correction  of  a  faulty  place  in  the  wire. 

THE  JOINING    OF    THE    TELEGRAPH    WIRES. 

Telegraph  wire  is  manufactured  and  delivered  upon  the 
route  in  lengths  to  suit  the  constructors  of  the  line.  Many  of 
the  joints  are  made  at  the  manufactory,  and  many  have  to  be 
made  along  the  line  as  the  wire  is  placed  upon  the  poles.  No 
joint  should  be  made  unless  soldered  ;  but  the  conveniences 
usually  had  heretofore  for  this  process  along  the  line,  have  been 
but  few,  and,  therefore,  a  line  of  some  five  hundred  miles  has 
had,  perhaps,  some  several  hundred  joints  not  soldered. 

In  America,  we  have  had  our  full  share  of  experience  upon 
the  subject.  Having  built  in  a  few  years  more  lines  of  tele- 
graph than  elsewhere  in  the  world,  we  have  had  full  scope  for 
experiment.  The  early  lines  were  not  so  carefully  constructed, 
owing  to  the  great  haste^equired  in  their  completion,  especially 
on  rival  routes.  I  have  had  lines  constructed  having  thou- 
sands of  joints  not  soldered,  and  they  worked  very  well.  It  can- 


THE    JOINING    OF    THE    TELEGRAPH    WIRE. 


705 


not  be  denied,  but  what  those  lines  would  have  worked  much 
better,  had  the  joints  been  well  soldered. 

On  a  line  built  by  Mr.  Tanner  and  myself,  in  1848,  the  wire 
was  delivered  by  the  manufacturer  on  reels,  in  lengths  of  six 
miles.  The  joints  were  made  in  the  egg  form,  as  seen  in 

fig-  1. 

Fig.  1. 


The  first  example  in  the  figure  is  the  process  of  bending 
the  wire,  the  second  is  the  hook  joint  made  ready  for  the 
solder,  the  third  is  the  joint  soldered  in  the  mould,  the  fourth 
is  the  point  finished,  and  the  fifth,  to  the  right,  is  a  half  of  the 
mould  showing  the  handle.  This  was  supposed  to  be  the  best 
joint  that  could  be  devised.  In  order  to  make  the  solder  ad- 
here to  the  iron,  the  ends  of  the  wire  were  immersed  in  chloride 
of  zinc.  The  chloride  is  of  a  pasty  nature,  readily  attracts 
moisture  from  the  air,  and  should  be  kept  in  bottles.  It  is 
made  by  dissolving  pieces  of  zinc  in  dilute  muriatic  acid. 

On  the  Hindostan  lines,  in  Asia,  Dr.  O'Shaughnessy  adopted 
the  egg  joint,  and  he  has  expressed  himself  pleased  with  it,  as 
a  success  on  No.  1  wire.  It  is  not  used  on  the  European 
lines.  In  America,  we  found  it  objectionable  ;  the  wire  broke 
at  many  of  the  joints.  Proper  care  was  not  taken  at  the  manu- 
factory in  cleaning  the  wire.  Many  of  the  joints  were  made  with 
the  ends  of  the  wire  covered  with  a  thick  coating  of  oxyde. 
But,  under  any  circumstances,  this  joint  is  objectionable.  The 
solder  is  an  inferior  conductor  ;  and,  besides,  there  will  not  be 
a  complete  metallic  connection  between  the  wire  and  the 
solder.  The  iron  contact  is  small.  The  hook  presents  but 
little  iron  surface  for  a  contact,  and  the  metallic  conductor  is, 
therefore,  only  equal  to  the  surface  contact  at  the  hook.  If 
but  one  third  of  the  metal  or  the  surface  of  the  wire  is  brought 
into  contact,  the  conductibility  of  the  wire  is  lessened  in  pro- 

45 


706 


REPAIRING    OF    TELEGRAPH    LINES. 


portion  to  the  said  contact.  If  the  wire  at  the  hook  is  covered 
with  an  oxyde,  a  long  line  would  be  difficult  to  work.  Having 
fully  tested  the  egg  joint,  and  at  a  very  great  sacrifice,  I 
abandoned  it,  and  substituted  the  twist  joint. 

The  object  in  using  solder,  is  not  so  much  to  make  a  metal- 
lic connection  with  the  solder  metal,  but  it  is  to  prevent  the 
wire  from  oxydation,  thereby  securing  a  continuous  and  ex- 
tended iron  connection,  commensurate  with  the  full  conducti- 
bility  of  the  iron  wire  employed  upon  the  line. 

On  the  English  lines,  the  joints  are  all  soldered  and  care- 
fully made.  Fig.  2  represents  a  joint  formerly  quite  common 
on  the  English  fines. 

Fig.  2. 


The  line  wires  were  laid  together  for  two  inches,  and  the 
ends  were  turned  up,  as  seen  in  the  figure.  The  binding  wire 
was  of  a  lesser  size,  and  galvanized.  Over  these  wires  was 
placed  the  solder.  When  a  strain  was  placed  upon  the  line, 
the  binding  wire  was  closely  pressed  together.  The  solder  did 
not  always  reach  the  line  wires.  This  joint  was  better  than 
the  twist  joint  not  galvanized. 

In  latter  years,  the  joint  most  universal  is  that  represented 
by  figure  3. 

Fig.  3. 


The  wires  are  laid  together,  and  held  by  a  clamp  in  the 
middle,  about  half  an  inch  in  width.  The  wires  on  each  side 
of  the  clamp  are  then  twisted  together.  Before  the  wires  are 
united,  they  are  always  filed  until  they  are  bright  and  free 
from  rust.  When  thus  cleaned,  they  are  ready  for  splicing  in 
whatever  form  desired.  After  the  splice  is  made,  and  the  ends 
cut  off,  as  seen  in  fig.  3,  the  next  process  is  putting  on  the 
solder.  The  wire  being  heated,  the  chloride  of  zinc  is  spread  over 
it;  the  solder  is  then  touched  to  the  wire,  it  melts  and  spreads 
over  the  joint,  and  the  whole  surface  becomes  tinned.  Some- 
times the  wire  is  immersed  in  melted  solder.  When  thus 


REPAIRING    A    BREAK    ON    THE    LINE    WIRE.  .707 

coated  with  the  solder,  the  bright  metallic  contact  of  the  wire 
remains  perfect  forever,  and  the  voltaic  current  can  pass  with- 
out any  hinderance  on  account  of  a  deficiency  of  metallic  sub- 
stance, either  as  to  extent  of  surface  or  metal. 

The  joint  represented  in  fig.  4  is  common  upon  many  lines. 
It  has  much  merit,  and  it  is  much  easier  made.  The  two 
wires  are  placed  side  by  side,  and  then  the  two  clamps  are 
made  fast  to  them,  tightened  by  the  screws  seen  in  the  figure. 

Fig.  4. 


The  handles  are  then  turned  in  opposite  directions,  until  the 
twist  is  complete,  as  seen  in  the  figure.  The  ends  are  then 
cut  off  with  a  file,  the  solder  applied,  and  the  joint  is  complete. 
By  this  arrangement,  one  man  can  make  a  joint  with  consider- 
able facility ;  but  to  make  the  joint  as  fig.  3,  two  men  are  neces- 
sary to  accomplish  the  same  speed  attained  by  the  one  using 
the  clamps,  as  represented  in  fig.  4. 

I  have  been  particular  in  describing  the  mode  of  making 
joints,  because  it  is  the  most  important  part  in  the  construc- 
tion and  the  repairing  of  a  telegraph  line. 

REPAIRING    A    BREAK    OF    THE    LINE    WIRE. 

At  the  principal  stations,  men  are  under  employment  expressly 
to  repair  the  lines.  At  the  local  or  interior  stations,  the  oper- 
ators perform  that  service.  The  stations  are  at  various  dis- 
tances apart,  extending  to  fifty  and  sixty  miles  distant  from 
each  other.  Suppose  the  stations  be  fifty  miles  apart,  the 
operator  will  have  twenty-five  miles  of  line  on  each  side  of 
his  station,  or  fifty  miles  of  line,  to  keep  in  repair.  When  the 
line  is  found  to  be  down  on  any  given  section,  the  operator  im- 
me"diately  prepares  his  implements,  and  proceeds  on  horse  to 
mend  the  line.  He  carries  around  his  shoulders  a  bundle  of 


708 


REPAIRING    OF    TELEGRAPH    LINES. 


wire,  some  fifty  feet  in  length.  In  his  saddle-bags,  he  has  his 
vices,  hammer,  hatchet,  nails,  insulators,  file,  clamps,  climbers, 
pulleys,  and  soldering  apparatus.  He  is  mounted,  as  seen  in 
fig.  5. 

Fig.  5. 


Being  thus  prepared,  he  proceeds  at  a  rapid  gait  along  the 
highways,  through  uninhabited  forests,  or  wherever  the  wire 
runs,  until  he  finds  the  place  of  difficulty.  No  one  unacquainted 
with  the  business  of  telegraphing,  can  appreciate  the  labors  of 
the  repairer.  While  others  are  comfortably  seated  around  the 
fireside,  the  operator  has  to  traverse  forest  and  wild  regions  in 
rain,  snow,  and  hail.  Through  the  cold,  chilling  blast,  he  wends 
his  way  along  the  wire  thread,  anxiously  seeking  for  the  break. 
Solitary  and  alone,  he  thus  nobly  performs  his  task.  The  break 
being  discovered,  he  proceeds  to  draw  the  ends  together,  as 
represented  in  fig.  6. 

The  pulleys  are  made  fast  to  the  ends  of  the  wire,  as  seen  in 
the  figure,  leaving  loose  about  two  feet,  to  enable  him  to  make 
the  joint.  When  drawn  together  sufficiently  close,  the  rope  he 
holds  is  fastened  to  the  pole  or  to  something,  until  the  joint  is 


REPAIRING  A  BREAK  OF  THE  LINE  WIRE. 


709 


made.  This  process  of  mending  the  wire  is  more  suitable  for 
the  open  or  groove  insulators  through  which  the  wire  runs. 
If  the  tie  insulator  is  used  on  the  line,  the  wire  should  be  untied 

Fig.  6. 


from  some  three  or  four  poles,  and  then  drawn  together  on  the 
earth.  After  it  is  united,  the  wire  can  be  elevated  to  the  top 
of  the  poles  without  difficulty. 

It  often  occurs  that  a  bracket  is  broken  from  the  pole,  or 
from  the  tree,  and  the  wire  falls  to  the  earth,  preventing  the 
transmission  of  the  voltaic  current.  In  such  cases,  the  operator 
or  repairer  must  ascend  the  pole,  and  replace  the  bracket.  To 
do  this,  climbers  with  spurs  are  used,  by  the  aid  of  which,  the 
pole  is  climbed.  These  climbers  are  made  of  iron,  in  form  as 
represented  by  figs.  7  and  8. 


Fig.  7. 


Fig.  8. 


Some  of  the  climbers  have  one  spur,  others  have-  two,  as 
seen  at  the  lower  end.  The  spur  is  pointed  with  steel,  and 
made  very  sharp.  The  straps  are  made  to  fasten  around  the 
leg.  The  spurs  placed  on  the  inside,  and  thus'fixed,  the  pole 
can  be  ascended  easily.  There  are  other  contrivances  for 


710  REPAIRING    OF    TELEGRAPH    LINES. 

climbing,  but  those  represented  above  are  the  most  approved. 
When  thus  prepared  with  the  climbers,  he  places  a  belt  of 
leather  around  his  body  and  the  pole  loosely  ;  the  wire  is  placed 
over  his  shoulder,  and  he  then  ascends  the  pole,  step  by  step, 
until  he  attains  the  height  desired.  By  adjusting  the  weight 
in  a  proper  angle  on  the  spurs  and  the  belt,  there  will  be  no 
danger  of  falling,  and  the  work  can  be  performed  without  dif- 
ficulty. Fig.  9  represents  the  repairer  mounted  twenty  feet 
or  more  up  the  pole  or  tree,  arranging  the  bracket.  The-wire 
lies  over  his  shoulder.  Sometimes  the  wire  is  laid  on  the  belt 
between  the  body  and  the  pole. 

Fig.  9. 


Having  completed  the  necessary  repair  of  the  line,  he  returns 
to  his  office,  and  assumes  a  more  pleasing  duty — the  transmis- 
sion of  the  accumulated  business. 

THE  INTERRUPTION  OF  THE    LINE  BY  THE  FALLING  OF  TREES. 

Many  lines  in  America  are  constructed  along  the  ordinary 
highways  through  the  interior,  and  often  the  wires  traverse  the 
grain  fields  and  forests,  regardless  of  roads  of  any  kind.  Trees 
frequently  fall  over  the  line,  and  in  their  fall  the  wire  is 
brought  to  the  earth,  as  seen  in  fig.  10. 

In  case  the  repairer  finds  a  tree  upon  the  line,  as  is  frequently 
the  case,  there  are  two  modes  of  making  the  repair,  either  by 
cutting  the  tree  at  the  wire,  and  allowing  it  to  rise,  or  to  cut  the 


INTERRUPTION    BY    THE    FALLING    OF    TREES.  711 

wire  and  mend  it  again.  The  first  is  the  best,  but  often  at- 
tended with  much  more  labor.  An  operator  unaccustomed  to 
the  axe,  will  find  it  very  laborious  to  cut  through  a  tree  some 

Fig.  10. 


two  or  three  feet  in  diameter.  In  case  the  tree  is  cut,  care 
must  be  taken  not  to  stand  in  the  line  of  the  ascent  of  the  wire. 
On  several  occasions,  I  have  known  the  axe-man  to  be  thrown 
by  the. wire  from  five  to  ten  feet  high.  With  care  there  will  be 
no  danger.  In  case  the  wire  has  to  be  cut,  the  following  should 
be  observed:  the  pulleys  should  be  "made  fast"  to  the  wire, 
as  in  fig.  6  preceding,  eight  or  ten  feet  from  each  side  of  the 
tree,  the  ropes  should  then  be  drawn  as  taut  as  possible  and 
tied.  The  wire  can  then  be  cut,  and  the  ends  joined  and.  sol- 
dered. When  the  joint  is  finished,  a  rope  should  be  placed 
over  the  wire,  and  the  ends  fastened  to  the  tree  with  a  noose. 
The  pulleys  should  then  be  taken  off.  The  strain  of  the  wire 
will  then  be  wholly  on  the  rope  tied  to  the  tree,  which,  on  be- 
ing untied,  the  wire  will  ascend  with  great  force,  and  vibrate 
like  the  string  of  a  violin  when  touched.  The  slack  once  be- 
tween the  poles  at  the  tree  will  be  diffused  over  a  mile  of  wire, 
but  to  the  eye  none  can  be  seen,  the  whole  appearing  to  be  as 
taut  as  when  first  put  up.  From  this  description,  the  process 
may  seem  difficult,  but  practically  such  is  not  the  case.  After 
a  line  has  been  constructed  a  year  or  more,  the  wire  elongates, 
and  there  is  much  spare  slack,  so  much  in  fact,  that  it  would 
be  well  to  tighten  the  wire  occasionally,  when  the  line  is  gen- 
erally repaired.  This  slack  of  the  wire  presents  an  opportunity 
to  the  repairer  to  take  out  of  the  line  bad  joints,  and  the  mak- 
ing of  better  ones. 


712  REPAIRING    OF    TELEGRAPH    LINES. 

THE    GREAT    SLEET    OF  1849  AND    THE    TELEGRAPH    LINES. 

The  most  serious  misfortune  that  ever  befell  the  telegraph 
in  a  single  night  was  that  produced  by  the  great  sleet  of  1849,  in 
the  Southwest.  The  lines  in  every  direction  through  Tennessee, 
Kentucky,  Northern  Mississippi,  and  Alabama,  were  levelled  to 
the  earth  in  a  few  hours.  The  wire  employed  on  the  lines  was 
number  ten,  averaging  in  strength  some  ten  hundred  pounds. 
In  the  States  mentioned  the  climate  is  mild,  and  heavy  sleets 

Fig.  11. 


seldom  occur.  The  ice  formed  upon  the  lines,  as  seen  in  fig. 
11,  and  the  wire  was  broken  between  hundreds  of  the  poles. 
In  woodland  countries,  where  the  ice  failed  to  break  the  wires, 
the  limbs  of  trees  were  broken  down,  and  falling  upon  them, 
aided  in  the  general  disaster.  It  was  a  sad  time  for  telegraph- 
ers. For  about  four  weeks,  all  business  in  the  transmission  of 
dispatches  was  suspended,  and  all  employes  were  engaged  in 
the  restoration  of  the  lines.  Several  hundred  men  additional 
were  employed ;  and  although  the  work  was  equal  to  rebuild- 
ing the  line,  some  twelve  hundred  miles  of  telegraph  were  re- 
paired in  the  remarkably  short  time  of  one  month. 

DESTRUCTION  OF  THE  TELEGRAPH  LINES  BY  LIGHTNING. 

In  the  Southern  and  Western  States,  the  lightning  is  severe 
upon  the  electric  telegraph.  Many  times  the  wires  are  struck 
and  burnt.  I  saw  a  piece  of  wire  that  had  been  matted  or 
fused  together  ;  it  was  twenty  feet  long  ;  and  how  it  became 
drawn  into  a  mass  of  some  two  feet  in  diameter,  resembling  a 
tangled  string,  no  one,  save  Divinity,  can  comprehend.  On  one 
side  of  the  wire  there  were  bubbles.  The  poles  were  torn  to 


NOVEL  CASES  OF  REPAIR.  713 

pieces  for  about  a  mile.  In  most  cases  the  wire  is  left  unin- 
jured, but  it  is  common  for  the  poles  to  be  split  and  scattered 
about  on  the  earth.  Sometimes  the  poles  are  mostly  split  at  or 
near  the  earth.  Grreat  care  has  to  be  taken  to  preserve  the  ap- 
paratuses in  the  stations ;  but  the  means  of  protection  will  be 
explained  elsewhere. 

A    SILK    CORD    SPLICE    FOUND    IN    THE    LINE. 

A  vexatious  interruption  took  place  on  one  of  the  lines  a  few 
years  ago,  which  for  a  time  defied  discovery.  On  testing  the 
line  in  the  morning,  at  an  interior  station,  the  line  was  found 
to  be  broken,  and,  as  supposed,  the  end  of  the  wire  was  sus- 
pended in  the  air.  No  circuit  could  be  formed  with  the  battery. 
As  soon  as  possible,  the  operator  was  travelling  upon  the  route 
of  the  line,  in  search  of  the  place  of  difficulty.  He  proceeded 
to  the  end  of  his  section,  twenty-five  miles,  where  he  met  the 
operator  of  the  next  station  in  course.  Bach  reported  his  sec- 
tion in  order.  The  wire  was  cut,  and  one  section  was  found  to 
be  perfect  and  the  other  not.  Diligent  search  was  made  by 
the  operator  of  the  section  at  fault  on  returning  to  his  station, 
but  nothing  could  be  found.  No  foreign  matter  touched  the 
line,  and  the  wire  was  seen  properly  suspended  between  every 
pole.  The  next  day  was  spent  in  vain  search  for  the  fault. 
The  office  was  again  examined,  and  all  was  right  there.  It 
was  then  supposed  that  some  joint  was  imperfect.  The  oper- 
ator, with  others  to  assist,  proceeded  to  examine  the  joints  on 
the  line.  He  cut  the  wire  five  miles  distant  from  the  station, 
and  found  that  the  difficulty  was  farther  off.  At  the  end  of 
the  next  five  miles,  he  cut  the  wire,  and  found  that  it  was  be- 
tween him  and  his  office.  He  returned,  and  cut  the  wire  every 
mile,  until  he  found  the  quarter  of  a  mile  on  which  was,  beyond 
doubt,  the  place  he  was  searching  for  with  so  much  solicitude. 
Finally,  he*found  it.  It  was  a  silken  cord,  the  size  and  color 
of  the  wire,  about  one  hundred  feet  long.  The  j'oints  were  made 
as  the  other  wire,  but  covered  with  white  paint,  to  resemble 
the  solder. 

NOVEL    CASES    OF    REPAIRING    THE     LINE. 

Col.  Speed  has  reported  a  singular  case  of  repair.  A  man 
had  cut  a  tree,  which,  in  its  fall,  broke  the  wire.  He  was 
anxious  to  mend  it  as  speedily  as  possible.  He  was  not  able 
to  get  the  ends  together,  and,  as  a  substitute,  he  generously 
placed  a  rusty  chain  to  complete  the  connection.  Had  the  chain 
been  bright,  the  line  would  have  worked  ;  but  the  dry  rust  be- 


714  REPAIRING    OF    TELEGRAPH    LINES. 

tween  any  one  of  the  links  was,  perhaps,  sufficient  to  prevent 
the  passage  of  the  electric  current.  The  repairer  passed  the 
place  several  times  without  seeing  it.  Finally,  however,  the 
chain  was  discovered ;  and  on  telling  the  man  who  placed  it 
there  that  it  had  interrupted  the  communication  over  the  wire, 
he  responded,  that  it  could  not  be  possible,  for  the  chain  was 
much  stronger  than  the  wire. 

Another  case  has  been  reported  to  me  by  Col.  Speed,  where 
the  fault  baffled  for  days  the  greatest  energy  for  its  discovery. 
On  many  of  the  lines  brackets  are  nailed  to  trees ;  the  wife 
passing  through  one  of  these  brackets,  which  had  been  nailed  to 
an  elm  tree,  touched  the  head  of  a  nail,  thereby  causing  an 
earth  connection  with  the  sap  of  the  tree.  Sometimes,  by  the 
force  of  the  wind,  the  wire  was  removed  from  the  nail,  and  then 
full  communication  was  restored. 

A  case  has  been  reported  to  me  by  Mr.  Talcott,  of  the 
Washington  station,  where  the  repairer  found  the  wire  broken, 
but  was  unable  to  get  the  ends  together.  He  was  some  twenty 
miles  distant  from  a  station ;  and  for  a  temporary  substitute, 
he  purchased  a  stove-pipe.  After  perfecting  the  metallic  con- 
nection between  the  sections  of  the  pipe,  he  fastened  it  to  the 
line  wires,  and  communication  was  restored. 

On  one  occasion,  when  repairing  a  break  in  the  line,  I  was 
unable  to  get  the  ends  of  the  wire  together.  Only  one  foot  was 
needed.  In  this  dilemma  I  lashed  the  iron  climbers  hereinbefore 
described,  and  by  using  them  a  good  metallic  connection  was 
made,  and  communication  over  the  wire  restored. 

On  another  occasion,  I  had  not  line  wire  sufficient  to  unite 
the  ends.  About  five  feet  were  needed.  I  cut  a  small  pole, 
some  two  inches  in  diameter,  and  tied  the  ends  of  the  wire  to 
the  pole.  When  in  practical  telegraph  service,  it  was  my  cus- 
tom to  carry  in  my  pocket  some  fifty  or  a  hundred  feet  of  the 
fine  wire  taken  from  the  rejected  relay  magnets.  With  this 
fine  wire  I  connected  the  line  wires,  lashing  it  around  the  pole, 
to  prevent  it  from  being  broken.  This  fine  wire  perfected  the 
metallic  circuit,  and  communication  was  continued  over  it  until 
a  piece  of  large  wire  could  be  substituted  for  it,  which  was  done 
on  the  next  day. 

It  was  my  practice  to  use  this  small  wire  in  connecting  the 
ends  of  the  wire,  the  moment  I  found  the  break,  or  before  I  cut 
the  line  wire,  when  that  formality  had  to  be  resorted  to.  By 
that  means,  the  line  was  brought  into  immediate  use,  long  be- 
fore the  line  was  properly  mended.  In  my  administration  of 
the  telegraphs,  I  always  found  it  advantageous  to  provide  the 
repairers  with  more  or  less  of  this  small  wire. 


TO    PRESERVE    INSULATION.  715 

Numerous  oases  might  be  cited  showing  ingenious  remedies 
resorted  to,  in  order  to  perfect  the  line  sufficient  to  secure  the 
transmission  of  dispatches  temporarily.  The  cases  cited  prove 
the  necessity  of  the  employment  of  men  for  repairers  capable 
of  meeting  cases  in  any  emergency. 

Having  thus  lengthily  discussed  the  first  duty  of  the  repairer, 
I  will  now  briefly  consider  the  others ;  and  as  to  the  second, — 
to  remove  from  the  Line  all  foreign  conductors. 

The  repairer  of  the  line  should  be  very  careful  to  remove 
from  the  wire  all  limbs  of  trees,  and  everything  else,  so  as  to 
have  the  wires  suspended  from  the  insulators,  and  nothing  else. 
In  cities  I  have  often  seen  kite-strings  fastened  to  the  different 
wires,  by  which,  when  wet,  the  electric  current  passes  from 
one  wire  to  the  other.  This  should  not  be  the  case  under  any 
circumstances.  These  strings  may  lead  off  the  whole  current, 
thereby  preventing  communication.  An  impression  is  very 
often  entertained  by  operators,  that  their  batteries  will  "  drive 
over"  the  string  conductors.  This  is  possible  in  certain  cases, 
such  as  where  the  batteries  are  near  the  difficulties.  But,  sup- 
pose the  battery  is  one  hundred  miles  distant,  and  a  heavy  rain 
falls,  a  stream  of  water  will  run  from  the  upper  wire  to  the  lower 
along  the  kite-string.  When  this  is  the  case,  communications 
on  either  wire  at  the  same  time  will  -be  interrupted.  When 
the  like  occurs,  the  remedy  is  only  to  be  found  in  detaching 
one  of  the  wires  from  the  earth  circuit,  leaving  the  end  at  the 
station  suspended  in  the  air.  If  the  string  conducts  the  current 
from  wire  No.  1  to  No.  2,  and  the  latter  is  disconnected  as  above 
stated,  communication  on  No.  1  will  be  uninterrupted. 

Great  care  should  be  observed  to  preserve  the  wire  from 
contact  with  nails,  sides  of  trees,  houses,  and  other  things. 
Through  the  Southwest,  young  trees  grow  so  rapid,  that  they 
need  to  be  cut  from  beneath  the  line  in  the  fall  of  every  year. 

And,  thirdly,  to  preserve  a  proper  insulation  of  the  wire. 

With  reference  to  this  subject,  I  would  refer  the  reader  to 
the  article  on  insulation.  Whatever  the  insulator  may  be,  care 
should  be  observed  to  keep  it  in  or  on  every  pole.  I  have  known 
lines  to  work  tolerably  well  with  many  of  the  insulators  out 
of  the  poles,  the  wire  resting  upon  the  wood.  This  ought  not 
to  be  the  case.  The  line  will  work  as  long  as  it  is  dry,  but  as 
soon  as  the  wood  is  wet,  the  line  will  not  work.  A  good  and 
faithful  repairer  will,  at  any  time,  travel  five  or  ten  miles  to 
place  in  the  pole  a  single  insulator.  Nothing  in  the  art  of 
telegraphing  is  more  important  than  a  perfect  insulation.  Sup- 
pose the  iron  hook  insulator  be  used,  if  the  glass  be  broken,  and 
a  rain  falls,  it  will  be  impossible  to  communicate  over  the  wire. 


716  REPAIRING    OF    TELEGRAPH    LINES. 

In  a  word,  the  repairer  should  see  that  the  wire  is  insulated  by 
a  non-conductor  from  everything  that  is  a  conductor  through- 
out the  whole  line. 

Fourthly,  and  finally — to  secure  the  permanency  of  the  struc- 
tures of  the  line. 

On  every  line  of  telegraph,  some  of  the  poles  will  decay  he- 
fore  others.  When  such  cases  occur,  new  poles  should  be  sub- 
stituted without  delay.  If  they  are  permitted  to  remain,  the 
wind  will  sooner  or  later  level  them  to  the  earth.  Communi- 
cation will  then  be  interrupted,  perhaps  for  a  day  or  more, 
until  the  poles  are  replaced  by  others.  As  a  question  of  econ- 
omy, no  one  can  doubt  but  what  it  will  be  much  better  to 
replace  the  decayed  pole  before  its  fall,  bringing  with  it  to  the 
earth  the  wire,  and  interrupting  communication. 

It  is  often  the  case,  that  the  water  settles  around  the  foot  of 
the  post,  and,  the  earth  yielding  to  the  pressure,  the  pole  bends 
over,  or  perhaps  falls.  The  repairer  should  watch  for  such  cases, 
and  immediately  rearrange  the  earth  around  the  pole,  or  place 
stones  around  it,  or  drive  small  .pieces  of  timber  into  the  loose 
earth,  to  make  it  more  compact,  and  to  serve  as  braces  to  the 
pole.  On  lines  using  the  open  or  groove  insulator,  it  often 
occurs  that  the  strain  of  some  half  mile  of  the  wire  will  be  on 
a  single  pole,  placed  at  an  angle.  When  this  is  the  case,  the 
pole  is  sure  to  bend  or  warp,  and  perhaps  force  through  the 
earth.  In  such  contingencies,  the  wire  on  the  next  poles,  on 
each  side,  should  be  keyed,  so  that  the  strain  upon  the  one 
pole  will  not  be  more  than  the  two  stretches. 

I  have  now  sufficiently  explained  the  duties  of  a  repairer. 
If  what  I  have  said  be  properly  studied  and  practised  by  those 
employed  in  that  particular  service,  I  think  the  lines  will 
be  benefited,  their  economy  will  be  subserved,  and  the  public 
good  will  be  greatly  promoted  by  the  increased  facilities  for 
telegraphing. 

On  lines  where  there  are  not  employed  special  repairers,  a 
corps  of  men  should  travel  over  the  whole  route  in  the  spring 
and  in  the  fall,  and  perfect  the  line  in  every  particular,  as 
herein  before  mentioned.  This  should  be  considered  by  every 
company  as  indispensable. 

There  are  many  telegraph  lines  in  America,  built  with 
galvanized  wire.  Some  telegraphers  are  of  the  opinion  that 
the  joints  made  of  this  wire  do  not  require  to  be  soldered. 
Such,  too,  was  the  opinion  among  practical  telegraphers  fifteen 
years  ago,  in  regard  to  the  ordinary  wire  not  galvanized. 

Complaints  are  made  against  soldered  connections  on  galvan- 
ized lines,  because  the  wires  break  oftener  at  the  splicings  than 


TO    SECURE    PERMANENCY    OF    STRUCTURE.  717 

elsewhere.  Such  was  the  case  with  the  egg  joint,  and  tele- 
graphers objected  to  soldered  connections  at  that  time  for  the 
same  reason.  Some  lines  were  then  built  without  soldering 
any  of  them.  In  a  few  years  they  worked  better  during  and 
after  a  rain  than  they  did  on  dry  days.  This  resulted  from  the 
water  resting  in  the  cavities  of  the  wire  joints,  serving  as  aux- 
iliary conductors.  When  they  were  dry,  the  rust  was  an 
inferior  conductor,  and  hence  the  difficulty  of  getting  a  suffi- 
cient flow  of  the  voltaic  current  from  station  to  station.  Even 
the  dews  of  heaven  that  fell  during  the  shades  of  night,  served  as 
rich  blessings  to  the  wearied  operators,  and  as  an  amelioration 
to  the  struggling  messenger  destined  for  other  climes  !  It 
seemed  to  me  as  though  the  finger  of  the  Creator  benignly 
aided  .in  the  perfection  of  the  means  for  the  transmission  of 
that  mysterious  imponderable  agent,  which  conceals  itself,  and 
nestles  in  the  gorgeous  drapery  of  his  throne — a  power  in 
nature  so  transcendent  in  sublimity,  that  it  can  have  no  twin ! 


IMPROVEMENTS  IN  TELEGRAPH  APPARATUS. 


CHAPTER    LII. 

Kirchhof's,  Farmer's,  Hughes',  Partridge's,  Baker's,  Coleman's,  Channing's, 
Smith's,  Clay's,  Woodman's,  Humaston's,  and  "Wesson's  patented  improvements 
in  telegraphing. 

PATENTED  TELEGRAPH  IMPROVEMENTS. 

Among  the  many  improvements  invented  within  the  past  few 
years,  and  patented  in  the  United  States,  are  the  following. 
Some  of  them  are  in  use,  and  others  have  never  been  success- 
fully applied  to  any  of  the  telegraphs.  The  engravings  are  but 
outline  representations  of  the  respective  inventions,  but  they  are 
sufficiently  distinct  to  enable  the  telegrapher  to  comprehend 
the  speciality  of  the  patented  improvement.  In  presenting  the 
explanations  of  the  engravings  I  have  omitted  much  of  the  de- 
tail embraced  in  the  letters  patents  on  record  at  Washington 
I  have  copied  the  special  claims  in  the  respective  patents,  with 
a  view  that  other  inventors  may  know  to  what  state  the  art  of 
telegraphing  has  attained  in  mechanical  combinations. 

I.    IMPROVEMENT    IN     ELECTRIC    TELEGRAPH. 

Patented  April  15,  1856,  by  Charles  KirchkoJ. 

By  the  movement  of  the  hand  w  the  stud  o "  is  caused  to 
slide  the  frame  Y  far  enough  to  insert  the  arm  d  of  the  lever 
d  d/  in  the  notch  in  the  catch  c',  whereby  the  arm  d  is  caused 
to  partake  partially  of  the  movement  of  the  armature  K  K', 
and  to  be  withdrawn  from  contact  with  the  ivory  piece  w  w ', 
and  to  carry  the  knee-lever  past  the  line  of  culmination  of  the 
axle  d"  and  the  point  u',  so  that  the  power  of  the  spring  u  may 
throw  it  against  the  block  iv  or  w',  and  reverse  the  position  of 
the  shuttle  and  hold  it  fast.  The  index  is  stopped  by  means  of 
a  watcher  h  and  waker  /.  The  waker  rotates  with  the  spindle 
T  and  index  ;  and  if  the  hook  I'  meets  with  any  obstruction, 


PATENTED     IMPROVEMENTS.  719 

it  is  swung  sidewise,  and  the  semi-circular  part  i "  is  thrown 
upward,  and  the  collar  m  is  thereby  raised  and  caused  to  raise 
the  fork  i  of  the  watcher-key  /i,  and  thus  to  break  the  circuit 
which  passes  through  the  watcher,  the  pin  A/x,  and  the  plate  g*. 

The  hook  I'  is  obstructed  by  means  of  the  elbow-levers  v  v, 
which  are  connected  with  the  knobs  x  x. 

The  inventor  says :  I  do  not  claim  any  part  or  arrangement 
with  the  use  and  result  thereof,  as  far  as  already  well  known 
and  clearly  specified. 

But  I  claim,  1st,  the  prevention  of  the  too  early  intermission 
or  restoration  of  the  circuit  in  the  use  of  self-intermission, 
through  the  method  by  which  a  key-shuttle  </,  or  its  equivalent, 
is  not  only  stationary  during  the  whole  travel  of  the  armature 
K  K  ',  but  also  for  a  certain  time  afterward,  so  that  the  circuit, 
during  that  time,  remains  either  permanently  broken  or  closed  ; 
but  afterward  this  shuttle  is  started  and  shoved  by  the  indirect 
influence  of  the  motion  of  the  armature  through  some  devices, 
till  to  the  moment  of  breaking  or  restoring  the  circuit,  and  here 
stopped  ;  and  the  armature,  and  by  that  all  oscillating  me- 
chanical parts,  are  obliged  to  reverse  immediately. 

2d.  The  manner  of  stopping  the  index  of  all  instruments  of 
a  circuit  right  opposite  the  desired  letter,  without  disturbing  or 
preventing  the  index,  armature,  or  shuttle  of  any  instrument 
to  complete  their  adopted  motion,  by  means  of  a  u  watcher  "  h 
and  "waker  '  /,  operated  by  the  revolving  hook  I'  and  the 
key-lever  v,  or  its  equivalent,  in  the  manner  specified,  so  that 
the  watcher  will  keep  -open ;  meanwhile  the  shuttle  makes  con- 
tact, whereby  the  indices  stop  until  the  key  is  relieved  and  the 
watcher  closes  again. 

3d.  The  method  to  keep  all  instruments  of  a  circuit  in  uni- 
son working,  and  without  any  mechanical  means,  through  em- 
ployment of  "  the  induction  current,"  by  retarding  the  in- 
fluence of  the  electro-magnetic  power  at  a  certain  degree  upon 
that  instrument  which  intermits  the  circuit,  and  whereby  the 
other  instruments  of  the  circuit  not  having  their  inter mitters  in 
activity,  are  governed  by  it,  and  insured  to  complete  their  mo- 
tion before  the  circuit  of  the  prime  current  is  intermitted  or 
restored  again. 

The  said  induction  current  in  each  instrument  being  used  in 
connection  with  some  suitable  means  for  connecting  and  dis- 
connecting the  self-intermitter  with  the  armature  lever,  and 
also  with  a  means  for  closing  and  opening  the  induction  circuit, 
and  for  the  opening  and  closing  of  the  accommodation  course 
of  the  prime  current,  which  act  together  at  once,  answering 
simultaneously  their  different  purposes. 


720 


TELEGRAPH  APPARATUS. 
I. 


PATENTED    IMPROVEMENTS.  721 

II.    IMPROVEMENT    IN    TELEGRAPHIC    REGISTERS. 

Patented  January  29,  1856,  by  Moses  G.  Farmer. 

The  engraving  shows  the  connection  of  the  main  circuits.  A 
represents  the  screw-cup  which  receives  one  main  wire ;  the 
course  of  the  current  is  n 

through    the    main    circuit 

magnet  m x.  to  the  anvil   a,        £* ^  ^* 

spring  5,  and  by  wire  w  to  *  ~' 

the  screw-cup  G,  which  is  in  :m 

connection  with  the  ground.         °P       j 

The  cup  B  receives  the  other  /''     , 

main  wire,  and  its  course  is  ^  ^  f___^ 

through  the  magnet  m  to  the   ^"3^  \  •     ~;  f     *    ~""lv 

anvil  a ',  spring  sx,  by  w',  to          "^Tf*/ 

the   ground    G.     The    main  "S  TJ?--'' 

circuit  B  will  be  opened  by  ^^ ,--x 

the  movement  of  the  arma- 
ture lever  of  the  local  magnet  i/  ;  if  i/  is  charged,  its  armatures 
will  lift  the  spring  s /  from  the  anvil  a x,  and  thus  break  the 
circuit  B  at  that  point.  Similarly  the  circuit  A  can  be  broken  at  a 
s  by  the  motions  of  the  armature  lever  of  the  local  magnet  L. 

The  inventor  says :  I  am  aware  that  a  telegraphic  register, 
operating  upon  the  same  general  principle  as  mine,  has  been 
invented  at  an  earlier  date  by  Elisha  Wilson,  of  New  Haven, 
Connecticut.  In  his  machine,  however,  the  local  circuit^  are 
both  closed,  while  in  mine  the  local  circuits  are  similarly  both 
open  when  the  main  circuits  are  both  closed.  The  same  work 
which  in  Wilson's  machine  is  done  by  the  closing  of  the  local 
circuit,  is  done  in  mine  by  the  opening  of  the  local  circuit,  and 
vice  versa.  The  general  plan,  therefore,  in  which  my  machine 
agrees  with  Wilson's  I  do  not  claim  ;  neither  do  I  claim  simply 
substituting  the  breaking  of  the  circuit  for  the  closing  to  do  the 
same  work. 

But  what  T  do  claim  is,  that  modified  combination  of  parts 
by  which,  in  the  self-acting  telegraphic  repeater,  as  described, 
the  breaking  instead  of  the  closing  of  the  local  circuit  is  made 
to  close  the  main  circuit,  and  by  which,  throughout,  the  break- 
ing of  the  local  circuit  is  made  a  substitute  for  the  closing.. 

III.    IMPROVEMENTS    IN    PRINTING    TELEGRAPHS. 
Patented  May  20,  1856,  by  David  E.  Hughes. 

The  nature  of  this  invention  will"  be  understood  from  the 
claims  and  the  engravings. 

The  inventor  says  :  I  do  not  claim  any  feature  of  any  exist- 

46 


722 


TELEGRAPH    APPARATUS. 


ing  printing  or  marking  telegraph  as  any  part  of  my  invention, 
nor  do  I  desire  to  interfere  in  the  least  with  any  heretofore  in- 
vented. 


PATENTED     IMPROVEMENTS.  723 

But  I  claim,  1st,  the  holding  in  place  of  the  attractive  power 
of  electro  or  natural  magnetism  as  applied  to  the  telegraphic 
purposes,  whether  the  same  be  applied  in  the  manner  herein 
described,  or  in  any  similar  manner  producing  like  results. 

2.  Particularly  l»claim  combining  with  the  permanent  mag- 
net B  an  adjustable  spring  almost  sufficient  to  sever  it  from 
its  contact  with  the  soft  iron  of  the  electro-magnet  A,  and  a 
lever  D,  or  its  equivalent,  which,  after  the  permanent  magnet 
has  been  separated  from  the  iron  by  the  action  of  a  current, 
shall  bring  it  back  again  into  renewed  contact  by  the  action 
of  the  power  which  has  been  called  into  action  by  the  retreat 
of  the  magnet. 

3d.  I  claim  the  employment  of  two  cog-wheels  or  circuit- 
breakers  R  s  at  each  station,  so  arranged  that  one  shall  be  in 
connection  with  the  electro-magnet  at  the  same  station,  and 
the  other  in  connection  with  the  transmitting  cylinder  at  that 
station,  the  whole  being  arranged  so  that  the  connection  alter- 
nates at  each  station  for  every  letter  between  the  electro-magnet 
and  the  transmitting  cylinder  at  that  station,  in  such  manner 
that  the  through  connection  is  always  simultaneously  through 
the  transmitting  cylinder  of  one  station  and  the  electro-magnet 
of  the  other  station,  whereby  the'  machine  at  each  station  can 
at  the  same  time  be  transmitting  a  message  and  receiving  a 
message  ;  it  being  understood,  however,  that  I  do  not  claim,  in 
general,  the  use  of  a  single  wire  for  the  simultaneous  trans- 
mission of  different  messages  by  means  of  rapid  changes  of 
connection,  which  is  not  new,  but  only  the  peculiar  manner  as 
above  claimed,  in  which  I  have  applied  it  in  connection  with 
my  machine. 

4th.  So  arranging  a  bolt  L  and  operating  the  same  by  a  cam, 
or  its  equivalent,  that  it  shall  act  upon  a  wheel  attached  to  the 
shaft  of  the  type- wheel  J,  so  as  to  preclude  the  intelligence  from 
one  station  being  communicated  to  any  other  station  or  stations 
on  the  circuit  from  which  it  is  desired  to  withhold  the  com- 
munication. 

5th.  I  claim  the  employment  of  a  vibrating  spring  o,  proper- 
ly weighted  at  its  extremity,  if  necessary,  and  so  arranged  by 
a  series  of  mechanism  as  to  govern  and  regulate  the  movement 
of  the  type- wheel  j.  This  I  claim  also  as  a  governor  in  other 
machinery,  without  limiting  its  use  to  its  connection  with 
electro-magnetism. 

6th.  I  claim  printing  by  electro-magnetism,  by  a  continu- 
ously moving  type-wheel,  printing  while  in  motion. 

7th.  I  claim  the  arrangement  of  a  cylinder  s,  with  pins  spiral- 
ly arranged  thereon,  to*operate  by  contact  with  metallic  points 


724 


TELEGRAPH  APPARATUS. 


to  close  and  break  the  circuit,  when  this  is  combined,  for  the 
purposes  herein  set  forth,  with  the  systems  of  keys  w,  &o.,  and 
catches,  so  arranged  that  any  desired  point  may  be  thrown  into 
a  position  where  it  will  be  retained  until  it  is  struck  by  its  cor- 
responding pin. 

IV.    IMPROVEMENT  IN  SELF-ACTING  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPHS. 
Patented  July  12,  1856,  by  Moses  G.  Farmer. 

When  neither  station  is  transmitting,  the  switch  s  w  of  each 
instrument  is  turned  into  th3  position  represented  in  dotted 
lines  in  fig.  1.  The  current  then  passes  from  the  screw-cup  A, 

IV. 


through  the  magnet  M,  by  the  wires  c  and  z,  to  the  switch  s  iv 
and  bar  i,  thence  by  the  bar  L,  key  B  r,  anvil  /;,  and  wire  A;,  to 
the  screw-cup  H  ;  the  current  not  passing  through  the  circuit- 
wheel  is  not  broken,  and  the  magnet  remains  permanently 
charged.  When  the  operator  at  one  end  desires  to  transmit,  he 
moves  his  switch  s  w  into  the  position  drawn  in  fall  in  fisf.  1, 
by  which  the  current  is  thrown  through  the  circuit- wheel  of 
his  machine.;  whereby  the  circuit  is  made  and  broken,  and  the 
armatures  of  both  magnets  are  set  in  op*eration,  and  the  circuit- 


PATENTED    IMPROVEMENTS. 


725 


springs,  letter-wheels,  and  printing-wheels  of  both  instruments 
revolve  together.  The  operator  at  the  transmitting  station  then 
sends  his  message  through  the  keys  ABC  etc.,  the  current  pass- 
ing through  the  transmitting  instrument  as  follows  :  from  the 

IV. 


screw-cup  A,  by  M  c  B  D  d,  segments  i  or  i,  wires  F  or  G,  to  the 
bar  L,  and  by  the  key  B  r  and  wire  k  to  the  screw-cup  H. 
Through  the  receiving  instrument  it  passes  from  the  screw-cup 
A  by  the  magnet  M,  thence  by  the  wires  c  and  z  to  the  switch 
s  w  and  bar  i,  and  by  the  wire  n  to  the  bar  L,  back  to  the 
screw-cup  H,  as  before. 

The  inventor  says :  I  do  not  claim  arresting  the  motion  of 
the  type-wheel  by  a  positive  stop  upon  the  key  which  inter- 
rupts the  motion  of  the  wheel  whenever  a  key  is  depressed  and 
at  a  moment  when  the  circuit  is  broken,  as  in  the  telegraph  of 
Seimens  and  Halskie. 

But  I  claim  the  method  described  of  arresting  the  motion  of 
the  type- wheel  by  means  of  the  alternately  open  and  closed 
keys,  in  combination  with  the  circuit- wheel,  constructed  and 
operating  in  the  manner  substantially  as  set  forth. 

2d.  I  claim  the  combination  of  a  straight  key-board  with  a 
circuit-wheel,  when  the  two  are  connected  together  by  means 
of  the  wires  F  and  G,  whereby  the  place  of  making  and  break- 
ing the  circuit  may  be  transferred  to  the  immediate  vicinity 
of  the  key-board,  for  the  purpose  set  forth. 

3d.  The  method  described  of  putting  the  two  machines  in 
correspondence  with  each  other,  the  current  being  turned  out 
of  the  operating  magnet  M  of  the  receiving  machine  by  means 


726 


TELEGRAPH  APPARATUS. 


of  the  regulating  key  R  g-,  the  arm  b',  insulated  spring  cx/,  and 
their  connections,  operating  in  the  manner  set  forth. 

V.     IMPROVEMENT  IN  ELECTRO-MAGNETIC  PRINTING  TELEGRAPHS. 
Patented  April  22,  1856,  by  Albert  J.  Partridge. 

The  branching  of  the  circuit  takes  place  between  the  pillar 
p  and  the  pin  p*.     To  the  pillar  p  is  pivoted  a  metal  arm  s, 

IV. 

isL 


PATENTED  IMPROVEMENTS.  727 

which  has  a  T  shaped  extremity,  which  is  capable,  by  a  slight 
vibrating  movement,  of  entering  a  slit  in  either  of  the  two  small 
brass  blocks  s/  s")  which  are  secured  to  a  slab  L  of  ivory.  To 
the  block  s/  is  connected  a  wire  /',  which  leads  along  one  side 
of  the  slab  L  and  down  through  a  hole  i'  in  the  base  A  and 
then  to  a  pin  u',  and  thence  up  through  a  hole  w/  to  the 
helix  of  the  magnet  j  j.  To  the  block  s"  is  connected  a  wire 
t"  which  passes  through  a  hole  v"  in  the  base,  and  then  across 
to  a  pin  u"  and  thence  up  through  a  hole  10",  to  connect 
with  the  helix  of  the  magnet  K  K. 

"While  the  revolution  of  the  type-wheel  E'  continues,  there  is 
no  perceptible  movement  of  the  loose  piece  x  of  the  clutch  along 
the  shaft,  and  the  spring  x"  holding  the  said  piece  x  closely 
engaged  with  the  piece  x'  causes  the  circuit-changer  s  to  re- 
main in  contact  with  the  block  s/ ;  but  when  the  type-wheel 
shaft  is  suddenly  arrested  by  the  depression  of  a  key-bar  lever, 
the  loose  part  x  by  the  inertia  of  the  fly-wheel  tf"  moves  far 
enough  along  the  shaft  to  move  the  circuit-changer 
into  the  slit  in  the  block  s"  ;  thus,  without  breaking  the  circuit, 
the  circuit  is  transferred  from  the  magnet  j  j  to  the  magnet  K 
K,  and  the  printing  and  feeding  movement  of  the  paper  effected. 
But  this  change  of  circuit  is  only  momentary ;  for  as  soon  as 
the  momentum  of  the  fly-wheel  x'"  is  spent,  the  spring  x" 
forces  back  the  part  re,  and  returns  the  circuit  changer  to  the 
block  s'. 

The  operator,  by  depressing  the  knob  of  either  of  the  key- 
levers  q  #,  throws  up  the  inner  end  of  that  lever  (as  shown  in 
fig.  3)  to  such  a  position  that  the  revolution  of  the  circuit- 
breaker  G  will  bring  the  projection  e  in  contact  with  it,  and 
thus  cause  the  circuit-breaker  to  be  arrested.  The  arrest  of 
the  circuit  breaker  of  the  sending  instrument  stops  the  opera- 
tion of  the  whole  of  that  instrument,  and  also  prevents  the 
action  of  the  escapement  of  the  receiving  instrument,  and  con- 
sequently stops  that  instrument  also,  and  thus  causes  the  change 
of  circuit  to  take  place  in  the  manner  before  described  through 
the  momentum  of  the  wheel  x'"  acting  on  the  clutch. 

Claim. — The  mode  of  operating  the  circuit-changer  s  to 
change  the  circuit  by  means  of  the  clutch  x  x,  and  fly-wheel 
x"'  attached  to  the  loose  part  thereof. 

VI.    IMPROVEMENT    IN     ELECTRO-MAGNETIC     PRINTING     TELEGRAPHS. 

'    Patented  April  29,  1866,  by  Henry  N.  Baker. 

The  wire  13  connects  with  the  metal  plate  14,  which  is  pro- 
vided with  two  spring  keys  16  and  17.  The  wire  12  passes 


728 


TELEGRAPH    APPARATUS. 


from  15  to  19,  to  which  and  to  the  screw  20  the  helix  of  the 
magnet  E  is  connected,  and  from  20  a  wire  21  goes  to  the  key 
16.  The  ends  of  the  helix  of  the  magnet  H  connect  with  15, 


22,  and  17.  By  depressing  the  key  16  the  circuit  is  caused  to 
pass  through  the  helix  of  magnet  E,  and  the  type- wheel  c  may 
be  brought  to  such  a  position  as  to  present  any  desired  letter 
opposite  the  roller  F.  Then  by  allowing  the  finger-key  16  to 
rise,  and  depressing  the  key  17,  the  circuit  passes  from  17  to 
15  and  the  printing  magnet  H,  causing  the  paper  to  move  along 
and  the  type  opposite  the  roller  F  to  be  lifted  by  the  curved 
tongue  /?,  and  pressed  against  the  paper  under  the  said  roller 
to  produce  the  impression.  To  repeat  two  letters  in  the  same 
word,  the  key  17  must  be  depressed  twice  without  closing  the 
key  16.  To  make  the  spaces  between  the  words,  the  key  16 
is  first  depressed,  and  before  the  finger  is  taken  off  to  allow  the 
circuit  to  break,  the  key  17  is  depressed  to  close  the  circuit 
through  the  printing  magnet  H.  The  circuit  through  the  type- 


PATENTED   IMPROVEMENTS.  729 

wheel  magnet  not  having  been  opened  when  the  movement  of 
the  lever  G  takes  place,  and  the  type-wheel  consequently  only 
having  moved  half  the  distance  necessary  to  bring  a  new  type 
between  the  tongue  p  of  the  lever  and  the  roller  F,  causes  the 
tongue  to  fall  into  a  space  between  two  types  and  thus  renders 
it  inoperative,  but  yet  allows  the  movement  of  the  roller  F  to 
take  place  to  feed  the  paper.  By  keeping  the  key  16  closed, 
and  closing  and  opening  the  key,  a  space  of  any  desired  length 
may  be  produced  ;  but  for  the  spaces  to  separate  the  words,  the 
key  16  needs  only  to  be  kept  closed  during  one  closing  and 
opening  movement  of  the  key  17,  after  which  it  may  be 
played  as  before  to  move  the  type-wheel. 

Claim. — The  arrangement  of  the  type- wheel  c,  the  escape- 
ment wheel  i  attached  thereto,  the  arrangement  of  the  crutch 
or  detent  yy,  acting  upon  the  said  escapement  wheel  relatively 
to  the  armature  of  the  type-wheel  magnet  E,  and  the  arrange- 
ment of  the  whole  relatively  to  the  tongue  p,  by  which  the 
types  are  lifted  up  into  contact  with  the  paper — all  in  such 
a  manner  that  when  the  circuit  is  closed  through  the  type- 
wheel  magnet  the  tongue  p  will  be  opposite  a  space  between 
two  letters,  and  when,  during  the  closing  of  said  circuit,  the 
circuit  by  which  the  said  tongue  and  the  feed-rollers  are  acted 
upon  is  closed,  the  tongue  will  be  inoperative,  and  the  feed- 
sollers  allowed  to  act  without  any  impression  being  given, 
thereby  producing  a  space  between  the  printed  letters  or  words, 
rubstantially  as  herein  set  forth. 

VII.    IMPROVEMENT    IN    RECEIVING    MAGNETS    FOR     TELEGRAPHS. 

Patented  April  22,  1856,  by  Andrew  Coleman. 

The  curved  form  of  the  faces  a  a  of  the  poles  of  the  magnet 
A  and  of  the  armature  B  allows  the  armature  to  rock  or  roll, 
and  hence  to  be  converted  into  a  lever  with  a  changeable  ful- 
crum. The  finger  g-,  which,  playing  between  h  and  h',  opens 
and  closes  the  circuit,  is  pivoted  to  a  small  stand  k  secured  to 
the  top  of  the  armature,  and  sufficient  friction  is  produced  be- 
tween the  stand  and  the  finger  by  means  of  a  screw  and  nut  on 
the  pivot,  and  a  small  spring  /,  to  overcome  the  inertia  of  the 
finger  and  cause  it  to  move  with  the  armature  until  it  is  arrest- 
ed by  either  of  the  screws  h  h',  after  which  it  allows  the  arma- 
ture to  move  independently  of  it. 

Claim. — So  constructing  or  arranging  the  armature  B  and 
applying  the  spring  e,  or  its  equivalent,  that  the  armature  con- 
stitutes the  whole  or  part  of  a  variable  lever,  which  causes  the 
effective  force  of  the  spring,  or  its  equivalent,  to  increase  01 


730 


TELEGRAPH     APPARATUS. 


diminish  as  the  magnetic  force  becomes  greater  or  less ;  when 
this  is  combined  with  the  so  applying  the  finger  g",  by  which 
the  local  circuit  is  opened  and  closed,  that  the  said  finger  is 
caused  to  move  with  the  armature  by  friction  only,  or  its 


VII. 


equivalent,  and,  after  having  moved  the  slight  distance  neces- 
sary to  open  or  close  the  circuit,  leaves  the  armature  free  to 
move  as  far  as  necessary  independently  of  it,  thereby  obviating 
the  necessity  of  manual  adjustment  of  the  armature  to  com- 
pensate for  variations  of  magnetic  force. 


VIII.    IMPROVEMENT    IN    FIRE-ALARM    TELEGRAPH. 
Patented  May  19,  1857,  by  William  F.  Charming  and  Moses  G.  Farmer. 

If  a  fire  is  discovered  in  the  vicinity  of  a  signal  station  z9 
an  authorized  person  opens  the  signal  box,  and  turns  crank  a' 
a  number  of  times  ;  the  teeth  b'  b",  on  the  circuit  wheel,  de- 
pressing the  key  c'  c^  and  in  this  manner  break  and  restore 
the  circuit  at  definite  intervals,  the  key  returning  by  its  own 
elasticity  ;  this  operation  causes  the  electro-magnet  and  arma- 
ture of  the  central  station  Y,  by  repeated  strokes  on  r,  to  indi- 
cate the  number  of  the  district  and  station  whence  the  alarm 
designates.  The  operator  at  the  central  station  Y,  by  turning 
crank  A,  operates  the  transmitting  apparatus,  A  B,  causing  the 
bells  at  the  alarm  station  v,  to  give  the  alarm,  and,  by  tapping 
on  key  m/  m",  the  number  of  the  signal  station  originating  the 
alarm  may  be  transmitted  to  any  of  the  signal  stations,  z. 


PATENTED    IMPROVEMENTS. 


731 


VIII. 


732  TELEGRAPH    APPARATUS. 

Claim. — 1st.  The  signal  system  described,  consisting  of  a 
series  of  signal  stations  scattered  at  intervals  through  a  whole 
city  or  town,  or  any  part  thereof,  and  telegraphically  connected 
with  a  common  centre  or  point,  or  with  each  other,  by  one  or- 
more  signal  circuits,  by  which  means  a  constant  communica- 
tion may  be  established  and  maintained,  between  all  parts  of 
a  city  or  town,  however  extended  ;  and  with  the  centre  or 
centres,  at  which  the  signal  circuit  or  circuits  converge  or  meet, 
so  that  the  moment  the  fire  occurs,  its  existence  and  locality 
may  at  once  be  known  at  the  centre  of  the  system,  and  efforts 
for  subduing  it  properly  directed. 

2d.  The  alarm  system  described,  consisting  of  a  series  of 
alarm  stations,  suitably  distributed  throughout  a  whole  city 
or  town,  or  any  part  thereof,  and  telegraphically  connected 
with  a  central  station,  by  one  or  more  alarm  circuits,  by  which 
means  a  public  alarm  of  the  existence  and  locality  of  a  fire, 
may  be  given  at  different  points. 

3d.  In  combination  with  the  alarm  system,  for  striking  the 
number  of  the  district  upon  the  alarm  bells,  the  signal  system 
for  communicating  the  number  of  the  station  at  which  the  fire 
occurs  to  all  the  signal  stations,  as  well  as  for  communicating 
an  alarm  to  the  central  station. 

IX.    IMPROVEMENT    IN    TELEGRAPHIC    REPEATERS. 
Patented  August\?>,  1857,  by  John  E.  Smith. 

A  detailed  description  of  this  invention  would  take  up  too 
much  space  to  be  given  here  ;  the  principal  features  thereof 
wiD  be  understood  by  reference  to  the  claims  and  engravings, 

The  inventor  says  :  I  do  not  claim  the  opening  and  closing  of 
the  local  circuit  by  magnetism  produced  by  the  opening  and 
closing  of  the  main  circuit. 

But  I  claim  the  connection  of  a  battery  at  each  station  with 
the  line  wire,  and  with  two  local  cross  connections,  in  such 
manner  that,  by  means  of  the  key  and  relay  lever,  the  cross 
connections  through  the  register  magnet,  and  the  other  cross 
connections,  are  alternately  broken,  and  the  battery  thrown 
upon  the  main  line,  and  its  current  caused  to  operate  the  re- 
lays on  the  line  wire,  like  a  main  current,  till  shut  from  the 
line  by  the  relay  lever,  as  described,  whereby  each  battery  is 
made  to  perform  the  duty  of  an  ordinary  local  battery,  while 
not  wanted  on  the  line  wire,  and  to  perform  the  duty  of  a 
main  battery  while  not  wanted  as  a  local. 

2d.  The  key  placed  in  the  local  circuit  and  constructed,  as 
described,  to  open  and  close  the  said  circuit  in  two  branches, 
to  give  two  directions  to  the  current  over  the  line  wire,  sub- 
stantially as  and  for  the  purpose  set  forth. 


PATENTED    IMPROVEMENTS. 
IX. 


733 


X.    IMPROVED  DEVICE  IN  TELEGRAPHIC    FIRE-ALARM  APPARATUS. 
Patented  November  17,  1857,  by  Edward  C.  Clay. 

In  operating  this  invention,  the  operator  at  the  central 
station,  having  received  the  alarm  from  one  of  the  minor 
stations,  sets  the  hand  F,  at  60,  and  the  hand  E,  at  the  number 
of  the  district  in  which  the  fire  may  be  (say  at  2)  this 
places  the  snail  K,  in  the  position  shown  in  the  engraving,  when 
the  pin  e  will  strike  against  the  second  step,  on  the  periphery 
of  the  snail  K,  and  allow  the  escapement  i  to  be  drawn  over 
by  its  springs  cl,  in  the  direction  of  the  arrow,  just  so  far,  that 
it  will  require  to  be  fed  up  two  notches  by  the  shaft  M,  before 
the  pin  e  is  again  brought  into  the  path  of  the  arm,  / ;  when 
this«occurs,  the  revolutions  of  the  shaft  are  arrested. 

Having  thus  arranged  the  hands,  the  operator  moves  the  key 


734 


TELEGRAPH    APPARATUS. 


X. 


u,  against  the  resistance  of  spring  v ;  .this  moves  the  long  bent 
rod  T,  and  vibrates  the  lever  s,  and  lifts  the  pin  w,  clear  of  the 
segment  /,  when  the  spring  d,  immediately  draws  near  the 
escapement  i,  until  the  pin  e  rests  against  the  snail  K.  As 
soon  as  the  pin  n  has  been  lifted,  and  the  escapement  j,  has 
vibrated,  the  key  u  is  released  by  the  operator,  and  the  pin  n 
falls  again  into  the  segment  /,  and  acts  as  a  retaining  jjawl. 
When  the  pin  e  is  drawn  out  of  the  way  of  the  arm  /,  the  shaft 
M  revolves.  Each  movement  of  the  shaft  causes  the  bells  to 


PATENTED    IMPROVEMENTS. 


735 


strike  once,  moves  forward  the  index  hand  one  mark,  and  feeds 
up  the  segment  /  one  notch  ;  now,  as  the  position  of  the  seg- 


ment  /  is  repeated  by  the  index  hand,  the  number  of  the  dis- 
trict will  be  struck  and  counted,  when*  the  pin  e  will  again  be 


736 


TELEGRAPH    APPARATUS. 


brought  into  the  path  of  the  arm  /,   and   the  operation  be 
stopped. 

Claim. — The  snail  K,  or  its  equivalent,  and  dial  plate,  in 
combination  with  the  single  key  u. 

XI.    IMPROVEMENT    IN    TELEGRAPHIC    REPEATERS. 

Patented  March  17, 1857,  by  Moses  G.  Farmei  and  Asa  F.   Woodman. 

In  engraving,  fig.  1,  A"  AX//,  two  distant  stations,  this  in- 
vention being  supposed  to  be  placed  at  an  intermediate  one.  If 
the  independent  circuit  be  broken  by  an  operator  at  A",  the  re- 

XI. 


n»        ^ 


PATENTED    IMPROVEMENTS. 


737 


lay  magnet  at  B'X  will  be  discharged,  and  this  will  discharge 
the  local  magnet  at  cx/,  and  break  the  dependent  circuit  at  x/x. 
This  will  cause  the  lever  B  to  be  tipped,  and  thereby  prevent 
the  independent  circuit  being  broken  at  the  instrument,  or  at 
x////  From  this  it  will  be  seen  that  the  main  circuit,  which 
is  first  broken  (which  may  be  called  the  independent  circuit), 
determines  which  way  the  beam  B  shall  incline,  and  that  this 
inclination,  while  it  allows  the  instrument  to  break  the  depend- 
ent circuit,  prevents  it  from  breaking  the  independent  circuit. 

Claim. — The  use  of  a  mechanical  obstacle,  essentially  in  the 
mannc r  as  set  forth,  whereby,  when  the  independent  circuit  has 
broken  the  dependent  circuit  at  the  instrument  the  dependent 
circuit  is  prevented  from  breaking  the  independent  circuit. 

XII.    PUNCHING    PAPER    FILLETS    FOR    TELEGRAPHIC    SIGNALS. 

Patented  September  8,  1857,  by  John  P.  Humaston. 

This  invention  will  be  understood  by  reference  to  the  fol- 


lowing : 


XII. 


738  TELEGRAPH  APPARATUS. 

Claim. — First.  The  manner  of  operating  the  punches  for 
perforating  the  characters  in  the  paper,  consisting  of  the  re- 
volving type-wheel,  or  other  equivalent  means  of  indicating 
characters,  in  combination  with  the  punches,  as  described. 

Second.  The  method  of  regulating  the  feed  of  paper,  con- 
sisting of  the  graduated  stop-wheel,  or  equivalent  series  of 
stops  in  combination  with  the  type- wheel,  and  with  the  means 
for  propelling  the  paper  fillets  past  the  punches,  as  described. 

Third.  The  manner  of  forming  the  cutting  ends  of  the 
punches — that  is  to  say,  having  its  advancing  end  formed 
into  two  cutting  edges,  by  means  of  the  V-shaped  recess,  in 
combination  with  a  second  pair  of  cutting  edges  opposite  to 
them,  formed  in  like  manner  and  upon  the  same  plate,  but  in 
position  at  a  right  angle  to  the  first  pair,  thus  making  the 
other  half  of  the  shear,  in  conjunction  with  an  adjoining  punch 
substantially  in  the  manner  set  forth. 

XII. 


XIII.    IMPROVEMENT    IN  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPHS. 
Patented  February  17,  1857,  by  William  D.  Wesson. 

A  are  posts  along  i5ie  whole  road.  The  metal  elbows  D  D  are 
insulated  from  the  brackets  c  B,  to  which  they  are  pivoted  at  a. 
The  elbows  are  only  allowed  to' play  slightly  between  jams  b  c, 
which  are  also  insulated.  Each  elbow  is  connected  with  the 
nearest  elbow  on  the  next  post  A,  by  conducting  wires  E.  The 
wires  E  are  fringed  with  fine  iron  wires  /,  which  hang  down 
and  vibrate  freely.  The  pendulum  i  is  swung  forward  by  the 
circuit-breaker  L  on  the  vehicle  v,  (as  the  latter  passes  along,) 
and  thus  caused  to  turn  the  shaft  G  far  enough  for  the  crank 
g-  to  raise  the  moveable  conductor  or  circuit-closer  H  out  of 
contact  with  the  elbows  D  D,  and  thus  break  the  circuit  in  the 
line  of  wires  E.  The  circuit- receivers  upon  the  vehicle  consist 
of  horse-shoe  electro-magnet  j  J,  having  iron  plates  k  k  attached 
to  its  poles  ;  these  plates  are  in  constant  contact  with  the  wires 
/.  The  circuit  receivers  are  connected  by  a  conducting  wire 
#,  having  a  telegraphing  apparatus  in  its  circuit. 

Claim. — Constructing   the   stationary  telegraph  line  of  a 
series  of  immovable  and  interposed  moveable  conductors,  and 


PATENTED  IMPROVEMENTS. 
XIII. 


739 


740 


TELEGRAPH  APPARATUS. 


furnishing  the  vehicle  with  a  circuit- 
breaker,  circuit  receivers  and  conductors, 
arranged  to  operate  substantially  as  set 
forth,  for  the  purpose  of  breaking  the 
circuit  through  the  main  line  at  a  point 
or  points  where  the  vehicle  is  passing, 
and  completing  the  circle  through,  so 
that  by  suitable  telegraphing  instru- 
ments or  apparatus  carried  by  the  said 
vehicle,  communications  may  be  trans- 
mitted and  received  by  the  vehicle  to 
and  from  other  vehicles,  and  to  and  from 
stations  at  a  distance,  either  while  the 
vehicle  or  vehicles  are  stationary  or  in 
motion,  as  set  forth. 


XIV.    IMPROVED    ELECTRO-MAGNET. 
By  Charles  T.  and  J.  N.  Chester,  New-York. 

This  improvement  consists  in  the  adjustment  of  the  horse- 
si  i»c  core  and  the  spools  of  wire,  so  that  they  can  be  moved  to 
a i.-l  i'rom  the  armature  by  the  screw  P  seen  in  the  figure. 


ELECTRIC  TIME-BALI. 


CHAPTEK   LIII. 

Utility  of  Electric  Time-Balls  for  Correction  of  Chronometers — Nelson's  Monu  • 
ment  and  Time-Ball. 

UTILITY    OP    ELECTRIC    TIME-BALLS. 

IN  America,  we  have  a  National  Observatory,  and  though  it 
has  had  but  a  few  years'  existence,  its  fame  has  spread  through- 
out the  civilized  world,  and  added  new  lustre  to  our  glory  ; 
but  we  have  no  time-balls  in  our  maritime  cities,  to  indicate 
the  hour  and  the  movement  of  the  pendulum  at  Washington, 
in  our  National  Observatory. 

In  England,  at  an  early  day  in  the  history  of  electric  tele- 
graphing, the  science  was  employed  as  an  auxiliary  at  the 
Greenwich  Observatory,  in  the  determination  of  longitude,  the 
movements  of  the  stars  and  other  heavenly  bodies,  and  for  the 
diffusion  of  chronometer  time  throughout  the  country.  The 
astronomer  royal,  in  concert  with  the  electric  telegraph 
companies,  announces  an  hour  of  each  day,  by  the  fall  of 
electric  time-balls  from  elevated  positions,  in  different  parts  of 
the  country.  The  moment  the  ball  at  Greenwich  falls,  those 
in  other  cities  fall.  There  is  one  of  these  balls  on  the  Strand, 
near  Charing  Cross,  in  London,  and  it  serves  a  good  purpose 
in  the  correction  of  chronometers,  whether  in  the  hands  of  the 
mariner,  the  merchant,  or  the  manufacturer.  Persons  can 
regulate  their  own  timepieces,  without  the  aid  of  the  watch- 
maker. Besides  this  arrangement  for  giving  correct  time,  I 
noticed  at  Greenwich,  an  electric  clock,  in  connection  with  the 
leading  telegraph  office  in  London,  by  wires ;  signals  are  trans- 
mitted from  the  observatory  to  Lothbury,  the  telegraph  office, 
every  hour  of  the  day.  The  same  signals  are  made  at  the 
office  on  the  Strand  before  mentioned,  and  they  are  also  sent 
to  Dover,  Tunbridge,  Deal,  and  other  places.  At  specific  times 

741 


742 


UTILITY    OF    ELECTRIC    TIME-BALLS. 


the  hour  is  sent  from  the  observatory  to  different  parts  of  the 
country. 

Correct  longitudes  have  been  taken  simultaneously  at  Cam- 
bridge, Edinburg,  and  Brussels,  by  electric  wires,  communi- 
cating each  with  the  other,  and  enabling  the  operators  to  com- 
municate, as  though  assembled  together.  Greenwich,  Brussels, 
and  Paris  observatories  are  placed  in  connection,  through  the 
submarine  cables  running  across  the  channel,  from  Dover  to 
Calais,  and  to  Ostend. 


f^ >,.  :sf; 

Nelson's  Monument  and  Time-Ball. 


v  ^ 


ELECTRIC    TIME-BALLS. 


NELSON'S  MONUMENT  AND  TIME-BALL. 


743 


On  my  first  visit  to  Edinburgh,  Scotland,  in  1855,  I  was 
much  gratified  in  visiting  its  ancient  monuments,  and  the 
relics  of  by-gone  centuries.  There  was  nothing,  however,  that 
gave  me  more  pleasure,  than  a  visit  to  Calton-Hill,  and  view- 
ing the  scenery,  spread  out  before  me,  from  the  top  of  the 
Nelson  Monument.  The  great  deeds  of  the  intrepid  Nelson, 
whose  heroic  fame,  stands  brilliant  in  the  annals  of  Old  Eng- 
land, served  to  make  the  spot  sacred,  on  which  the  monument 
stood — elevated  high  above  the  city.  While  at  the  top  of  the 
monument,  surveying  the  wide-spread  scenery  around  me,  em- 
bracing within  my  view  the  ancient  castle,  King  Arthur's  seat, 
Holyrood,  the  old  city  of  Edinburgh,  the  surrounding  bays 
and  distant  hills,  I  saw  the  time-ball  descend.  It  was  above 
me,  and  it  appeared  to  be  of  immense  dimensions.  It  was 
exactly  1  o'clock,  p.  M.  It  seemed  to  come  down  rapid,  but 
noiseless.  I  looked  at  it  in  silence,  and  a  thousand  thoughts 
rushed  upon  me  in  rapid  succession.  It  reminded  me  of  the 
fleeting  moments  passing,  never  again  to  return,  and  that  how 
soon,  we  frail  mortals,  would  fall  before  the  all-devouring  scythe 
of  Time !  Besides  these  reflections,  it  gave  me  new  powers  in 
the  appreciation  of  the  electric  telegraph,  which  to  me  has, 
from  its  commencement,  been  an  enchanting  theme.  It  was 
the  electric  time-ball,  indicating  the  second,  and  the  most 
minute  division  of  time  ! 

The  following  from  the  Scotsman,  further  describes  this  new 
stride  in  the  sciences  of  the  present  century,  viz. : 

"  If  the  public  look  to  the  monument,  at  five  minutes  before 
1  o'clock,  p.  M.,  Greenwich  time  (now  Edinburgh  time  also), 
they  will  see  the  ball  raised  half-mast  high  ;  at  two  minutes 
before,  full  mast  high,  or  in  contact  with  the  cross-bars  ;  and, 
at  1  o'clock,  exact  to  a  tenth  of  a  second,  it  will  fall — the  in- 
stant to  be  observed  being  the  commencement  of  the  fall,  as 
shown  by  the  formation  of  a  line  of  light  between  the  ball  and 
the  bars.  Those  who,  on  the  monument,  have  witnessed  the 
fall  of  the  ball,  describe  the  effect  as  extremely  interesting. 
The  huge  mass  is  first  of  all  seen  rushing  downward  with  ter- 
rific velocity,  as  if  likely  to  carry  all  before  it ;  when,  suddenly, 
at  about  three  fourths  down,  it  is  brought,  by  some  invisible 
agent,  almost  to  a  stand-still ;  and  then,  with  two  or  three 
slight  movements  up  and  down,  it  rests  on  its  bed-block  as  qui 
etly  as  if  nothing  had  happened." 

On  my  visit  to  the  top  of  Nelson's  monument,  I  was  accom- 
panied by  my  family  ;  and  I  took  much  pains  in  describing  the 


744  NELSON'S  MONUMENT — AN  INCIDENT. 

particulars  of  the  wide-spread  scenery  around  me,  to  my  son, 
then  seven  years  of  age,  so  that  he  might  have  them  indelibly 
fixed  in  his  memory.  Three  years  subsequently,  I  asked  him  to 
tell  me  something  that  he  had  seen  in  Scotland,  expecting,  at 
the  same  time,  that  he  would  refer  to  the  ancient  castle,  con- 
taining the  great  sword  of  state  and  the  iron-framed  crown  of 
Bruce,  or  to  Nelson's  monument  and  the  electric  time-ball. 
He  promptly  responded,  that  it  was  the  place  where  the  boys 
played  "  leap-frog  !"  He  had  seen  the  boys  thus  playing  at  the 
foot  of  Nelson's  monument, 


ORIGINATION  AND  ADMINISTRATION  OF 
AMERICAN  TELEGRAPHS. 


CHAPTER   LIV. 

Origination  of  Telegraph  Lines — Organization  of  Companies — Charter — By- 
Laws — Office  Regulations — Rules  for  Sending  and  Receiving  Messages — 
Lines  in  British  Provinces — Patent  and  Parliamentary  Monopolies. 

UNITED    STATES ORIGINATION    OF    TELEGRAPH    LINES. 

THE  telegraph  lines  in  the  United  States  of  America  are 
owned  by  many  companies.  Their  construction  has  been  con- 
summated, in  most  cases,  through  a  spirit  of  speculation,  con- 
trolled by  a  few  persons.  There  are  but  few  cases,  where 
regularly  organized  companies  have  taken  the  initiative.  In 
most  cases,  individuals,  in  localities  having  a  little  knowledge 
of  the  developments  of  this  wonderful  means  of  communica- 
tion, becoming  infused  with  a  zeal  for  the  extension  of  a  line 
to  their  towns  or  cities,  have  proceeded  to  negotiate  for  the 
patent  rights  to  build  and  use  a  line  of  telegraph  thereto  from 
some  specified  point  already  connected  by 'the  line  of  another 
company.  In  many  cases,  persons  have  contracted  for 
the  patent  for  lines  between  places,  having  in  view  a  profit 
on  the  construction  of  the  line,  and  a  sale  of  the  patent 
at  an  advanced  price  to  the  company.  An  arrangement  for 
the  purchase  of  the  patents  has  always  been  an  indispensable 
preliminary.  In  order  that  the  reader  may  understand  the  na- 
ture of  a  patent  contract,  I  insert  the  following  copy  of  the 
celebrated  agreement  made  between  Mr.  Henry  O'Reilly  of 
New- York,  and  the  patentees  of  the  Morse  Telegraph,  viz. : 

Articles  of  Agreement  for  extending  the  Electro-Magnetic  Tele  graph,  from 
the  Seaboard  to  the  Mississippi  and  the  Lakes. 

This  memorandum  of  an  agreement  between  Henry  O'Reilly,  of  the  one 
part,  and  Samuel  F.  B.  Morse,  Leonard  D.  Gale,  Alfred  Vail,  and  Francis 
0.  J.  Smith,  of  the  second  part,  witnesseth  as  follows  : 

That  the  said  Henry  O'Reilly  undertakes,  on  his  part,  at  his  own  ex- 

745 


746 


ORIGINATION    OF    TELEGRAPH    LINES. 


pense,  to  use  his  best  endeavors  to  raise  capital  for  the  construction  of  a 
line  of  Morse's  Electro-Magnetic  Telegraph,  to  connect  the  great  sea- 
board line  at  Philadelphia,  or  at  such  other  convenient  point  on  said  line 
as  may  approach  nearer  to  Harrisburg,  in  Pennsylvania,  and  from  thence 
through  Harrisburg  and  other  intermediate  towns  to  Pittsburg,  and  thence 
through  Wheeling  and  Cincinnati,  and  such  other  towns  and  cities  as  the 
said  O'Reilly  and  his  associates  may  elect,  to  St.  Louis,  and  also  to  the 
principal  towns  on  the  Lakes. 

In  consideration  whereof,  the  said  parties  of  the  second  part  agree  and 
bind  themselves,  their  representatives  and  assigns,  that,  when  the  said 
O'Reilly  shall  have  procured  a  fund  sufficient  to  build  a  line  of  one  wire 
from  the  connecting  point  aforesaid,  to  Harrisburg,  or  any  points  farther 
west,  to  convey  the  patent  right  to  said  line  so  covered  by  capital  in 
trust,  for  themselves  and  the  said  O'Reilly,  and  his  associates,  on  the 
terms  and  conditions  set  forth  in  the  articles  of  agreement  and  association 
constituting  the  "  Magnetic  Telegraph  Company."  and  providing  for  the 
government  thereof,  with  the  following  alterations,  viz. : — The  amount  of 
stock  or  other  interest  in  the  lines  to  be  constructed,  reserved  to  the 
grantors  and  assigns,  shall  be  one-fourth  part  only,  and  not  one  half  of 
the  whole.,  on  so  much  capital  as  shall  be  required  to  construct  a  line  of 
two  wires ;  but  in  all  cases  of  a  third  wire,  or  any  greater  number,  the 
stock  issued  on  the  capital  employed  for  such  additional  wire  or  wires, 
shall  be  divided  equally  between  the  subscribers  of  such  capital  and  the 
grantors  of  the  patent  right,  or  their  assigns.  No  preference  is  to  be  given 
to  the  party  of  the  first  part  and  his  associates  in  the  construction  of  con- 
necting lines,  nor  shall  anything  herein  be  construed  to  prevent  an  exten- 
sion, by  the  parties  of  the  second  part,  of  a  line  from  Buffalo  to  connect 
with  the  Lake  towns  at  Erie ;  nor  to  prevent  the  construction  of  a  line 
from  New-Orleans,  to  connect  the  western  towns  directly  with  that  city  • 
but  such  lines  shall  not  be  used  to  connect  any  western  cities  or  towns 
with  each  other,  which  may  have  been  already  connected  by  said 
O'Reilly. 

In  case  of  a  sale  of  the  entire  patent  right  to  the  Government,  the  grant- 
ors shall  be  bound  to  pay  the  actual  reasonable  cost  of  the  lines  con- 
structed under  this  agreement,  with  twenty  per  cent,  thereon,  and  no 
more,  to  vest  the  Government  with  the  entire  ownership  of  such  lines — 
provided,  as  specified  in  the  articles  of  agreement  of  the  "Magnetic 
Telegraph  Company,"  the  purchase  be  made  or  provided  for  by  Congress 
before  the  4th  of  March,  1847  (eighteen  hundred  and  forty-seven). 

The  tariff  of  charges  on  the  lines  so  constructed,  shall  conform  sub- 
stantially to  the  tariff  of  charges  on  the  great  seaboard  line  before  named, 
and  in  no  case  to  be  so  arranged  as  to  render  the  lines  unequal  in  this 
respect,  to  the  prejudice  of  either. 

Unless  the  line,  from  the  point  of  connection  with  the  seaboard  route, 
shall  be  constructed  within  six  months  from  date,  to  Harrisburg,  and 
capital  provided  for  its  extension  to  Pittsburg  within  said  time,  then  this 
agreement,  and  any  conveyance  in  trust  that  may  have  been  made  in  pur- 
suance thereof,  shall  be  null  and  void  thereafter;  unless  it  shall  satisfac- 
torily appear  that  unforeseen  difficulties  are  experienced  by  said  O'Reilly 
and  his  associates,  in  obtaining  from  the  State  officers  of  Pennsylvania 
the  right  of  way  along  the  public  works  ;  and  in  that  event  the  condi- 
tional annulment  aforesaid  shall  take  effect  at  the  end  of  six  months  after 
such  permission  shall  be  given  or  refused.  And  any  section  beyond  said 
last  point,  embraced  within  the  provisions  of  this  agreement,  which  shall 
not  be  constructed  by  said  O'Reilly  and  his  associates,  within  six  months 
after  said  parties  of  the  second  part  shall  request  said  O'Reilly  to  cause 
such  lines  to  be  constructed,  so  as  to  extend  the  connection  at  least  one 


ORIGINATION    OP    TELEGRAPH    LINES.  747 

hundred  and  fifty  miles  beyond  said  last  point,  and  in  like  ratio  during 
each  succeeding  six  months  thereafter — then,  in  relation  to  all  such  sec- 
tions of  the  line,  this  agreement  shall  be  null  and  void,  provided  that 
such  request  shall  not  be  made  prior  to  the  1st  day  of  April  next  (1846). 
And  the  party  of  the  second  part  shall  convey  said  patent  right,  on  any 
line  beyond  Pittsburg  to  any  point  of  commercial  ma^iitude,  when  the 
necessary  capital  for  the  construction  of  the  same  shall  have  been  sub- 
scribed within  the  period  contemplated  by  this  agreement,  by  responsible 
persons,  and  not  otherwise. 

Done  at  the  city  of  New-York,  this  13th  day  of  June,  in  the  year  of  our 
Lord  eighteen  hundred  and  forty -five. 

HENRY  O'REILLY, 
FRANCIS  0.  J.  SMITH, 
SAM.  F.  B.  MORSE, 
L.  D.  GALE  (by  his  Attorney, 
S.  F.  B.  Morse).    ' 

With  a  contract  in  the  above  form,  the  public  is  approached 
for  subscriptions  for  stock  in  the  company,  to  be  organized  un- 
der articles  of  association,  or  under  a  charter  granted  by  the 
legislature  of  the  State  to  be  traversed  by  the  telegraph. 
The  association,  or  company,  as  the  case  may  be,  by  its  sub- 
scription for  stock,  sign  a  contract  with  the  person  holding  the 
patent  privilege,  to  construct  the  line  and  to  deliver  it,  with  the 
patent  franchises,  for  the  sum  of  three  hundred  dollars  per 
mile — one  hundred  and  fifty  dollars  per  mile  to  be  paid  the 
contractor,  in  cash,  for  the  building  of  the  line,  and  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  dollars  per  mile,  in  shares,  for  the  patents, 
These  are  the  usual  prices  for  the  purposes  respectively, 
throughout  the  United  States.  There  are  a  few  side  or  lateral 
lines,  which  have  been  built  for  half  that  sum.  In  such  cases 
the  cost  of  the  patent  has  been  about  ten  dollars  per  mile. 
The  abundance  of  labor  and  timber  often  gives  much  profit  at 
one  hundred  and  fifty  dollars  per  mile.  As  a  usual  rule, 
twenty  per  cent,  is  estimated  for  profit  in  the  construction, 
leaving  one  hundred  and  twenty  dollars  per  mile  for  the  actual 
cost  of  the  line.  No  line  ought  to  cost  less  than  this  sum,  and 
no  line  ought  to  be  built  without  judiciously  applying  the 
money  for  substantial  materials,  so  that  the  line  will  be  per- 
manent and  serviceable.  The  proper  application  of  one  hun- 
dred and  twenty  dollars  per  mile,  in  most  any  part  of  the  Uni- 
ted States,  can  construct  a  line  as  substantial  as  the  best  pole 
lines  in  England,  Denmark,  Sweden,  Russia,  France,  Belgium, 
Prussia,  and  the  German  States  generally. 

The  length  of  a  line  owned  by  one  company  is,  on  an 
average,  about  500  miles.  There  are  some  companies,  how- 
ever, extending  double  that  distance.  I  will  give  a  few  ex- 
amples, taking  the  lines  running  east  and  west,  namely  :  from 
the  eastern  boundary  of  the  United  States  to  Boston,  about 


748  ORGANIZATION    OF     COMPANIES. 

600  miles,  is  a  line  of  two  wires,  owned  by  one  company  ; 
from  Boston  to  New- York,  about  250  miles,  another  line  of 
five  wires;  from  New- York  to  Pittsburg,  about  350  miles, 
another  line  of  two  wires  ;  from  Pittsburg  to  Louisville,  about 
400  miles,  anotfier  line  of  two  wires  ;  from  Louisville  to  St. 
Louis,  about  300  miles,  another  line  of  one  wire  ;  and  from  St. 
Louis  to  Leavenworth,  about  360  miles,  another  line  of  one 
wire.  These  lines  are  owned  by  separate  and  independent 
companies.  On  some  of  these  routes  there  are  rival  lines,  one 
using  the  Morse  patents  and  the  other  using  the  House,  or 
others'  letters  patents.  This  state  of  things  will  most  like- 
ly remain  until  the  expiration  of  the  Morse  patents,  when 
rival  lines  may  be  expected  all  over  the  country.  As  there 
will  be  no  patent  to  pay  for,  the  capital  stock  of  the  company 
can  be  less,  besides  the  gain  bv  economy  in  construction  and 
the  experience  of  the  past. 

ORGANIZATION     OF    COMPANIES. 

After  the  line  has  been  built,  and  supplied,  by  the  contractor, 
with  all  the  instruments  for  business  operation,  it  is  ready  to 
be  handed  over  to  the  association  of  stockholders.  A  meeting 
is  formally  called,  by  notice  in  the  newspapers,  to  organize 
under  the  charter,  and  at  which,  the  contractor  tenders  the  line 
as  completed  under  the  terms  of  the  contract.  This  contract, 
however,  has  been  generally  very  indefinite,  only  requiring  a 
well-built'  line,  as  compared  with  other  lines  in  the  United 
States.  The  stockholders,  at  their  meeting,  appoint  a  commit- 
tee to  inspect  the  line,  who  are  generally  previously  informed 
on  the  subject,  and  forthwith  a  report  is  submitted,  recom- 
mending its  acceptance  from  the  contractor.  This  done,  the 
by-laws  governing  the  proceedings  of  the  company  are  adopted. 
Then  follows  the  election  of  the  yearly  officers,  consisting  of  a 
president,  secretary,  treasurer,  superintendent,  and  directors. 
In  some  companies  the  first  four  officers  are  elected  by  the 
board  of  directors,  and  the  president  performs  the  services  of 
superintendent ;  in  others,  he  is  merely  nominal. 

I  have  now  explained  how  lines  originate,  how  the  patent  is 
negotiated  for,  and  how  the  line  is  built  and  delivered  to  the 
company  ;  also,  how  the  company  proceeds  until  its  organiza- 
tion in  full  for  the  management  of  the  line,  under  the  charter 
from  the  legislature  of  the  State. 

The  charters  of  telegraph  companies  are  much  the  same 
throughout  the  United  States,  differing  only  in  the  name  and 
route  of  the  line.  As  a  form,  I  give  the  following,  viz. 


FORM  OF  CHARTER.  749 

CHARTER. 

Be  it  enacted  by  the  General  Assembly  of  the  State  of ,  as  follows  : 

SEC,  1.  That  and  their  associates  or  assigns,  who  have  ac- 

quired, or  may  acquire,  from  Prof.  Saml.  F.  B.  Morse,  the  right  to  use  his 
Electro-Magnetic  Telegraph,  Chemical  or  Printing  Telegraph  System,  by 
him  invented  and  patented,  upon  the  line  hereby  incorporated,  are  here- 
by created  a  corporation  and  body  politic,  for  th^  purpose  of  erecting  and 

managing  a  line  of  said  telegraph,  extending  from to . 

as  the  said  may  elect,  for  the  purpose  of  transmitting  intelli- 
gence by  means  thereof,  under  the  name  and  style  of  the Telegraph 

Company. 

SEC.  2.  The  shares  of  stock  in  said  company  shall  be  fifty  dollars  each, 
and  to  be  issued  to  the  owners  of  the  patent  right  of  the  telegraph,  and 
to  the  subscribers  of  stock  in  said  line  •  said  stock  to  be  issued  by  the 
said  ,  at  the  rate  per  mile  as  agreed  to  by  them  and  the  sub- 

scribers along  the  route,  and  be  issued  as  the  line  progresses,  to  such  per- 
sons as  may  be  entitled  to  the  same,  according  to  the  subscription  agree- 
ment. The  stock  in  said  company  shall  be  exempt  from  taxation,  until  a 
dividend  is  declared  upon  the  same. 

SEC.  3.  As  soon  as  the  said  line  of  telegraph  is  completed,  a. meeting 

of  -the  stockholders  in  said  line  is  to  be  held  in  the  city  of -,  to  take 

charge  and  control  of  the  line,  and  to  elect  a  president  and  directors,  and 
such  other  officers  of  the  company  as  may  be  determined  by  the  stock- 
holders aforesaid  ;  the  said  are  to  give  notice  in  one  or  more 
newspapers  on  said  line,  of  the  time  of  meeting,  allowing  thirty  days  to 
intervene  between  the  call  and  the  time  of  meeting.  The  stockholders,  at 
their  first  or  succeeding  meetings,  may  adopt  such  rules  and  by-laws  for 
the  government  of  the  company,  as  they  may  deem  expedient ;  provided, 
such  rules  and  by-laws  are  not  inconsistent  with  the  constitution  and 
laws  of  this  State,  or  of  the  United  States. 

SEC.  4.  The  Telegraph  Company  hereby  incorporated,  shall  have  power 
to  sue  and  be  sued,  complain  and  defend,  in  any  court  of  law  or  equity, 
having  competent  jurisdiction ;  to  make  and  use  a  common  seal,  and  the 
same  to  alter  at  pleasure  ;  to  purchase  and  hold  such  real  and  personal 
estate  as  the  lawful  purposes  of  the  corporation  may  require,  and  the 
same  to  sell  and  convey,  when  no  longer  required  for  the  legitimate  pur- 
poses of  the  line. 

SEC.  5.  The Telegraph  Company   shall  have   power  to    set  up 

their  fixtures  along  and  across  any  of  the  roads,  streets,  or  waters  of 
this  State,  without  its  being  deemed  a  public  nuisance,  or  subject  to  be 
abated  by  any  private  person :  the  said  fixtures  to  be  so  placed  as  not  to 
interfere  with  the  common  use  of  such  roads,  streets,  or  waters,  or  with 
the  convenience  of  any  land  owner,  more  than  is  unavoidable :  but  the 
said  corporation  shall  be  responsible  for  any  damages  that  any  person  or 
corporation  may  sustain  by  the  erection,  continuance  and  use  of  such  fix- 
tures; and  in  every  action  brought  for  the  recovery  thereof,  bv  the  owner 
or  possessor  of  any  land  ;  the  damages  to  be  awarded  may,  at  the  election 
of  said  corporation,  include  the  damages  for  allowing  the  said  fixtures 
permanently  to  continue,  on  payment  of  which  damages  the  right  of  the 
corporation  to  continue  such  fixtures  shall  be  confirmed,  as  if  granted  by 
the  parties  to  the  suit ;  provided,  that  no  person  or  body  politic  shall  be 
entitled  to  sue  for  or  receive  damages  as  aforesaid,  until  the  same  corpo- 
ration, after  due  notice,  shall  have  failed  or  refused  to  remove  in  a  rea- 
sonable time  the  fixtures  complained  of;  and  such  notice,  to  any  agent  of 
said  company,  shall  be  deemed  a  sufficient  notice  in  the  premises. 

SEC.  6.  The  corporation  shall  be  bound,  on  application  of  any  of  the 


750  BY-LAWS. 

officers  of  this  State,  or  of  the  United  States,  acting  in  the  event  of  any 
war,  insurrection,  riot,  or  resistance  of  public  authority,  or  in  the  preven- 
tion or  punishment  of  crime,  or  the  arrest  of  persons  charged  or  sus- 
pected thereof,  to  give  to  the  communication  of  such  officers  immediate 
dispatch  ;  for  the  transmission  of  such  communication,  the  company  shall 
not  charge  any  higher  price  than  for  private  communications  of  the  same 
length . 

SEC.  7.  The  said  company  have  power  to  sue  for  and  recover  damages 
from  any  person  or  persons  who  may  break  or  interrupt  the  working  of 
said  line  of  telegraph,  to  the  amount  of  the  loss  sustained  by  the  non- 
working  of  the  line,  and  its  cost  of  repair,  and  in  addition,  a  fine  of  three 
hundred  dollars,  as  damages  sustained  by  the  company  in  the  premises  j 
and  if  any  person  or  persons  shall  refuse,  or  omit  to  pay  said  damages, 
he,  she  or  they  shall  be  imprisoned  in  the  county  jail  for  a  term,  not  less 
than  six  months,  nor  more  than  one  year,  as  may  be  determined  by  the 
court  or  jury  by  which  the  cause  is  tried. 

SEC.  8.  No  person  shall  act  as  operator,  to  send  forward  and  receive 
any  message  or  dispatch  upon  said  line  of  telegraph,  until  he  shall  first 
have  taken  an  oath  before  some  justice  of  the  peace,  that  he  will  faith- 
fully observe  the  secrecy  of  any  dispatch  so  intrusted  to  him  to  forward 
or  receive,  and  that  said  dispatch,  if  private,  shall  be  communicated  in 
the  order  of  time  in  which  it  was  received;  provided,  however,  that  in 
cases  of  important  public  or  general  news,  messages  for  the  public  papers 
may  take  precedence  of  private  messages,  if,  in  the  discretion  of  the  ope- 
rator, it  is  necessary. 

SEC.  9.  Any  operator  who  shall  be  guilty  of  violating  the  provisions  of 
the  foregoing  sections,  shall  be  deemed  guilty  of  a  misdemeanor,  and  may 
be  punished  by  fine  not  exceeding  five  hundred  dollars,  or  imprisonment 
not  exceeding  one  year,  by  any  court  in  this  State. 

SEC.  10.  This  charter,  and  the  rights  under  it,  shall  be  subject  to  any 
general  laws  which  the  State  may  at  any  time  make,  in  regard  to  tele- 
graph companies. 

SEC.  11.  This  act  shall  take  efieet  from  its  passage. 

The  oath  required  by  the  charter  is  not  a  general  law 
throughout  the  United  States.  A  few  of  the  legislatures  have 
enacted  laws  similar  to  section  8,  but  practically  it  is  a  nullity, 
and  useless. 


BY-LAWS. 

The   by-laws   adopted,  by   the   shareholders    at  their  first 
meeting,  are  in  form  as  the  following  : — 

1.  The  style  and  name  of  this  company  shall  be  the Telegraph 

Company,  under  an  act  of  incorporation,  passed  by  the  legislature  of  • 

2.  The  annual  meetings  of  this  company  shall  be  held  in  the  city  of 
on  the  second  Thursday  in  October  in  each  year. 

3.  The  officers  of  this  company  shall  be  a  president,  secretary,  and 
eleven  directors,  to  be  elected  by  the  stockholders,  at  each  annual  meet- 
ing. 

4.  The  president  shall  be  ex-officiu  a  director,  and  preside  at  the  meet- 
ings of  the  stockholders  and  board  of  directors,  giving  the  casting  vote  in 
case  of  ties.     He  shall  have  power  to  appoint  and  dismiss  at  will  all  ope- 
rators, clerks,  inspectors,  and  agents,  of  every  description,  who  are,  or 
shall  be  employed  in  operating,  superintending  or  repairing  the  line.     He 


BY-LAWS.  751 

shall  see  to  the  proper  supplying  of  the  line  with  all  things  needed  for  its 
successful  operation ;  to  manage  the  system  of  reports,  tariffs,  working, 
and  all  finance  affairs  of  the  offices  of  the  line.  He  shall  keep  an  account 
of  all  moneys  expended  by  himself  and  agents  of  the  line  (requiring  re- 
ceipts in  the  disbursement  of  moneys,  in  every  case  practicable).  He 
shall  keep  his  accounts  and  books  posted  and  properly  prepared  for  the 
examination  of  the  board  of  directors.  He  shall  employ  such  aid  and 
assistance  as  he  may  deem  necessary  in  the  management  of  the  line,  and 
to  pay  to  such  assistants,  compensation  commensurate  with  their  services, 
according  to  his  judgment.  The  president  shall  have  power  to  retain  in 
his  hands  a  sum  not  exceeding  five  hundred  dollars,  to  meet  contingent 
expenses  of  the  line ;  but  any  sum  in  his  hands  over  that  sum,  he  shall 
deposit  in  some  safe  banking-house,  agreed  to  by  the  board  of  directors, 
for  the  benefit  of  the  company,  and  under  the  control  of  the  said  board  of 
directors. 

5.  The  secretary  shall  keep  a  record  of  the  proceedings  of  each  meet- 
ing of  stockholders  and  board  of  directors,  and  discharge  such  other  du- 
ties as  may  be  assigned  him  by  the  board  of  directors. 

6.  The  board  of  directors  shall  meet  quarterly,  in  the  city  of , 

on  the  first  Thursdays  in  January,  April,  July,  and  October,  and  at  such 
other  times  as  may  be  called  by  the  president,  or  upon  petition  of  eight 
directors.     They  shall  adopt  such  rules  regulating  their  meetings  as  they 
may  elect,  not  incompatible  with  the  charter  and  laws  of  the  company. 
They^  shall  also  call  special  meetings  of  the  stockholders  whenever  emer- 
gencies may  require  it,  or  whenever  stockholders  owning  or  representing 
one  third  or  more  of  the  stock,  petition  for  the  same. 

7.  In  case  the  board  of  directors  refuse  to  call  a  special  meeting  of  the 
stockholders  upon  petition  of  holders  of  one  third  or  more  of  the  stock  in 
the  line,  then  it  shall  be  lawful  for  two  or  more  persons  holding  or  repre- 
senting one  third  or  more  of  the  stock,  to  call  such  meeting,  by  public  no- 
tice, in  any  one  or  more  newspapers  published  in  the  towns  through  which 
the  line  passes.     All  notices  for  special  meetings  of  the  company,  shall 
be  given  by  public  advertisement,  as  above  stated,  at  least  thirty  days 
previous  to  the  time  fixed  for  such  meeting. 

8.  No  member  of  this  company  is,  or  will  be  held,  to  any  individual  lia- 
bility beyond  the  amount  of  capital  stock  subscribed  by  him.     No  direct- 
or, or  other  officer  of  this  company,  has  power  to  contract  any  debt  or 
obligation,  creating  a  charge  upon  the  members  individually,  or  upon  any 
other  fund  than  the  capital  stock,  property  and  income  of  the  company. 

9.  The  president  shall  give  bond  to  the  company  for  the  faithful  dis- 
charge of  his  trust,  whenever  the  board  of  directors  may  require  it,  and 
for  an  amount  agreed  to  by  said  board. 

10.  All  officers,  elected  by  the  stockholders,  shall  hold  their  offices  until 
others  are  elected. 

11.  A  vacancy  occurring  in  the    board  of  directors,  the  remaining  di- 
rectors shall  have  power  to  fill  such  vacancy.     If  the  president  or  secre- 
tary vacate  their  office,  the  board  shall  have  power  to  elect  a  pro-tern  offi- 
cer until  the  company  meets. 

12.  In  all  meetings  of  this  company,  the  stockholders  shall  be  entitled 
to  one  vote  for  each  share  held  by  them  respectively.     Stockholders  may 
vote  in  person,  or  by  proxy,  or  agent  constituted  for  that  purpose,  in 
writing. 

13.  The  holders  of  a  majority  of  stock  shall  constitute  a  quorum  to  do 
business.     Every  question  shall  be  decided  by  a  majority  of  votes  present. 

14.  The  president  shall  receive,  as  a  compensation  for  his  services,  fif- 
teen hundred  dollars  per  annum,  and  his  travelling  expenses  incurred 
when  from  home,  in  the  service  of  the  company. 


752  OFFICE    REGULATIONS. 

15.  The  board  of  directors  shall  declare  a  dividend  upon  the  stock  of 
the  company,  at  such  times  as  they  may  elect,  whenever  the  surplus  funds 
on  hand  may  justify. 

16.  Four  directors,  with  the  president,  shall  constitute  a  quorum,  for  the 
transaction  of  business  at  all  meetings  of  the  board  of  directors. 

In  case  a  superintendent  is  authorized,  his  duties  are  con- 
fined to  the  management  of  the  offices,  and  the  keeping  of  the 
line  in  repair. 

In  some  cases,  the  board  of  directors  adopt  a  code  of  rules 
for  the  working  of  the  line,  prescribing  the  duties  of  the  ope- 
rators and  employes  of  the  company.  It  is  usual,  however, 
for  those  rules  to  be  made  by  the  president  or  superintendent, 
so  that  they  can  be  readily  altered,  as  circumstances  may  re- 
quire, from  time  to  time. 

The  employes  of  a  line  are  the  operators,  cashier  or 
manager  of  an  office,  clerks,  messengers,  repairers,  and  battery 
keepers.  The  rules  adopted  for  the  administration  of  the  line 
are  in  the  form  following,  viz. : 

OFFICE    REGULATIONS. 

1st.  Each  telegraph  office  will  be  open  every  day,  except  Sunday,  from 
sunrise  to  10  P.  M.  The  manager  of  each  office  will  accordingly  dis- 
tribute his  force  so  as  to  arrange  the  hours  of  necessary  absence,  in  order 
to  have  at  all  times  some  competent  operator  in  the  office  from  sunrise  to 
10  P.  M.,  nor  will  this  regulation  be  construed  to  authorize  or  justify  the 
closing  of  the  office  at  that  hour  if  there  be  any  unfinished  business.  The 
manager  will  be  required  to  keep*a  journal,  in  which  all  matters  con- 
nected with  the  line,  worthy  of  note,  shall  be  entered  daily.  The  office 
will  be  opened  on  the  Sabbath  at  the  usual  hour,  and  close  at  9|  A.  M., 
and  again  opened  in  the  afternoon  at  4  o'clock,  and  closed  at  the  usual 
hour  at  night. 

2d.  The  first  business  in  the  morning  is  to  examine  the  batteries,  test 
the  lines,  and  ascertain  if  the  connecting  lines  are  all  in  working  order ; 
the  hour  to  be  noted  in  the  journal  when  each  office  is  prepared  for  busi- 
ness. Should  the  line,  or  any  part  thereof,  be  out  01  order,  the  time, 
cause,  or  supposed  cause,  is  to  be  noted  in  the  journal,  and  the  manager  of 
each  office  is  required  to  adopt  means  to  have  it  repaired,  by  sending  out 
any  of  the  operators,  clerks  or  other  persons  at  his  discretion.  It  is 
understood  to  be  the  duty  of  all  operators  and  clerks  to  turn  out  on  such 
occasions  when  required,  their  expenses  being  provided  for  by  the  com- 
pany. 

3d.  The  line  of  telegraph  shall  be  open  to  all  who  shall  tender  and  pay 
the  regular  charge  which  may  be  fixed  upon  for  its  use,  and  first  come 
shall  be  first  served,  subject  to  the  following  limitation  as  to  time :  No 
individual,  or  combination  of  individuals,  shall  have  the  use  of  the  tele- 
graph more  than  fifteen  minutes  at  one  time  when  others  are  waiting  ; 
preference,  however,  may  be  given  to  the  prop-er  officers  of  the  States  or 
of  the  United  States,  in  any  great  public  emergency,  or  to  police  officers, 
to  promote  the  arrest  of  fugitives  from  justice,  and  to  prevent  the  com- 
mission or  consummation  of  crimes. 

4th.  Dispatches  in  all  cases  will  be  regarded  as  strictly  confidential, 
and  they  must  be  kept  from  the  inspection  of  all  persons,  whether  con- 


OFFICE    REGULATIONS.  753 

nected  with  the  line  or  not,  and  must  not  be  the  topic  of  comment  or  con- 
versation by  those  whose  duty  it  is  to  transmit,  receive,  or  deliver  them. 

5th.  Should  any  person  employed  in  the  offices  of  this  company  divulge 
or  use  for  his  own  benefit,  or  for  the  benefit  or  information  of  any  other 
person  or  persons  whomsoever,  the  contents  of  any  dispatch  to  which  he 
may  be  privy ;  or  should  any  person  at  stations  other  than  the  one  re- 
ceiving, read,  use,  or  divulge  the  contents  of  such  dispatch,  said  person  or 
persons  shall  be  considered  as  unworthy  of  trust  and  confidence,  be 
forthwith  dismissed  from  service,  and  not  again  employed  on  the  line. 

CASHIER. — The  cashier  of  the  office  shall  have  absolute  charge  of  all 
matters  concerning  all  departments  of  business  of  said  office. 

He  shall  receive  all  dispatches  to  be  transmitted,  and  the  moneys  for 
the  same,  keeping  proper  check  and  account  thereof 

He  shall  see  to  the  copying  of  all  dispatches,  and  their  prompt  de- 
livery. 

He  shall  be  the  only  authorized  officer  to  issue  orders  for  the  purchase 
of  material,  and  all  bills  are  to  be  paid  by  him  or  by  his  order. 

He  shall  keep  an  account  of  all  expenditures  under  the  respective 
heads  contemplated  in  the  monthly  reports,  specifying  for  what  line 
moneys  are  used. 

When  the  operator  of  any  line  reports  that  the  same  is  out  of  order, 
he  shall  provide  all  the  means  and  necessary  material  to  effect  its  imme- 
diate repair. 

He  shall  be  the  sole  manager  of  the  book-keeping,  registration,  and 
preservation  of  all  books  and  papers  of  the  office,  belonging  to  the  united 
lines  therein  terminating. 

He  shall  make  out  the  regular  weekly,  monthly,  or  other  reports  of  his 
office,  according  to  the  forms  adopted  or  authorized  by  each  line  re 
spectively. 

He  shall  deposit  with  the  company's  bankers  all  moneys  accruing  in 
his  office,  whenever  the  sum  exceeds  twenty-five  dollars. 

In  case  an  operator  is  sick,  or  otherwise  hindered  from  keeping  his 
business  up  square,  according  to  rule,  he  shall  provide  all  necessary  aid 
to  effect  the  same. 

He  shall  employ  all  clerks,  battery-keepers,  and  messengers  required 
in  the  office,  and  to  dismiss  the  same  at  his  pleasure. 

He  shall  make  payments  to  operators  according  to  their  respective 
salaries,  in  such  manner  as  may  be  directed  by  the  law  of  the  line. 

OPERATORS. — The  operator  of  each  line  shall  have  sole  charge  of  his 
register,  magnet,  and  other  connections  of  line  in  his  office. 

He  shall  send  and  receive  all  messages  transmitted  over  his  line. 

He  shall  be  the  inspector  and  repairer  of  his  section  of  line,  and  has 
power  to  employ  all  aid  necessary  to  secure  its  speedy  repair,  when  "  out 
of  order." 

In  case  any  new  material  is  needed  to  secure  the  better  working  of  the 
line,  he  shall  report  the  same  to  the  cashier,  who  will  provide  it  without 
delay. 

CLERKS. — Clerks  employed  in  the  office  shall  assist  in  receiving  dis- 
patches, and  see  to  the  proper  spelling  and  address  of  all  names  for  whom 
messages  are  received. 

Each  shall  hold  himself  in  readiness  to  assist  in  the  performance  of  any 
duty  in  the  office  or  on  the  line,  as  may  be  judged  by  the  cashier. 

BATTERY-KEEPER. — The  battery-keeper  shall  have  charge  of  the  battery 
of  each  line,  and  see  to  its  construction,  according  to  the  adopted  system, 
and  have  it  in  readiness  at  ^he  required  working  hour  in  the  morning. 

MESSENGERS. — The  messengers  employed  shall  promptly  deliver  all 
messages  intrusted  to  them,  without  partiality  as  to  line  or  person. 


754          RULES  FOR  TRANSMITTING  MESSAGES. 

They  shall  keep  in  order  the  entire  office,  and  have  it  in  proper  con- 
dition by  the  business  hour  of  each  morning — see  to  the  fires  and  security 
of  material  belonging  to  the  office  under  their  charge. 

They  shall  be  responsible  for  all  collections  intrusted  to  them,  or  the 
return  of  the  dispatch  upon  which  payment  may  be  refused. 

They  shall  perform  such  other  duties  as  may  be  required,  from  time  to 
time,  by  the  cashier. 

RULES    FOR    SENDING    AND    RECEIVING    MESSAGES. 

1st.  All  communications  must  be  carefully  read,  for  the  purpose  of 
seeing  that  every  word  is  plainly  and  fully  written  out,  with  the  address, 
number  of  house  or  place,  and  name  of  town  and  street  to  which  the  mes- 
sage is  directed,  and  if  the  receiving  clerk  doubts  the  meaning  of  any 
portion  of  the  message,  he  will  at  once  refer  to  the  author  for  explana- 
tion. 

2d.  He  will  then  count  and  write  the  number  of  words  on  the  message, 
and  the  amount  received  for  its  transmission,  then  number  the  message, 
beginning  each  morning  with  No.  1,  and  entering  the  number,  date,  time, 
name  of  person  sending,  to  whom  and  where  sent,  number  of  words, 
amount  charged,  and  money  received  and  paid  for  other  lines;  any  re-' 
marks  deemed  necessary  will  be  made  on  the  book,  and  the  message 
filed  to  be  transmitted  in  its  regular  turn. 

3d.  No  operator  must  attempt  to  write  under  any  circumstances,  while 
another  is  writing  on  the  same  circuit  or  wire ;  he  must  wait  for  the  finish 
signal  ]  as  disregard  of  this  rule  will  produce  confusion  and  delay. 

4th.  If  a  communication  cannot  be  sent  in  reasonable  time,  or  being 
sent,  does  not  reach  its  destination  through  the  fault  or  delay  of  the  tele- 
graph, the  money  received  will  be  refunded,  and  a  receipt  taken  there- 
for ;  but  in  all  such  cases  it  must  be  proved  beyond  a  doubt  that  the  fault 
is  with  the  telegraph. 

5th.  The  originals  of  all  messages  transmitted  must  be  neatly  bundled 
up  each  day2  and,  the  date  being  written  upon  the  envelope,  deposited 
in  a  box  provided  for  that  purpose,  as  it  may  be  necessary  to  refer  to 
them. 

6th.  The  arrival  of  every  steamer  from  Europe  shall  be  telegraphed 
gratis  to  every  station  on  the  line,  to  be  posted  on  a  bulletin  for  the  in- 
formation of  the  public ;  precedence  will  be  given*to  this  information  in 
all  cases ;  but  no  precedence  will  be  given  to  the  steamer's  news. 

7th.  When  a  communication  is  received  by  telegraph,  it  will  be  im- 
mediately copied  and  plainly  written  out,  and  the  number  of  the  mes- 
sage, date,  time,  name  of  person  sending,  to  whom  sent,  number  of  words, 
the  amount  charged,  and  name  of  operator  and  carrier,  entered  in  a  book 
provided  for  the  purpose. 

8th.  The  message  will  then  be  enclosed,  sealed,  directed,  and  placed  in 
the  hands  of  a  carrier  to  be  delivered ;  and  in  case  any  person  to  whom 
a  message  is  directed  cannot  be  found,  the  carrier  will  return  it  to  the 
station  for  the  clerk  to  endorse  thereon  the  date  and  name  of  the  carrier. 
The  message  will  then  be  carefully  filed  for  future  reference. 

Messages  offered  at  the  counter  of  the  telegraph  company 
for  transmission  are  not  required  to  be  written  on  the  forms 
adopted  by  the  company.  Many  of  the  companies  have  no 
forms,  using  plain  paper.  Messages  can  only  be  transmitted 
in  the  English  language,  and  they  may  be  written  with  ink  or 
pencil,  on  any  kind  of  paper,  without  regard  to  size.  I  have 


RECEPTION    AND    DELIVERY    OF    DISPATCHES.  755 

seen  persons  on  steamers  running  on  the  western  rivers,  write 
their  dispatches  on  a  piece  of  board,  about  a  foot  long,  and  as 
the  steamer  would  near  the  shore  in  the  locality  of  an  office, 
the  board  would  be  thrown  ashore.  The  dispatch  thus  written 
would  be  sent  by  the  telegraph.  Merchants,  generally,  write 
their  dispatches  and  copy  them  in  a  tissue  leaf  book,  by  trans- 
fer in  a  screw  press.  When  copied,  the  original  is  sent,  by  a 
porter,  to  the  telegraph  office.  The  money  is  sent  with  the 
dispatch,  but  it  is  not  compulsory.  Many  dispatches  are  sent 
with  the  charges  to  be  collected  at  the  destination.  Pre- 
payment for  answers  is  never  required,  and  original  dispatches, 
offered  by  persons  known,  can  be  pre-paid  or  not,  at  the  option 
of  the  sender.  The  rule,  however,  contemplates  pre-payment. 
The  words  "  answer  by  telegraph,"  and  "  answer  paid  here," 
are  sent  free.  Besides  these  words,  when  requested  by  the 
sender,  the  words  •*  messenger  get  answer,"  are  added  and 
sent  free.  Dispatches  received  over  the  line  by  a  station  to  be 
collected,  are  given  to  the  messenger,  and  on  their  delivery  the 
charges  are  demanded. 

As  in  Europe,  many  of  the  American  lines  provide  each 
messenger  with  a  book,  in  which  are  entered  the  name  of 
each  person  whom  the  dispatches  are  for,  and  on  delivery, 
the  person  receiving  the  message  writes  his  name  and  the  time 
of  reception  in  the  book.  This  formality  is  regarded  as  a  re- 
ceipt to  the  messenger  and  the  company.  If  there  is  any 
money  to  be  collected  on  the  dispatch,  the  sum  is  set  down  in 
the  book  opposite  the  name,  and  it  is  also  written  on  the 
corner  of  the  face  of  the  envelope.  On  the  messenger's  return 
to  the  office,  he  pays  over  the  money  collected.  The  formality 
of  the  book  is  not  in  universal  use.  Many  offices  being  provided 
with  a  full  corps  of  messengers,  deliver  a  dispatch  the  moment 
that  it  is  received,  without  the  delay  of  entering  in  a  book,  or 
an  accumulation  of  messages  for  the  same  route  ;  that  is  to 
say,  when  a  message  is  received,  it  is  sent  for  delivery  im- 
mediately. This  celerity  in  delivery,  at  many  stations,  re- 
quires a  large  number  of  messengers. 

Night  service  is  seldom  required.  The  agent  for  the  press 
can  order  the  lines  opened  all  night,  by  paying  a  contracted 
sum  for  the  extra  service.  There  is  no  general  rule  allowing 
the  public  to  command  the  lines  to  be  kept  open  at  night,  be- 
yond the  hours  prescribed  in  the  rules.  Nevertheless,  if  busi- 
ness is  offered  all  night,  the  lines  are  kept  open  all  night, 
without  any  compensation,  more  than  the  daily  charges.  I 
have  never  known  a  case  where  a  private  individual  desired 
to  command  the  line  to  be  kept  open  beyond  the  regular  hours. 


756  TELEGRAPH    LINES    IN    BRITISH    PROVINCES. 

"When  lines  have  been  down,  perhaps  for  the  day,  a  large 
amount  of  business  accumulates,  often  requiring  the  whole 
night  for  its  transmission.  This  has  been  under  ordinary 
circumstances.  The  rule,  therefore,  may  be  thus  stated,  "  The 
line  is  never  to  be  closed,  day  or  night,  as  long  as  there  is  a 
single  dispatch  to  be  sent,"  and  that  no  extra  charges  are  to 
be  made  for  the  night,  except  in  the  case  cited,  as  arranged  by 
contract. 

BRITISH    PROVINCES    IN    AMERICA. 

The  construction  of  telegraph  lines  in  the  Canadas,  New- 
Brunswick,  Nova- Scotia,  and  Newfoundland,  has  been  under 
the  direction  of  organized  companies.  It  has  been  usual  to  ob- 
tain a  charter  from  the  provincial  parliament,  incorporating 
certain  persons  therein  named  as  a  company,  having  in  view 
the  construction  and  maintenance  of  a  telegraph  line  or  lines 
on  certain  specified  routes  or  territory.  After  the  charter  is 
granted,  books  are  opened  for  subscriptions  for  shares,  upon 
which  a  small  per-centage  is  paid.  The  necessary  capital  hav- 
ing been  subscribed,  and  the  per-centage  paid,  a  meeting  of 
the  shareholders  is  held,  at  which  by-laws  are  made,  perma- 
nent officers  elected,  and  all  the  necessary  preliminaries  for 
the  consummation  of  the  enterprise  are  arranged.  Proposals 
are  received  from  different  persons  for  the  building  of  the  line, 
in  whole  or  in  part,  which  are  accepted  or  declined,  as  circum- 
stances dictate.  Sometimes,  the  line  is  built  by  the  company, 
having  no  contractors.  The  foregoing  formality  constitutes  the 
whole  procedure  for  the  organization  of  companies,  and  the 
construction  of  lines  in  the  provinces. 

In  the  Canadas,  no  monopoly  in  telegraphing  has  been  ac- 
corded to  any  one.  The  territory  is  open  to  any  person  or  com- 
pany to  build  lines.  In  New-Brunswick,  Nova- Scotia,  and 
Newfoundland,  exclusive  monopolies  have  been  granted  by  the 
provincial  parliaments  to  separate  companies  in  each.  In 
Newfoundland,  the  monopoly  has  been  given  to  the  New- York, 
Newfoundland,  and  London  Telegraph  Company,  for  the  term 
of  fifty  years,  from  March,  1854.  The  Nova-Scotia  Company 
holds  the  exclusive  monopoly  in  that  province.  In  the  United 
States,  the  monopoly  runs  with  the  duration  of  the  patents. 
A  patent  runs  for  fourteen  years,  and  may  be  renewed  for 
seven  more  by  the  commissioner  of  patents.  After  the  re- 
newed term,  Congress  can  extend  the  patent  consecutively  for 
seven  years  thereafter.  This  latter  case  is  rarely  granted. 
This  subject  is  referred  to  here,  to  show  the  relative  monopolies 


RELATIVE    MONOPOLIES.  757 

enjoyed  by  the  lines  in  the  United  States,  and  "by  those  in  the 
provinces.  In  the  former,  however,  no  legislative  laws  can 
accord  to  a  company  exclusive  monopoly,  and  the  patented 
term  limits  the  question ;  but  in  the  latter,  no  patent  privileges 
have  been  held  by  Morse,  and  the  monopoly  runs  with  the 
legislative  enactment.  From,  these  facts,  it  will  be  seen — 

1st.  That  in  the  United  States,  the  monopoly  in  telegraphing 
runs  with  the  term  of  the  patent,  the  right  of  which  has  to  be 
purchased  by  the  given  company. 

2d.  In  the  Canadas,  there  are  no  legislative  monopolies  sanc- 
tioned by  the  parliament,  and  there  are  no  patents — the  in- 
ventions being  free  to  all  persons. 

3d.  In  Nova-Scotia,  New-Brunswick,  and  Newfoundland, 
the  inventions  are  free,  but  the  monopolies  enjoyed  by  legisla- 
tive enactments  of  the  provincial  parliaments,  are  more  than 
equivalents  for  patents.  . 


CHAPTEK    LV. 

Tariff  on  Dispatches  in  America — Words  Chargeable  and  Free — Arrangement 
of  Local  Tariffs — Qualifications  of  Employes — Protection  of  the  Telegraph 
— Secrecy  of  Dispatches — Penalty  for  Refusing  to  Transmit  Dispatches — 
Patent  Franchise  Inviolable — The  Right  of  Way  for  Telegraphs. 

TARIFF    ON    TELEGRAPHIC    DISPATCHES. 

THE  tariff  of -charges  on  dispatches  transmitted  on  the  tele- 
graph lines  in  the  United  States  and  the  British  provinces,  is 
not  determined  by  length  of  line,  but  by  the  expense  of  things 
in  life.  Thus,  in  the  Eastern  States,  a  man  can  live  much 
cheaper  than  he  can  in  the  Southern  States.  Each  company 
adopts  its  own  tariff.  Sometimes  the  local  charges  are  higher 
than  the  through  charges  ;  such  as  on  messages  coming  from 
other  lines  and  destined  for  other  lines  beyond.  In  the  former 
charges,  the  expense  of  copying,  stationery,  messenger,  and 
registration,  are  items  to  be  considered.  The  latter,  or  through 
messages,  coming  from  and  going  over  other  lines,  only  re- 
quire the  registration  of  number  and  amount.  But  few  lines 
in  America  can  pay  any  interest  on  its  capital,  out  of  its  reve- 
nue from  local  business.  Owing  to  this  well-established  fact, 
every  company  aims  for  through  business,  and  in  the  past, 
much  rivalry  has  been  exhibited  by  different  companies  for  the 
business  of  their  respective  ranges  or  sections  of  country.  The 
lines  as  to  ranges  extend  northeastward  from  New- York  to 
Halifax,  Nova-Scotia.  Another  range  extends  from  New.  York, 
northward  to  Montreal  and  Quebec,  in  Canada ;  another, 
northwestward  along  the  great  Lakes,  to  Cleveland,  Chicago, 
and  Milwaukie  ;  another  from  New- York,  westward  to  Pitts- 
burg,  Cincinnati,  St.  Louis,  and  Leavenworth  city  ;  another 
from  New- York  to  Washington,  Charleston,  Mobile  to  New-Or- 
leans ;  and  another  from  New-Orleans,  northwestward,  along 
the  Mississippi  Valley  to  St.  Louis  and  northward.  The  tar- 
iffs on  these  respective  ranges  differ.  The  rates  in  the  East  are 
the  least,  and  in  the  South,  the  highest.  This  difference  is 
caused,  as  I  have  said  before,  by  the  general  expense  of  living. 
In  the  East,  a  good  operator  can  be  employed  at  from  six  hun- 
dred to  a  thousand  dollars  per  annum.  In  the  South,  it  is  from 
one  thousand  to  fifteen  hundred  dollars  per  annum.  Board 
ranges  in  the  East,  at  about  three  dollars  per  week  ;  in  the 
South,  the  same  board  would  be  seven  dollars  per  week.  The 
cost  of  labor  is  in  like  proportion.  The  same  may  be  said  of 

758 


WORDS  CHARGEABLE  AND  FREE. 


759 


all  kinds  of  materials  needed  in  the  affairs  of  life.  "With  a 
view  of  further  explaining  this  difference  in  the  tariffs,  I  will 
give  the  charges  on  parts  of  the  respective  sections.  From 
New- York  to  Boston  the  distance  is  about  250  miles,  and  the 
tariff  on  a  message  of  ten  words  is  forty  cents,  and  for  each  ad- 
ditional word  over  ten,  three  cents.  From  New- York  to  "Wash- 
ington, about  250  miles,  on  a  message  of  ten  words,  the  tariff 
is  fifty  cents,  and  five  cents  for  each'  additional  word.  From 
New- York  to  Pittsburg,  about  350  miles,  on  a  message  of  ten 
words,  seventy-five  cents,  and  six  cents  for  each  additional 
word.  From  New-Orleans  to  Savannah,  Georgia,  about  800  \ 
miles,  on  a  message  of  ten  words,  $1  40,  and  seven  cents  for 
each  additional  word.  From  New-Orleans  to  Jackson,  Missis- 
sippi, about  200  miles,  on  a  message  of  ten  words,  seventy-  \ 
five  cents,  and  five  cents  for  each  additional  word.  From  St.  V. 
Louis  to  Leavenworth  city,  Kansas,  about  360  miles,  on  a 
message  of  ten  words,  sixty  cents,  and  five  cents  for  each  ad- 
ditional word.  From  New-Orleans  to  Louisville,  about  950 
miles,  the  tariff  is  $1  40,  for  a  dispatch,  and  eight  cents  for 
each  additional  word.  From  Louisville,  east  to  New- York, 
about  850  miles,  the  tariff  is  $1  for  a  single  dispatch,  and  six 
cents  for  each  additional  word  over  ten.  Side  or  lateral  lines 
connecting  with  these  leading  ranges,  have  tariffs  upon  the 
same  scale.  Each  company  gets  whatever  tariff  it  charges, 
except  in  some  cases  the  rates  are  reduced  to  get  business  from 
other  routes.  As  a  general  thing,  the  tariffs,  throughout  the 
whole  country,  have  been  increased  within  the  past  year,  and 
lines,  companies,  and  ranges,  have  been  consolidating  their  in- 
terest and  making  each  more  effective  for  public  accommoda- 
tion. 

The  tariff  on  news  for  the  press,  is  a  fraction  less  than  for 
ordinary  messages.  The  newspapers  have  formed  an  associa- 
tion with  a  general  agent  in  New- York,  who  has  power  to  ap- 
point all  sub-agents  throughout  the  country.  This  general 
agent  manages  the  entire  telegraph  news  department  for  the 
Associated  Press.  In  the  transmission  of  news  by  the  tele- 
graph, a  cipher  is  used,  and  by  special  contracts  made  with 
the  respective  ranges  of  lines,  the  news  is  a  very  heavy 
expense  to  the  American  press.  In  former  years  the  telegraph 
lines  made  a  deduction  of  fifty  per  cent,  on  the  press  news, 
but  at  the  present  time  the  companies  charge  about  the  same 
for  news  sent  to  or  from  the  news  agents  as  the  charge 
for  like  service  to  others.  The  lines  and  the  agents  generally 
assist  each  other,  and  reciprocity  in  service  redounds  to  the 
welfare  of  the  newspapers  and  the  public,  whose  weal  the 


760 


WORDS  CHARGEABLE  AND  FREE. 


ambition  of  all  strives  to  promote,  that  ulterior  good  may  be 
shared  by  the  meritorious. 

WORDS  CHARGEABLE  AND  FREE. 

A  message  throughout  the  United  States  and  British  provinces 
is  scaled  to  ten  words,  beyond  which  the  price  for  each  word 
is  generally  about  twenty  per  cent.  less.  On  the  line  from 
Savannah  to  New-Orleans  it  is  fifty  per  cent,  less  for  each 
added  word  ;  from  Boston  to  New- York,  twenty-five  per  cent, 
less ;  and  from  St.  Louis,  westward,  sixteen  per  cent.  less. 
The  average  may  be  considered  at  twenty  per  cent,  discount 
on  all  words  over  the  first  ten.  No  charge  is  made  for  signa- 
ture or  address.  Thus,  a  message  may  be  transmitted  : 

TREMONT  HOUSE,  Boston,  Massachusetts,  January  1st,  1859. 
To  JOHN  JAMES  DOE,  ESQ.,  No.  500  William-street,  third  story,  room  No. 
25,  New- York  City. 

Purchase  for  me  one  thousand  barrels  of  flour,  and  ship  to  me  at  New- 
Orleans,  immediately.  44.  33. 

WILLIAM  RICHARD  ROE. 

The  above  is  the  form  of  a  message  usual  on  the  American 
lines.  There  are  fifteen  words.  According  to  the  tariff  herein 
before  given,  for  the  first  ten  words  the  charge  is  40  cents,  and 
the  5  added  words  three  cents  each,  or  15  cents — total,  55 
cents.  The  figures  44  means  "  Answer  immediately  by  tele- 
graph," and  the  figures  33  means  "  Answer  paid  here."  These 
figures,  as  stated  herein  before,  are  free.  The  word  New- 
Orleans,  being  the  name  of  place,  is  counted  as  a  compound 
word.  The  address  and  signature  make  36  words,  all  of 
which  are  transmitted  free.  Each  figure  is  counted  as  a 
word.  The  telegraph  companies  in  the  United  States  and  the 
British  provinces  solicit  particulars  as  to  address,  and  the 
policy  is  good.  In  Europe  many  men  locate  and  remain  a 
lifetime  in  the  same  building  and  in  the  same  business.  Like 
cases  rarely  occur  in  America.  In  the  former  country,  a  brief 
address  is  sufficient,  but  in  the  latter,  particulars  are  neces- 
sary. Experience  has  taught  that  it  is  best  for  the  telegraph 
to  encourage  its  patrons  to  be  fall  in  address.  In  the  form 
given,  fifty-one  words  are  transmitted  in  one  dispatch  for  55 
cents.  There  is  no  charge  for  delivery.  /*The  telegraph  en- 
courages explicitness  in  the  writing  of  a'  message,  and  dis- 
courages the  use  of  ciphers  formed  by  letters  or  figures.  And 
for  the  purpose  of  discouraging  laconic  dispatches,  the  com- 
panies have  adopted  the  liberal  discount  in  the  tariff  on  all 
words  over  ten  in  a  message.  It  encourages  the  patrons  to 
write  their  dispatches  full  and  intelligible. 


LOCAL    TARIFFS EMPLOYES. 


761 


ARRANGEMENT    OF     LOCAL    TARIFFS. 

Each  telegraph  company  arranges  its  tariff  of  charges,  and 
supplies  its  offices  with  printed  schedules,  which  are  also 
transmitted  to  all  other  companies.  The  tariff  is  prepared  in 
the  following  form,  viz. : 


dj 

| 

2 

2 

a 

lab 

1 

j 

j 

,d 

1 

0^ 

§ 
M 

1 

New-York  

252 

403 

505 

Philadelphia          .  .        

252 

252 

403 

Baltimore 

40.3 

252 

252 

"Washington  

50.5 

40.3 

25.2 

Each  station  has  a  tariff  thus  arranged  to  all  other  offices  on 
its  line,  and  when  messages  are  received  for  stations  on  other 
lines,  by  adding  the  two  tariffs,  the  whole  is  known.  Suppose 
a  message  is  offered  at  Baltimore  for  Boston.  The  tariffs 
from  Baltimore  to  New- York,  and  thence  over  another 
line  to  Boston,  are  added  together,  and  the  charge,  80  cents, 
and  6  cents  for  each  additional  word,  is  the  price  of  the  message. 
Baltimore  receives  the  80  cents  and  transmits  the  dispatch  to 
New- York,  where  it  is  written  out  in  full,  and  it  is  then, 
with  the  40  cents,  delivered  to  the  New- York  and  Boston 
line.  Lines  occupying  the  same  building  have  facilities  in 
matters  of  accounts  and  the  transfer  of  messages  from  line  to 
line.  In  former  years,  when  rivalry  was  at  its  highest,  the 
companies  would  deliver  the  message  and  the  money  to  the 
next  in  course,  in  the  same  manner  as  the  public.  No  ac- 
commodation, no  favor  of  any  kind,  nor  any  association  be- 
tween the  agents  of  the  companies,  was  entertained.  Feuds 
between  rival  companies,  however,  are  fast  passing  away,  and 
it  is  to  be  hoped  that  ere  long  the  misfortune  will  cease  to 
exist  forever. 

The  tariff  of  charges  on  messages  in  the  Canadas,  Nova- 
Scotia,  Newfoundland  and  New-Brunswick,  are  established  in 
the  same  manner  as  upon  the  lines  in  the  United  States.  In 
the  provinces,  where  a  monopoly  has  been  enjoyed,  a  higher 
and  more  remunerative  tariff  has  been  charged  from  the  first 
organization  of  the  lines. 

QUALIFICATIONS    OF    EMPLOYES. 

There  have  been  no  fixed  rules  determining  the  qualifications 
of  persons  proposing  for  employment  on  the  telegraph  lines  in 


762  QUALIFICATIONS    OF    EMPLOYES. 

America.  Each  company  exercises  its  own  judgment  in  the 
engagement  of  its  agents,  and  the  general  rule  has  been,  to 
select  the  person  most  fitted  for  the  place  in  view.  Thus,  in 
empioying  an  operator  for  a  small  local  station,  doing  but  little 
business,  an  expert  in  manipulation  has  not  been  considered  as 
necessary.  In  localities  where  the  line  may  need  much  repair- 
ing, a  man  best  fitted  for  such  service  is  selected.  At  stations 
where  great  expertness  is  necessary  for  celerity  of  business,  su- 
periority of  manipulation  is  regarded  as  of  the  greatest  import- 
ance. With  the  explanations  just  given,  it  will  be  seen  that  the 
qualifications  required  on  the  American  lines  are  but  ordinary, 
and  maybe  considered  as  follows,  namely:  a  moderate  En- 
glish education,  that  is,  to  read,  write,  and  cipher ;  and 
to  spell  well,  is  the  most  important.  While  the  reader  may  con- 
sider the  education  demanded  by  the  lines  in  Europe,  as  too 
great  for  the  requirements  of  the  service,  it  must  be  admitted 
that  a  superior  education  can  not  be  regarded  as  an  injury 
and  if  a  sufficient  corps,  at  moderate  expense,  can  be  employed, 
the  system  will  be  operated  nearer  to  a  state  of  perfection. 
Difficulties  experienced  on  many  lines  in  America,  originating 
from  the  ignorance  of  operators,  cannot  take  place  where  the 
education  is  as  required  on  the  French  lines.  It  is  to  be  ad- 
mitted at  once,  that  on  the  American  lines  the  French  rules 
could  not  possibly  be  enforced,  for  the  reasons,  that  the  com- 
pensation given  will  not  command  the  talent,  and  the  revenues 
are  not  sufficient  to  justify  such  an  enormous  expenditure  as 
would  be  necessary  for  the  engagement  of  the  highest  order  of 
talent.  Besides  the  question  of  economy,  many  may  doubt 
the  actual  necessity  of  requiring  more  than  a  sufficient  educa- 
tion for  the  positions  occupied  ;  that  is  to  say,  by  way  of  illus- 
tration, a  blacksmith  would  be  benefited  by  a  thorough  knowl- 
edge of  chemistry,  so  that  he  could  fathom  the  mysterious 
agencies  in  nature,  concerning  metals ;  yet  this  knowledge  is 
not  indispensable,  nor  even  necessary,  to  teach  him  how  to 
shoe  a  horse. 

The  organization  of  society  in  Europe  requires,  in  most  of 
pursuits,  forms,  and  within  its  rules  is  embraced  the  qualifica- 
tion of  candidates  for  service  on  the  telegraph.  In  America, 
there  are  no  such  necessities  existing.  Labor,  in  whatever 
branch,  cannot  be  superior  to  that  of  another.  This  equaliza- 
tion is  a  fundamental  and  cardinal  virtue  in  American  institu- 
tions. The  society  of  the  respective  continents,  therefore,  has 
different  elements  of  existence. 

Without  boasting,  and  without  the  possibility  of  practical 
contradiction,  I  can  state  that,  as  an  average,  the  American  ope- 


SECRECY    OF    DISPATCHES. 


763 


rator  has  no  superior,  and  he  can  receive  and  transmit  a  greater 
number  of  dispatches  than  I  have  ever  seen  attained,  or 
claimed,  by  the  operators  of  other  countries.  This  subject, 
however,  will  be  discussed  in  another  part  of  this  work. 

The  qualifications,  therefore,  demanded  of  a  candidate  for 
employment  on  the  American  lines,  are  but  few,  and  very  sim- 
ple, viz.,  a  moderate  English  education,  honesty,  energy  of 
character,  and  a  few  months'  practical  service  as  a  manipulator. 

PROTECTION    OF    THE    TELEGRAPH. 

In  most  of  the  American  states,  penal  laws  have  been  adopted, 
from  time  to  time,  for  the  protection  of  telegraph  lines.  At 
the  opening  of  the  courts,  the  judge  embraces  the  question  in 
the  charge  to  the  grand  jury,  requiring  that  body  to  indict 
every  person  who  may  be  guilty  of  a  violation  of  the  law. 
For  the  honor  of  the  people,  however,  but  few  cases  have  occur- 
red requiring  the  exercise  of  the  duty.  In  the  early  history  of 
telegraphing,  the  most  formidable  objection  to  overground 
lines,  was  the  liability  of  interruption  by  malicious  and  mis- 
chievous persons,  in  the  breaking  of  the  lines,  &c.  Experience 
has  proven  that  the  people  do  more  to  maintain  the  lines  in 
order  than  to  disturb  them.  The  penal  laws  adopted  are  more 
or  less  severe,  and  it  cannot  be  doubted,  but  what  they  have 
had  a  salutary  influence.  The  laws  are  of  the  following  form 
and  tenor,  viz.  : 

11  Any  person  or  persons,  who  shall  intentionally  and  unlawfully  injure, 
molest,  or  destroy,  any  of  the  lines,  wires,  posts,  instruments,  abutments, 
or  any  of  the  materials  or  property  of  any  telegraph  company,  association, 
or  owner,  or  shall  by  any  means  whatever,  interrupt  the  working  of  any 
line  of  telegraph  in  the  transmission  of  despatches  or  otherwise,  shall,  on 
conviction  thereof,  be  deemed  guilty  of  a  misdemeanor,  and  be  punished 
by  fine  not  less  than  $500,  nor  more  than  $1,000,  or  imprisonment  in  the 
penitentiary  for  a  term  not  less  than  one  year,  nor  more  than  three  years, 
or  both,  at  the  discretion  of  the  court  having  cognizance  thereof." 

SECRECY    OF    DISPATCHES. 

Penal  laws  have  been  very  generally  adopted,  to  secure  the 
secrecy  of  messages  transmitted  over  telegraph  lines.  The 
ordinary  rules  of  the  companies  upon  this  subject,  have  been 
sufficient,  however,  in  a  general  sense,  to  protect  the  public  in 
this  respect.  The  following  is  an  extract  from  one  of  the 
penal  statutes,  viz.  : 

"Any  person  connected  with  any  telegraph  company  in  this  state, 
either  as  clerk,  operator,  messenger,  or  in  any  other  capacity,  who  shall 


764  REFUSING    TO    TRANSMIT    DISPATCHES. 

wilfully  divulge  the  contents,  or  the  nature  of  the  contents,  of  any  private 
communication  intrusted  to  him  for  transmission  or  delivery  to  any  per- 
son, other  than  the  one  to  whom  it  is  addressed,  or  to  his  agent  or  attor- 
ney, or  who  shall  refuse  or  neglect  to  transmit  or  deliver  the  same,  shall, 
on  conviction  before  any  court,  be  adjudged  guilty  of  a  misdemeanor,  and 
shall  suffer  imprisonment  in  the  county  jail  in  the  county  where  such  con- 
viction shall  be  had,  for  a  term  of  not  more  than  three  months,  or  shall 
pay  a  fine  not  to  exceed  five  hundred  dollars,  in  the  discretion  of  the 
court. 

PENALTY  FOR  REFUSING  TO  TRANSMIT  DISPATCHES. 

In  most  of  the  States,  penal  laws  have  been  enacted,  relative 
to  the  transmission  and  reception  of  dispatches,  by  the  telegraph 
companies.  ^&ny  dispatch,  with  the  money  for  its  transmis- 
sion, offered  at  a  station,  cannot  be  refused  by  the  telegraph 
company,  except  in  cases  where  the  transmission  would  be  in 
violation  of  the  patent  rights  of  another  company.  No  one  can 
be  excluded  from  sending  messages  over  any  line  and  by  any 
route,  that  he  wishes,  except  in  the  case  above  cited.  From 
one  of  these  acts  I  extract  the  following,  viz.  : 

"Every  such  company,  and  eve,ry  owner  or  association,  engaged  in 
telegraphing  for  the  public  by  electricity,  in  this  State,  shall  receive  dis- 
patches from  and  for  other  telegraph  lines,  companies  and  associations, 
and  from  and  for  any  individual ;  and  on  payment  of  the  usual  charges 
for  transmitting  dispatches,  according  to  the  regulations  of  such  company, 
owner  or  association,  shall  transmit  the  same  faithfully  and  impartially, 
and  in  the  order  in  which  they  are  received ;  and  for  every  willful 
neglect  or  refusal  so  to  do,  the  company,  owner  or  association,  as  the  case 
may  be,  shall  be  liable  to  a  penalty  of  not  more  than  one  hundred  dol- 
lars, with  costs  of  suit,  to  be  recovered  in  the  name  and  for  the  benefit  of 
the  person  or  persons,  association  or  company,  sending  or  desiriug  to  send 
sucti  dispatches." 

Such  enactments  as  the  above,  originated  some  years  ago, 
when  one  of  the  leading  companies  refused  to  receive  dis- 
patches from  or  for  lines  holding  rival  positions.  The  rejecting 
of  these  dispatches  caused  those  in  rival  interest  to  memorial- 
ize the  respective  legislatures  for  the  passage  of  laws  of  the 
nature  as  above  given.  The  legislatures  promptly  passed  the 
necessary  laws,  though  for  a  combination  of  reasons  they  have 
not  been  practically  effective,  owing  to  the  patent  laws  of  the 
land,  limiting  their  enforcement.  Upon  the  expiration  of  the 
patent  franchises  held  by  the  companies,  then  the  special  law 
with  its  penalty  can  be  enforced.  The  common  law  will 
guarantee  the  right  to  any  one  to  command  the  transmission 
of  his  dispatch,  equally  with  all  others,  on  its  presentation 
with  the  money  at  any  telegraph  station. 


PATENT    FRANCHISE.  765 

PATENT    FRANCHISE    INVIOLABLE. 

I  will  further  explain  the  exception  mentioned,  relative  to 
patent  franchise,  before  referred  to.  Suppose  A  purchases  the 
patent  monopoly  to  transmit  all  messages  between  the  cities 
B  and  C.  The  United  States  patent  laws  will  protect  A  in 
the  enjoyment  of  that  franchise.  It  is  the  property  of  A,  and 
he  has  the  right  to  use  it  or  not,  in  such  manner  as  he  pleases. 
Suppose  D  constructs  another  line,  either  by  a  more  circuitous 
or  direct  route  between  the  cities  B  and  C,  dispatches  can- 
not be  sent  over  the  line  of  D,  originating  from  either  of  the 
cities  cited  to  the  other,  in  violation  of  the  rights  purchased  by 
A.  If  the  law  was  otherwise,  a  patent  would  be  worthless, 
and  an  inventor  could  not  hope  for  any  compensation  for  the 
toil  and  time  devoted  toward  the  achievement  of  his  invention, 
however  grand  in  its  consummation.  Having  due  regard  for 
the  exception  given,  no  company  can  refuse  to  transmit  a 
message  offered,  and  in  such  manner  as  directed  by  the  sender. 
For  example,  suppose  a  merchant  in  New-Orleans  presents  a 
dispatch  and  the  money  for  its  transmission  to  any  telegraph 
line,  directed  to  a  merchant  in  London,  to  be  mailed  in  New- 
York,  or  to  be  sent  by  the  Azore  Atlantic  telegraph  route,  or 
by  the  Newfoundland  and  Ireland  Atlantic  telegraph  route, 
or  by  the  Greenland  and  Iceland  Atlantic  telegraph  route,  the 
telegraph  company  cannot  refuse  to  receive  the  message  and 
send  it  in  the  manner  specified  upon  the  face  of  the  dispatch. 
Even  at  the  present  time,  during  the  existence  of  the  patent 
franchises,  the  dispatch  offered  in  New-Orleans  in  the  example 
given,  could  not  be  refused.  In  some  cases  companies  form 
an  association  to  give  each  other  business  originating  on  the 
one,  for  places  on  the  other,  but  no  such  compact  can  take 
from  a  member  of  the  public  the  right  to  transmit  his  dispatch 
by  any  given  route  he  may  wish.  In  further  illustration  of 
this  common  and  statute  law,  I  give  the  following  diagram : 


A 


Letter  A  is  New-Orleans.  B,  Cincinnati.  C,  New-York. 
D,  London.  Figure  1  represents  the  telegraph  line  from  A  to 
B.  Fig.  2,  the  telegraph  line,  via  Buffalo  to  New- York.  Fig. 
3,  the  line  via  Pittsburg  to  New-York^  Fig.  4,  the  line,  via 
Baltimore  to  New- York.  Fig.  5,  the  Greenland  and  Iceland 
Atlantic  telegraph  route.  \  Fig.  6,  the  Newfoundland  and 
Ireland  Atlantic  telegraph  route.  Fig.  7,  the  direct  Atlantic 


766  THE    RIGHT    OP    WAY    FOR    TELEGRAPHS. 

telegraph  route ;  and  fig.  8  the  Azore  Atlantic  telegraph 
route.  The  merchant  in  New-Orleans  can  present  his  dis- 
patch to  he  sent  to  B,  and  thence  hy  line  2,  3,  or  4,  as 
he  may  prefer,  to  New- York,  and  thence  by  either  5,  6, 
7,  or  8,  to  London.  Neither  the  company  receiving  the  mes- 
sage at  New-Orleans,  nor  any  intermediate  company,  can 
change  the  route  from  the  one  directed  hy  the  sender. 

I  have  written  that  the  public  has  the  right  to  transmit 
messages  by  such  route  or  routes  as  it  prefers  ;  provided,  the 
lines  proposed  to  be  employed  in  the  transmission  of  the  mes- 
sage, by  such  an  act,  do  not  violate  the  purchased  rights  of 
others.  In  the  diagram  above  given,  if  line  3,  or  either  of  the 
others,  has  purchased  the  exclusive  right  to  transmit  mes- 
sages between  B  and  C,  originating  at  those  places  and  along 
that  route,  and  also  all  messages  from  points  beyond  B  and  C 
respectively,  destined  to  B  and  C  and  points  beyond  re- 
spectively, then  lines  2  and  4  would  violate  the  rights  of  line 
3  by  the  transmission  of  business  originating  as  specified,  and 
the  line  cannot  be  compelled  to  thus  involve  itself.  If,  how- 
ever, line  3  has  only  purchased  the  right  to  send  dispatches, 
and  has  not  the  exclusive  right,  there  will  be  no  violation  of 
the  patent  franchise  of  3  by  the  sending  of  messages  over  the 
lines  2  and  4,  which  have  also  the  right  by  purchase,  to  trans- 
mit dispatches  between  B  and  C  in  common  with  other  lines. 

In  case  the  route  is  not  specified  by  the  sender,  the  company 
can  transmit  the  message  by  such  lines  as  may  be  in  its  particu- 
lar combination.  As  a  general  rule,  it  may  be  admitted,  that 
every  company  will  be  glad  to  send  the  message  by  the  route 
that  ean  do  the  business  the  most  prompt,  and  all  combina- 
tions fettering  the  efficient  line  with  the  inefficient,  will  fail 
in  execution,  and  sooner  or  later  cease  to  exist.  The  interest 
of  the  line  is  the  better  subserved  by  the  greatest  promptness 
in  the  dispatch  of  business.  By  these  remarks,  it  will  be  seen 
that  the  common  and  statute  laws,  the  interest  of  the  tele- 
graph, and  the  rights  of  the  public,  harmonize  one  with  the 
other,  each  aiming  for  "  the  greatest  good  to  the  greatest 
number." 

THE     RIGHT     OF     WAY    FOR    TELEGRAPHS. 

rn  nearly  all  the  States  laws  have  been  passed,  giving  the 
free  right  of  way  to  any  and  all  telegraph  companies,  to  build 
lines  over  the  public  lands  and  highways.  The  following  is 
an  extract  from  one  of  these  statutes  : 

"  Any  telegraph  company  may  construct  lines  of  electric   telegraphs 
upon  and  along  any  of  the  highways  and  public  roads,  and  across  any  of 


THR    RIGHT    OF    WAY    FOR    TELEGRAPHS.  767 

the  waters  within  the  limits  of  this  State,  by  the  erection  of  necessary 
fixtures,  including  posts,  piers,  or  abutments,  for  sustaining  the  wires  of 
such  lines ;  provided,  the  same  shall  be  so  constructed  as  not  to  incom- 
mode the  public  use  of  said  highways  or  roads. 

"  If  any  person  over  whose  lands  any  telegraph  line  shall  pass,  u^on 
which  said  posts,  piers,  or  abutments,  shall  be  placed,  shall  consider  him- 
self aggrieved  or  damaged  thereby,  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  county 
court,  within  whose  county  snch  lands  are,  on  the  application  of  such 
persons,  and  on  notice  to  the  association  or  individual  owning  such  tele- 
graph line,  to  appoint  three  discreet  and  disinterested  persons  as  ap- 
praisers, who  shall  severally  take  an  oath,  before  any  person  authorized 
to  administer  oaths,  faithfully  and  impartially  to  perform  the  duties  re- 
quired of  them  by  this  act.  And  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  said  appraisers, 
or  a  majority  of  them,  to  make  a  just  and  equitable  appraisal  of  all  the 
loss  or  damage  sustained  by  said  applicant,  by  reason  of  said  lines,  posts, 

Siers  or  abutments,  duplicates  of  which  said  appraisement  shall  be  re- 
uced  to  writing,  and  signed  by  said  appraisers,  or  a  majority  of  them ; 
one  copy  shall  be  delivered  to  the  applicant,  and  the  other  to  the  presi- 
dent or  other  officers  of  said  association,  or  corporation,  or  owner  of  such 
telegraph  on  demand;  and  in  case  any  damages  shall  be  adjudged  to  said 
applicant,  the  association,  or  corporation,  or  telegraph  owner,  shall  pay 
the  amount  thereof,  with  costs  of  said  appraisal ;  said  costs  to  be  liquidated 
and  ascertained  in  said  award;  and  said  appraisers  shall  receive  for 
their  services  two  dollars  for  each  day  thev  aro  actually  engaged  in 
making  said  appraisement.1' 


ORGANIZATION  AND  ADMINISTRATION  OF 
EUROPEAN  TELEGRAPHS, 


CHAPTEK    LYI. 

The  Telegraph  in  France — Decrees  permitting  the  Public  to  Telegraph — Regu- 
lations on  receiving  and  transmitting  Dispatches — Conditions  of  Admis- 
sion of  Supernumeraries — Programme  of  Preparatory  Education  required 
of  Candidates. 

THE    TELEGRAPH    IN    FRANCE. 

THE  French  government  was  about  the  first  on  the  continent 
to  adopt  the  semiphore  telegraph,  the  invention  of  the  Brothers 
Chappe.  For  many  years  the  efficiency  of  this  means  of  com- 
munication was  experienced.  As  soon  as  the  electric  telegraph 
became  a  demonstrated  and  practical  system,  France  was  fore- 
most in  Europe  to  avail  itself  of  its  wonderful  means  of  trans- 
mitting intelligence. 

The  permanent  secretary  of  the  Academy  of  Sciences,  M. 
Arago,  did  much  to  procure  its  early  adoption  by  the  govern- 
ment. In  1838,  LUDUIS  Phillipe,  the  king  of  the  French,  pro- 
hibited Prof.  Morse  from  constructing  a  line  of  his  telegraph, 
but,  in  a  few  years  after,  the  advantages  of  the  electric  system 
over  the  semiphore  were  acknowledged,  and  lines  were  soon 
spread  throughout  the  kingdom,  built  and  managed  by  the 
government.  I  deem  it  unnecessary  to  follow  the  progress  of 
the  lines  in  their  construction,  and  I  shall,  therefore,  consider 
the  system  in  that  country  as  it  is  at  the  present  time. 

DECREES  PERMITTING  THE  PUBLIC  TO  TELEGRAPH. 

The  imperial  government  of  France  has,  from  time  to  time, 
issued  decrees  regulating  the  use  of  telegraphing  in  the 
empire.  The  following  is  a  digest  of  some  not  embraced  in 
the  rules  issued  by  the  Minister,  concerning  the  operation  oi 
the  lines : 

768 


DECREES  PERMITTING  THE  PUBLIC  TO  TELEGRAPH.     769 

1st.  All  persons  whose  identity  is  established,  are  allowed  to 
correspond  by  the  government  electric  telegraph,  by  the 
agency  of  functionaries  employed  in  that  department. 

2d.  Private  correspondence  is  always  subordinate  to  the 
necessity  of  government  service. 

3d.  Dispatches  are  to  be  written  in  ordinary  and  intelligible 
language,  dated  and  signed  by  the  sender,  and  to  be  given  to 
the  officer  of  the  telegraph  station,  whose  duty  is  to  copy  in 
full  the  dispatch,  with  the  address  of  the  sender.  This  copy 
is  to  be  authenticated  and  filed  in  the  office.  Articles  for 
newspapers  and  dispatches  on  railway  business  are  to  be 
exempt  from  the  copying  rule. 

4th.  The  director  of  a  station  may,  on  grounds  of  public 
order  and  morality,  refuse  to  transmit  a  dispatch.  In  case  of 
dispute,  reference  is  to  be  made  in  Paris  to  the  minister  of  the 
interior ;  in  the  provinces,  to  the  prefect,  sub-prefect,  or 
other  constituted  authority.  On  the  receipt  of  a  dispatch,  the 
director  of  the  station  may  withhold  its  delivery  for  like 
reasons. 

5th.  Private  correspondence  may  be  suspended  at  any  time 
by  the  government.  The  government  will  not  assume  any 
responsibility  for  errors  in  the  transmission  of  dispatches. 

6th.  Any  public  functionary  violating  the  secrecy  of  corre- 
spondence is  liable  to  the  penalties  prescribed  in  Art.  187  of  the 
Penal  Code,  viz. :  imprisonment  from  three  months  to  five 
years,  fine  100  to  500  francs,  and  total  exclusion  from  public 
service. 

7th.  Dispatches  affecting  the  safety  of  passengers  on  railway 
trains,  in  all  cases,  take  precedence  of  every  other  business. 

Sth.  The  director  of  the  station  must  be  satisfied  as  to  the 
identity  of  the  sender's  signature.  Identity  may  be  proved  by 
witnesses,  passports,  or  other  written  evidence.  The  signa- 
ture may  be  proved  by  prefects,  sub-prefects,  magistrates, 
notaries,  mayors,  commissioners  of  police,  &c.,  &c.  If  the 
director  sees  reason  to  refuse  the  transmission  of  a  message,  he 
must  state  his  reason  in  writing  on  the  dispatch,  and  return  it 
to  the  sender.  [He  may  endorse  on  it,  "  political,"  "  offensive," 
"  not  consistent  with  public  good,"  &c.] 

9th.  No  line  of  electric  telegraph  can  be  established  or  em- 
ployed for  the  transmission  of  correspondence  except  by  the 
government,  or  on  its  authority.  Any  person  transmitting, 
without  authority,  signals  from  one  place  to  another,  whether 
by  electric  telegraph,  or  in  any  other  way,  is  liable  to  im- 
prisonment from  one  month  to  a  year,  and  a  fine  of  1,000  to 
10,000  francs,  and  the  government  may  order  the  destruction 
of  the  apparatus  and  telegraph  employed. 


770  RECEIVING    AND    TRANSMITTING    DISPATCHES. 

10th.  Any  one  accidentally  and  involuntarily  interrupting 
the  correspondence  of  the  electric  telegraph,  or  injuring  in  any 
way  the  lines  or  apparatus,  is  liable  to  a  fine  of  from  16  to 
300  francs. 

llth.  Any  one  willfully  causing  an  interruption  by  injuring 
the  lines  or  apparatus,  is  punishable  by  imprisonment  from 
three  months  to  two  years,  and  a  fine  of  100  to  1,000  francs. 
Any  one  who  shall  make  a  forcible  intrusion  into  an  office,  or 
shall  use  violence  or  menaces  to  signalers,  or  interfere  with 
the  repairs  of  the  line,  during  periods  of  insurrectionary 
movements,  is  subject  to  a  fine  of  1,000  to  5,000  francs. 

12th.  Written  statements  by  telegraph  officers,  authenticated 
by  police  or  magisterial  authorities,  to  be  received  as  evidence 
in  all  complaints  ;  also  rules  are  given  for  civil  proceedings  in 
all  cases  of  crimes,  contraventions  and  recovery  of  damages. 

13th.  It  is  ordered,  by  a  subsequent  decree,  that  all  tele- 
graphic dispatches,  duly  authenticated,  are  to  be  regarded  as 
official  and  authoritative,  and  to  have  all  the  force  and  effect 
of  public  documents,  signed  by  the  functionaries  at  the  distant 
station  from  whom  the  telegraph  dispatch  proceeds. 

The  telegraph  lines  in  France  are  nearly  all  owned  and 
managed  by  the  government.  The  English  Submarine  Com- 
pany, 'however,  is  a  private  enterprise,  and  works  from  Paris, 
through  Calais,  to  the  United  Kingdoms.  There  is  also  another 
company  organized  under  permission  of  the  imperial  govern- 
ment, for  the  extension  of  the  lines  into  the  French  colonies  ol 
Africa.  This  association  is  called  the  Mediterranean  Electric 
Telegraph  Company,  and  it  has  constructed  its  line  from  Spez- 
zia,  in  Sardinia,  across  Corsica,  Sardinia,  and  the  Mediterranean 
Sea,  to  Bone,  in  Africa ;  the  governments  of  France  and  Sar- 
dinia guaranteeing  a  fixed  percentage  on  a  given  amount  of  its 
capital  stock.  The  lines  just  mentioned  have  a  separate  office 
in  the  city  of  Paris,  and  receive  and  send  their  own  dispatches. 
Messages  for  these  lines,  however,  can  be  left  at  the  government 
stations. 

The  following  rules  of  regulation  are  for  the  government  of 
the  respective  lines  worked  by  the  French  government : 

REGULATIONS  ON   RECEIVING    AND   TRANSMITTING    DISPATCHES. 

1.  Every  message  received  at  an   office  is  to  be  numbered  in  the  order 
of  its  reception,  commencing  January  1st,  and   continuing  thereafter  in 
Eegular  order  through  the  year. 

2.  The  number  of  the  message,  and  the  sum  received,  are  to  be  tran- 
scribed on  a  check-book  containing  the  following  forms  : 


RECEIVING    AND    TRANSMITTING    DISPATCHES. 


771 


No.  4625. 

h.  m. 

Deposited  .  .  3  00 
Sent  ....  3  05 
Received  .  .  3  15 
Delivery  ...  3  45 

A.                  August  11,  1858. 

Paid  the  sum  of  eight  francs  and  sev- 
enty centimes,  for  the   transmission  of 
a  telegraphic    dispatch    from   Paris  to 
Marseilles.    Distance,  67  myriameters. 
No.  of  words,  15. 
f.   c. 
ni,a     a     (  French  lines  .     .     .    8  70 
Charge    |  Foreign  Unes     .     . 

Messenger      0  50 

B. 

No.  4625. 
August  11,  1858. 

Received    of   Mr.   Bernard 
nine  francs  and  twenty  cen- 
times,   for    a    dispatch   ad- 
dressed to    Mr.    Lefever,   at 
Marseilles.        Distance,      67 
myriameters.        Number    of 

Express          

f.   c. 

_ 

f.9  20 

(Signed.) 

Charge    {  Foreign  lines 
Messenger    0  50 
Express    ...         . 

BKRNARD. 

Extra  express  .... 

f.9  20 

On  the  back  of  the  receipt  B,  held  by  the  sender,  is  written  the  fol- 
lowing as  an  instruction,  viz. : 

"  No  reimbursement  can  be  made,  except  on  the  return  of  this  paper, 
receipted.  The  demands  for  reimbursements  must  designate  the  number 
of  the  register." 

3.  The  register  and  cash-book  are  arranged  to  serve  as  day-books,,  and 
every  day,  after  business  hours,  the  moneys  received  must  be  added  up, 
and  the  reimbursements  must  be  then  deducted. 

4.  The  expenses  incurred  for  travel,  postage,  and  all  other  payments, 
are  to  be  advanced  by  the  station-master,  and  not  to  be  taken  from  the 
money-drawer. 

5.  A  list  of  all  the  dispatches  sent  or  received,  and  all  moneys  received 
therefor,  must  be  transmitted  every  succeeding  day  to  the  administration 
of  telegraphs,  for  registration. 

6.  On  the  first  of  every  month,  or  when  the  receipts  amount  to  one 
thousand  francs,  payments  are  to  be  made  to  the  finance  receiver  of  the 
government,  at  which  time  a  full  settlement  is  made. 

7.  At  the  end  of  each  month,  the  director  of  the  station  must  submit 
a  report  of  his  receipts,  and  the  sums  refunded,  also  the  expenses  incurred 
for  travel,  express,  postage,  &c.     All  reports  are  to  be  made  to  the  cen- 
tral administration,  to  be  audited,  after  which  settlements  are  made  by 
the  inspectors  of  the  line. 

8.  Reimbursements  of  charges  on  dispatches,  in  consequence  of  delays 
or  errors  in  transmission,  cannot  be  made  except  by  the  administration. 

9.  The  directors  of  the  stations  may  reimburse  on  answers  to  messages 
paid  in  advance. 

10.  When  a  dispatch  is  withdrawn  by  the  forwarder,  before  or  during 
its  transmission,  the  expense  of  delivery  only  can  be  refunded. 

11.  In  all  cases,  no  reimbursement  can  be  made  except  on  the  return 
of  the  check  receipt  (B),  signed  by  the  sender.     The  check  is  then  to  be 
pasted  in  the  place  from  which  it  was  originally  taken. 

12.  The  financial  affairs  of  the  telegraph  offices  are  under  the  control  of 
the  inspectors  of  the  finances  of  the  line.     The  directors  of  the  stations 
must  keep  their  books,  conformably  to  the  rules  governing  accountants. 

13.  The  administration  of  the  telegraph  is  alone  responsible  for  the 
secrecy  of  dispatches. 

14.  The  charge  for  a  single  dispatch,  not  exceeding  fifteen  words,  from 
one  part  of  France  to  another,  is  2  francs  and  plus  10  centimes  for  each 
myriameter  of  distance  to  be  sent. 

15.  The  charge  on  messages  from  one  part  of  the  city  of  Paris  to  an- 


772  RECEIVING    AND    TRANSMITTING    DISPATCHES. 

other,  or  on  local  lines  in  other  cities,  is  one  franc.     From  and  to  places 
not  over  twenty  kilometers  from  Paris,  one  franc  and  fifty  centimes. 

16.  The  charge  for  each  additional  series  of  five  words,  or  a  fraction 
thereof,  over  the  fifteen  words,  is  to  be  charged  at  an  increase  of  ten  per 
cont. 

17.  No  charge  for  delivery  of  dispatches. 

18.  Every  fraction  of  a  myriameter  is  counted  as  a  whole.     The  dis- 
tance is  taken  on  an  air  line  on  the  map. 

19.  The  following  are  the  rules  for  counting  words,  viz. :  1st.  Compound 
nouns,  formed  of  separate  words  in  the  dictionary  of  the  French  Acade- 
my, s.uch  as  chief-director,  station-master,    &c.     2d.    Geographical  and 
family  names  formed  of  several  words,  not  including  in  the  latter  title  and 
Christian  names.     Each  word  or  name  in  a  business  firm  is' chargeable. 
3d.  Name  of  a  street  is  charged  as  one  word,  the  locality  described  is  one 
word.     This  rule  applies  only  in  the  address.     Numbers  written  in  full, 
count  as  many  words  as  are  used  to  express   them.     In  counting  figures 
five  make  a  word,  and  the  fraction  additional  counts  as  a  full  word.     A 
comma  or  a  bar  of  division  counts  as  a  figure,  thus  327,50  count  as  two 
words,  3,21  two  words,  the  ^  being  counted  as   three  and  the  comma  as 
one  figure  ;  4,32£  count  as  two  words ;  and  33:50,  are  counted  as  six  fig- 
ures or  two  words,  there  being  four  figures  and  two  points  additinoal. 

20.  Points  of  punctuation  in  the  common  language  and  orthography 
are  not  chargeable.     Parenthesis,  italization,   and  quotation-marks,   are 
counted  two  words  for  each.     Letters  separated  or  in  groups  are  regarded 
each  as  a  word.     All  signs  and  marks  are  counted  as  many  words 

as  are  required  to  express  them  respectively;  thus,  A  in  a  dia- 
mond,  counts  as  four  words. 

21.  Messages  for  several  stations  are  to  be  charged  as  follows  :  If  the 
dispatch  is  to  be  sent  from  station  A  to  B  and  C,  the  tariff  charged  at  A 
will  be  for  the  transmission  from  A  to  B,  and  then  the  tariff  from  B  to  C 
is  to  be  charged  on  the  message  to  be  dropped  at  C,  and  in  like  manner  to 
any  number  of  stations  desired. 

22.  When  a  dispatch  is  addressed  to  several  persons  in  the  same  town 
the  charge  for  transmission  is  to  be  on  one  dispatch  only,  but    on  every 
duplicate  delivered  to  other  persons,  the  cost  of  delivery  will  be  charged, 
and  for  the  copying  a  charge  of  fifty  centimes  will  be  required  for  each. 

23.  Any  one  wishing  a  copy  of  a  dispatch  either  sent  or  received  by  the 
person,  a  charge  of  fifty  centimes  will  be  required  for  copying  it,  and  for 
which  a  receipt  will  be  given  by  the  officer  of  the  station. 

24.  Any  one  wishing  information  of  the  time  of  the  delivery  of  a  dis- 
patch transmitted  by  such  person,    or  the  time   of  its  reception  at  th« 
destination  office,  a  charge  will  be  made,  equal  to  one  fourth  the  price 
of  a  dispatch  to  said  place.     For  this  payment  a  receipt  will  be  given. 

25.  For  having  a  message  repeated  back  to  the  sender,  full  tariff  will 
be  charged,  as  though  it  was  a  new  dispatch. 

26.  The  charge  on  dispatches  sent  in  the  night  will  be  double  the  usual 
tariff  for  the  day  business.     The  night  hours  are  from  9  p.  M.  to  8  A.  M., 
during  the  winter  months,  and  from  9  p.  M.  to  7  A.  M.,  during  the  remain- 
der of  the  year. 

27.  Answers  paid  for  in  advance,  are  to  be  charged   at  the  rate  of  a 
single  dispatch,  but  if  the  answer  should  exceed  the  payment  made,  it  can- 
not be  delivered  until  fully  paid.     If  no  answer  be  sent,  the  money  will 
be  returned. 

28.  When  anyone  to  whom  a  message  is  sent  does  not  live  in  the  local- 
ity of  the  destination  office,  the  sender  must  indicate  the  mode  of  its  de- 
livery, for  which  the  following  charges  shall  be  made,  viz. :  For  delivery 
at  post-office  half  franc,  plus  forty  centimes  for  postal  registration ;  for 


SUPERNUMERARIES CONDITIONS    OF    ADMISSION.  773 

sending  by  express,  one  franc  for  the  first  kilometer  and  fifty  centimes  for 
each  additional  kilometer ;  for  sending  by  courier  express  three  francs 
and  seventy-five  centimes  for  the  first  kilometer,  and  for  each  additional 
kilometer  thirty-seven  and  a  half  centimes. 

From  the  preceding  rules  it  will  be  seen  that  the  tariff  of 
charges  on  the  lines  in  France,  depends  upon  distance.  On 
the  reception  of  a  message  a  charge  is  made,  in  the  nature  of 
a  fee.  This  charge  is  2  francs  on  each  dispatch.  Besides  this, 
a  charge  of  10  centimes  is  made  for  each  myriameter  of  the 
distance  the  message  is  to  be  sent.  On  a  message  from  Paris 
to  Marseilles,  a  distance  of  67  myriameters,  or  about  400  miles 
air-line,  the  charge  will  be  8  francs  and  76  centimes.  The 
minimum  of  a  message  is  fifteen  words.  Over  fifteen  words, 
for  each  series  of  five  words  or  less,  the  charge  is  the  full  tariff 
of  the  15  words,  and  in  addition  ten  per  cent. 

To  determine  the  tariff  from  any  one  place  to  another,  a 
tape  measure  is  placed  upon  the  map  of  France,  between  the 
two  points.  The  measure  has  marked  upon  it  the  myriame- 
ters, and  thus  in  a  right  line  the  distance  is  known.  The  tariff 
is  then  estimated  upon  the  distance  thus  acquired. 

CONDITIONS  OF  ADMISSION    AS  A    SUPERNUMERARY,  INTO    THE  ADMIN- 
ISTRATION OF  THE  TELEGRAPH  LINES. 

(Enforced  by  Ministerial  Decree.) 

ART.  I.  The  personel  of  the  administration  of  the  telegraph 
lines,  is  recruited  by  means  of  a  competition  among  the  candi- . 
dates  for  the  places  of  supernumerary  station-masters.  One  third 
of  the  places,  however,  are  reserved  for  discharged  military 
men  of  all  grades,  who  can  read  and  write,  and  are  less  than 
thirty  years  of  age. 

ART.  II.  The  competition  for  said  positions  takes  place  at 
Paris  whenever  the  telegraph  service  requires. 

ART.  III.  Candidates  must  be  not  less  than  22  years  of  age, 
nor  more  than  28  years,  and  must  prove  their  rank  as  French- 
men. 

ART.  IY.   At  least  one  month  before  the  time  of  competition, 
they  must  furnish  the  following  evidences,  viz. : 
1st.  Their  certificate  of  birth. 
2d.  Certificate  of  discharge  from  military  service. 
3d.  Certificate  of  good  moral  character. 
ART.  Y.  They  must  furnish  satisfactory  evidences  of  their 
knowledge  of  the  following,  viz.  : 

1st.  The  mode  of  making  out  official  reports. 

2d.  Linear  drawings. 

3d.  Arithmetic  as  far  as  proportions. 


774  PREPARATORY  EDUCATION  OF  CANDIDATES. 

4th.  Elementary  geometry. 
5th.  Elements  of  chemistry. 

6th.  Elements  of  natural  and  physical  sciences,  espe- 
cially in  static  and  dynamic  electricity. 
7th.  The  drawing  of  plans. 
8th.  Leveling. 

ART.  VI.  The  knowledge  of  one  or  more  of  the  following 
languages,  viz. :  German,  English,  Italian,  and  Spanish,  will 
be  a  great  consideration  in  the  classing  of  the  candidate. 

ART.  VII.  The  director-general  of  telegraphs  will  preside 
over  the  examining  committee,  which  will  be  of  one  inspector- 
general,  director-general,  and  two  inspectors. 

ART.  VIII.  The  director-general  of  the  telegraph  lines  is 
charged  with  the  execution  of  the  above  decree. 

PROGRAMME  OF  PREPARATORY  EDUCATION  REQUIRED  OF  CANDIDATES 
FOR  THE  PLACE  OF  SUPERNUMERARY. 

(Fixed  by  Ministerial  Decree.) 

I.  ARITHMETIC. 

1st.  Decimal  numeration.  2d.  Addition  and  subtraction  of 
whole  numbers.  3d.  Multiplication  of  whole  numbers.  4th. 
The  product  of  several  whole  numbers  not  changed  by  insert- 
ing their  factors.  5th.  Division  of  whole  numbers.  6th.  To 
multiply  or  divide  a  number  by  the  product  of  many  factors, 
it  is  sufficient  to  multiply  or  divide  successively  by  the  factors 
of  the  product.  7th.  Theory  of  prime  numbers.  8th.  Decom- 
position of  a  number  into  its  prime  factors.  9th.  Greatest 
common  divisor.  10th.  Smallest  number  divisible  by  given 
numbers,  llth.  Vulgar  fractions.  12th.  Operations  with  vul- 
gar fractions.  13th.  Decimal  numbers.  14th.  Operation  with 
decimal  numbers.  15th.  To  reduce  vulgar  fractions  to  a  de- 
cimal, and  vice  versa.  16th.  System  of  legal  measures.  17th. 
Formation  of  squares  and  cubes  with  whole  numbers,  or  vul- 
gar or  decimal  fractions.  18th.  Extraction  of  square  and  cube 
roots.  19th.  Theory  of  proportions.  20th.  Rule  of  three. 
21st.  Simple  interest.  22d.  Rule  of  fellowship.  23d.  Allega- 
tions alternate  and  medial. 

II.  GEOMETRY. 

1st.  Right  line  and  plane.  2d.  Broken  line  and  curved. 
3d.  Angles,  triangles,  and  equilateral  triangles.  4th.  Parallel 
straight  lines.  5th.  Parallelograms,  and  the  properties  of  their 
sides,  angles,  and  diagonals.  6th.  Circumference  of  the  circle, 
cords  and  arcs.  7th.  Condition  of  contact  in  intersection  of 


PREPARATORY  EDUCATION  OF  CANDIDATES.  775 

two  circles.  8th.  Measurement  of  angles — inscribed  angles. 
9th.  Problems  in  the  construction  of  triangles.  10th.  Draw- 
ing of  perpendicular  and  parallel  lines,  llth.  Use  of  the  square 
and  protractor.  12th.  Verification  of  the  square.  13th.  Pro- 
portional lines.  14th.  Similar  triangles  and  similar  polygons. 
15th.  To  divide  a  given  right  line  into  parts  proportional  to  the 
length  given.  16th.  To  construct  upon  a  given  right  line  a 
polygon  similar  to  a  given  polygon.  17th.  Regular  polygons. 
18th.  They  may  be  inscribed  and  circumscribed  by  a  circle. 
19th.  To  inscribe  a  regular  hexagon.  20th.  The  ratio  of  a 
circumference  to  its  diameter,  a  constant  number.  21st.  Ap- 
proximate valuation  of  the  ratio  of  the  circumference  to  the 
diameter.  22d.  Measures  of  areas.  23d.  Areas  of  similar  poly- 
gons. 24th.  Areas  of  a  circle  of  a  sector  of  a  segment  of  a 
circle.  25th.  Two  right  lines  which  cut  each  other — define  a 
plane.  26th.  Condition  in  which  a  right  line  is  perpendicular 
to  a  plane.  27th.  Parallelism  of  right  lines  and  of  planes. 
28th.  Measurement  of  problems  of  dihedral  and  trihedral  an- 
gles. 29th.  Of  the  parallelopipedon  and  its  measurement.  30th. 
Pyramids  and  their  measurements.  31st.  Contents  of  a  frus- 
tum of  a  pyramid.  32d.  Of  similar  polygons.  33d.  Of  cones 
and  cylinders  with  circular  base.  34th.  Lateral  surface. 
35th.  Contents  of  bodies.  36th.  Spheres.  37th.  Areas  of  a 
zone.  38th.  Areas  of  a  whole  sphere.  39th.  Contents  of  the 
sphere  section  of  a  whole  sphere. 

III.  ENGINEERING. 

1st.  To  trace  a  right  line  upon  the  ground.  2d.  Measure- 
ment of  a  portion  of  a  right  line  by  means  of  a  chain.  3d. 
Measuring  by  the  metre.  4th.  Drawing  of  perpendiculars. 
5th.  Use  of  the  surveyor's  square.  6th.  Grraphometer  and  its 
use.  7th.  Drafting.  8th.  Scale  of  reduction.  9th.  Drawing 
by  the  plane.  10th.  Sketching. 

IY.  PHYSICS. 

1st.  Comparison  and  measurement  of  forces.  2d.  Weights 
and  measures.  3d.  Equilibrium  of  liquids.  4th.  Principle  of 
the  transmission  of  pressure.  5th.  Measurement  of  density. 
6th.  Areometer.  7th.  Atmospheric  pressure.  8th.  Barome- 
ter. 9th.  Pneumatic  machine.  10th.  Areostat.  llth.  Heat 
and  dilation.  12th.  Construction  and  use  of  thermometers. 
13th.  Density  of  gases.  14th.  Freezing  mixtures.  15th. 
Measurement  of  elastic  forces.  16th.  Of  steam  at  different 
temperatures.  17th.  Mixture  of  gases  and  vapors.  18th 
Hygrometer.  19th.  Rain  and  snow.  20th.  Regular  and 


776 


PREPARATORY    EDUCATION    OF    CANDIDATES. 


irregular  winds.  21st.  Fog  and  dew.  22d.  Electricity.  23d. 
Conductors,  non-conductors  and  power  of  points.  24th.  Elec- 
tricity by  induction.  25th.  Electroscope.  26th.  Electric  Ma- 
chines. 27th.  Electric  batteries.  28th.  Leyden  jar.  29th. 
Electrometers.  30th.  Thunder.  31st.  Lightning  rods.  32d. 
Return  currents.  33d.  Magnets.  34th.  Poles  of  magnets. 
35th.  Process  of  magnetization.  36th.  Armature  of  magnets. 
37th.  Magnetic  needle.  38th.  Magnetic  meridian.  39th. 
Declination  and  inclination.  40th.  Terrestrial  magnetism. 
41st.  The  compass.  42d.  Batteries,  and  of  their  different 
kinds.  43d.  Their  organization.  44th.  Theory  of  the  bat- 
teries. 45th.  Luminous  and  calorific  and  mechanical  effects. 
46th,  Chemical  effects  of  batteries.  47th.  Gralvanoplastic. 
48th.  Silvering  and  gilding.  49th.  Decomposition  of  water 
by  means  of  the  battery.  50th.  Dry  batteries.  51st.  Elec- 
tro-magnetism. 52d.  Deviation  of  the  magnetic  needle  by 
means  of  a  current  of  electricity.  53d.  Attraction  and  repul- 
sion of  a  magnet  by  means  of  a  current  of  electricity.  54th. 
Galvanometer  or  multiplier.  55th.  Currents  produced  by  or- 
dinary electricity.  56th.  Magnetization  by  means  of  cur- 
rents of  electricity.  57th.  Magnetization  of  soft  iron  by 
means  of  a  current.  58th.  Operation  of  magnetism  in  motion. 
59th.  Thermo-electricity  and  its  theory.  60th.  Electrical  ac- 
tion of  Daniel's  and  Bunson's  batteries.  61st.  Conductibility 
of  metals.  62d.  Laws  of  the  intensity  of  the  current  in  a 
homogeneous  circuit,  and  also  in  a  heterogeneous  circuit.  63d. 
Intensity  of  currents  and  the  laws  of  deviation. 

Y.  CHEMISTRY. 

1st.  Simple  bodies.  2d.  Compound  bodies.  3d.  Nomen- 
clatures. 4th.  Acids,  bases,  and  salts.  5th.  Oxygen.  6th. 
Combustion.  7th.  Azote.  8th.  Atmospheric  air.  9th.  Hy- 
drogen. 10th.  Water,  llth.  Carbon.  12th.  Carbonic  acid. 
L3th.  Carbonized  hydrogen.  14th.  G-as  for  lighting.  15th. 
Azote  gas.  16th.  Amonics.  17th.  Sulphur.  18th.  Sulphu- 
ric acid.  19th.  Sulphurous  acid.  20th.  Sulphuretted  hydro- 
gen. 21st.  Phosphorus.  22d.  Phosphoric  acid.  23d.  Phos- 
phoretted  hydrogen.  24th.  Chloride.  25th.  Chlorhydric  acid. 
26th.  Salts  in  general.  27th.  Laws  of  Berthollet.  28th.  Cal- 
careous earths.  29th.  Hydraulic  limes.  30th.  Mortars  and 
plasters.  31st.  Potash.  32d.  Soda.  33d.  Sulphate  of  soda. 
34th.  Marine  salts.  35th.  Iron,  zinc,  tin,  copper,  and  mer- 
cury, and  their  salts.  36th.  Sulphate  of  copper.  37th.  Of 
silver,  gold  and  platina,  and  the  character  of  their  salts. 
38th.  Theory  of  metallurgy.  39th.  Theory  of  mining,  etc. 


CHAPTEK    LVII. 

Russian  Government  Telegraph — Categorical  Arrangement  of  Dispatches- 
Regulations  for  Receiving  and  Sending  Dispatches — Classification  and 
Tariff  of  Charges — Regulation  of  the  Clocks. 

RUSSIAN    GOVERNMENT    TELEGRAPHS. 

THE  telegraphs  of  Russia  are  all  government  lines  and  under 
the  minister  of  public  buildings,  ways,  and  communications. 
The  lines  were  built  by  private  contractors,  and  surrendered  to 
the  government  from  time  to  time,  as  completed. 

There  have  been  no  efforts  to  extend  the  telegraph  under  pri- 
vate companies,  nor  is  there  any  probability  that  such  will  be 
the  case.  To  some  readers  many  of  the  rules  governing  the 
transmission  of  dispatches  on  the  lines  in  Russia,  and  other 
parts  of  Europe,  may  be  considered  as  too  severe  and  arbitrary. 
Practically  such  is  not  the  case.  In  Russia  the  lines  are  open 
to  individuals  for  their  private  business.  Commercial  affairs 
are  not  restricted.  Full  liberty  and  protection  are  given  to 
every  person  in  the  transmission  of  domestic,  social  or  business 
dispatches.  It  is  to  prevent  the  abuse  of  those  privileges  that 
the  government  has  adopted  the  rules,  which  to  the  American 
reader  may  be  regarded  as  too  stringent.  The  following,  is- 
sued by  the  minister  of  public  buildings,  ways,  and  communi- 
cations, and  approved,  by  His  Majesty  the  Emperor,  will 
give  an  idea  as  to  the  administration  of  the  telegraphs  in 
Russia : 

CATEGORICAL    ARRANGEMENT    OF    DISPATCHES. 

1st.  The  dispatches  transmissible  over  the  telegraph,  shall  be 
divided  into  five  categories,  viz.  : 

1st.  Orders  from,  and  reports  to,  His  Majesty  the  Em- 
peror. Dispatches  to  and  from  royal  families. 
£d.  Government  dispatches,  such  as  from  the  com- 
mander-in-chief,  minister  of  foreign  affairs,  military 
governor-generals,  governor-generals,  military  and 
civil  governors,  military  commanders,  and  reports  to 
the  government. 

3d.  Dispatches  of  the  administration  of  the  telegraphs. 
4th.  Dispatches  of   the  minister  of  public   buildings, 
ways,  and  communications. 
777 


778          RUSSIAN    TELEGRAPHS GOVERNMENT    REGULATIONS. 

5th.  Private  dispatches,  without  regard  to  rank  or  con- 
dition. (The  private  dispatches  of  public  functionaries 
belong  to  this  class.) 

REGULATIONS  FOR  RECEIVING  AND  SENDING  DISPATCHES. 

2d.  The  reception  and  sending  of  dispatches  take  place  in 
the  order  of  their  presentation,  except  in  cases  under  the  first 
class  before  mentioned. 

3d.  Dispatches  can  only  be  received  at  the  telegraph  station, 
and  in  the  apartment  devoted  to  that  purpose,  except  imperial 
messages,  which  are  to  be  received  at  any  of  the  palaces  of  His 
Majesty  the  Emperor. 

4th.  Under  no  circumstances  can  any  one  enter  the  operating 
room,  unless  employed  therein. 

5th.  Dispatches  are  received  every  day,  Sundays  not  ex- 
cepted.  Government  dispatches  can  be  received  day  or  night. 
Private  dispatches  are  to  be  presented  at  the  station  between  the 
hours  of  8  A.  M.  and  3  p.  M.  ;  after  that  hour  the  tariff  is 
double.  Between  8  p.  M.  and  8  A.  M.  dispatches  can  be  re- 
ceived and  sent  by  giving  notice  in  advance,  and  the  payment 
of  the  tariff  of  a  dispatch.  If  the  dispatch  is  not  presented,  the 
money  is  forfeited  to  the  government. 

6th.  Every  dispatch  must  be  signed  by  the  sender,  and  a  de- 
tailed address  must  be  given.  It  must  be  written  only  on  one 
side  of  the  official  forms,  furnished  at  the  station,  that  the  same 
may  be  filed,  by  pasting  it  in  a  book  arranged  for  that  purpose. 
All  dispatches  must  be  written  with  ink. 

7th.  Dispatches  of  the  interior  are  to  be  written  in  the  Rus- 
sian language.  From  St.  Petersburg  to  "Warsaw,  to  Helsing- 
fors,  Cronstadt,  Dunaburg  and  Riga,  may  be  written  in  the 
French,  German,  or  Russian  language.  Foreign  dispatches 
may  be  written  in  French,  German,  Russian,  or  English  lan- 
guage. Dispatches  to  and  from  members  of  the  imperial 
family,  and  government  dispatches,  may  be  written  in  cipher, 
provided  the  cipher  be  composed  of  figures,  Russian  or  Latin 
letters. 

8th.  Dispatches  containing  exchange  news  may  contain 
ciphers,  but  the  sender  must  explain  the  meaning  of  each 
cipher  to  the  administration,  and  sign  the  same,  giving  a 
satisfactory  guarantee  as  to  responsibility. 

9th.  In  no  case  whatever  can  a  political  dispatch  be  re- 
ceived. 

10th.  Government  dispatches  are  not  within  the  control  of 
the  station  officers  of  the  telegraph,  and  they  cannot  be  stopped. 

llth.  Private  dispatches  containing  anything  contrary  to  the 


RUSSIAN    TELEGRAPHS GOVERNMENT   REGULATIONS.  779 

laws,  or  incompatible  with  the  public  good,  or  containing  ob- 
jectionable language,  cannot  be  transmitted.  All  such  dis- 
patches are  strictly  forbidden  to  be  sent,  and  it  is  the  duty  of 
the  officer  of  the  station  to  transmit  them  forthwith  to  the  min- 
ister of  communications.  Payment  for  them  is  to  be  refused. 
Should  it  happen  that  the  dispatch  be  forwarded  through  inad- 
vertence, it  is  the  duty  of  any  other  station  officer  to  stop  its 
delivery,  and  to  transmit  it  to  the  minister  of  communications. 
The  money  is  to  be  forfeited  to  the  government,  if  the  dispatch 
is  found  objectionable.  When  a  dispatch,  as  above  described,  is 
received  from  a  foreign  country,  it  is  not  to  be  delivered  ;  but 
it  must  be  sent  to  the  minister  of  communications,  and  notice 
of  that  fact  must  be  sent  to  the  stations  from  which  the  dis- 
patch originated. 

12th.  Any  one  aggrieved  by  any  act  of  the  telegraph,  may 
address  the  minister  of  communications. 

13th.  Government  dispatches  and  messages  between  impe- 
rial and  royal  families  are  unlimited.  Private  dispatches  can- 
not exceed  100  words,  unless  the  line  is  unemployed  with  other 
business.  One  person  cannot  send  but  one  dispatch  until  the 
line  has  sent  all  others  offered.  Duplicate  dispatches  can  be 
delivered  in  the  same  town  by  the  payment  of  20  copecks  (15 
cents),  for  each  duplicate  delivered.  For  copies  sent  to  other 
stations,  full  charge  is  to  be  made. 

14th.  A  sender  of  a  dispatch  may  pay  one  fourth  the  tariff  of 
a  message,  and  he  will  be  entitled  to  be  informed  by  the  sta- 
tion, the  exact  time  of  the  reception  of  his  dispatch,  either  at 
the  destination  station,  or  at  the  residence  of  the  person  to  whom 
the  message  was  sent.  The  price  for  sending  back  the  message 
for  collation,  is  one  half  the  tariff  of  a  message. 

15th.  The  identity  of  the  sender  can  be  certified  to,  on  a  dis- 
patch, by  the  station  receiving  the  same.  In  such  cases,  the 
sending  station  adds  the  following,  viz. :  "  The  administra- 
tion of  the  telegraph  attests  the  identity  of  the  sender."  The 
charge  for  this  certificate  is  31  copecks  (about  23^  cents).  In 
case  the  director  of  the  station  does  not  know  the  sender  of  the 
dispatch,  his  identity  can  be  established  by  a  passport,  foreign 
or  local,  or  by  some  officer  of  a  police  tribunal. 

16th.  The  maximum  of  a  single  dispatch  is  25  words. 

17th.  No  dispatch  can  be  transmitted  until  it  has  been  ex- 
amined by  the  director  of  the  station,  whose  duty  it  is  to  see 
that  it  does  not  contain  any  objectionable  matter.  When  ap- 
proved, it  is  sent. 

18th.  After  a  dispatch  has  been  received  and  in  transitu,  if 
the  direct  line  gets  out  of  order,  the  sender  is  not  to  Dav  the 


780    , 


TARIFF    OF    CHARGES. 


TARIFF    OF    CHARGES. 


781 


26  28          30  32 


4? 


ft-ala 


Kronsi 


fllTTl 


in: 


782 


TARIFF  OF  CHARGES. 


extra  expense  for  sending  the  dispatch  by  a  more  circuitous 
route. 

19th.  Dispatches  cancelled  by  order  of  the  sender,  after  trans- 
mission and  before  delivery,  cannot  be  returned,  and  the  fee 
for  cancelling  is  half  the  tariff  of  the  message.  If  cancelled 
before  transmission,  the  money  is  returned,  except  15  copecks. 

20th.  All  messages  to  or  from  members  of  the  imperial  fami- 
ly are  free  on  all  the  lines  in  the  empire.  On  all  dispatches  to 
be  sent  over  foreign  lines,  the  tariff  for  the  foreign  service  is 
paid  through  the  minister  of  the  imperial  household. 


CLASSIFICATION    AND    TARIFF    OF    CHARGES. 

21st.  Private  dispatches  are  arranged  in  the  folio  wing  classes, 
viz. : 


1st   Class  not  to  exceed  25  words. 
2d        "    from  25  to       50       " 
3d        "       "      50  to     100       " 


4th  Class  from  100  to  125  words. 
5th     "         "      125  to  150      " 
6th     "        "      150  to  200      « 


The  price  of  dispatches  as  thus  classified  is  as  follows : 
Taking  a  given  office  as  a  centre,  describe  a  circle  70  versts  or 
10  Grerman  geographic  miles,  or  about  46  miles,  English  each 
from  the  centre.  Within  this  circle  is  called  the  first  zone. 

The  following  are  the  prices  arranged  upon  the  bases  of  the 
zones,  as  prescribed  by  the  government.  This  tariff  may  be 
changed  from  time  to  time,  but  the  principle  will  most  likely 
continue  for  all  time : 


No. 

Width  of  the 

1st  Class. 

2d  Class. 

3d  Class. 

4th    Class. 

5th    Class. 

of 

25  to  50 

50  to  100 

100  to  125 

125  to  150 

Zones. 

Zones, 

25  Words. 

Words. 

Words. 

Words. 

Words. 

I. 

70 

62 

1 

24 

l'     86 

2 

48 

3 

10 

II. 

175 

1 

24 

2 

48 

3      72 

4 

96 

6 

20 

m. 

315 

1 

86 

3 

72 

5       58 

7 

44 

9 

30 

IV. 

490 

2 

48 

4 

96 

7  !     44 

9 

92 

12 

40 

v. 

700 

3 

10 

6 

20 

9  ,    39 

12 

40 

15 

50 

VI. 

945 

3-    72 

7 

44 

11      16 

14 

88 

IS 

60 

VII. 

1,225 

4 

34 

8 

68 

13       02 

17 

36 

21 

70 

vm. 

1,540 

4 

96 

9|    92 

14  !     88 

20 

84 

24 

80 

IX. 

1,890 

5 

58 

11       16 

16      74 

23 

32 

27 

90 

X. 

2,275 

6 

20 

1     40 

18      60 

24 

80 

31 

00 

J 

22d.  The  address  and  signature  on  a  dispatch  are  not  count- 
ed. Seven  syllables  is  the  maximum  for  a  word.  Exceeding 
that  number,  the  fraction  will  count  as  two  words.  Compound 
words  with  hyphens  are  counted  as  two  words  ;  without  the  hy- 
phen they  are  counted  by  syllables.  Punctuation,  apostrophes, 
and  quotation  marks,  are  free.  Every  separate  letter,  as  "r,"  is 


REGULATION  OF  THE  CLOCKS.  783 

counted  as  a  word.  Numbers  written  separately  are  counted 
as  words ;  but  when  united,  five  figures  are  considered  as  a 
word,  and  all  points  of  punctuation,  such  as  commas,  semi- 
colons, in  the  use  of  figures,  etc.,  are  counted  each  as  a  figure. 
Fractions  of  a  series  of  five  figures  count  as  a  word.  The  dash 
in  fractions  (^)  is  counted  as  a  figure  ;  thus  260^  counts  as  two 
words.  In  cipher  messages  five  figures  compose  a  word ;  if 
singly,  each  is  a  word  ;  if  together,  the  whole  is  divided  by  five 
to  get  the  number  of  words  chargeable.  When  figures  and  let- 
ters are  run  together,  the  whole  is  divided  by  five,  as  in  prece- 
ding case.  Prefixes  to  proper  names  count  as  separate  words, 
such  as  "Yon,"  "  De,"  "  La,"  «  Van,"  "Der,"  etc. 

23d.  The  tariff  on  cipher  dispatches  is  fifty  per  cent,  more 
than  the  charges  on  ordinary  messages. 

24th.  If  the  sender  does  not  pay  enough  for  the  transmission 
of  a  message,  by  fault  of  the  officer  receiving  it,  he  cannot  be 
made  to  pay  the  deficit,  but  the  officer  receiving  the  dispatch 
must  pay  the  balance  due,  in  the  form  of  a  fine.  If  the  sender 
overpays  on  a  dispatch,  the  amount  must  be  refunded. 

25th.  In  case  a  message  is  missent,  lost,  transmitted  incor- 
rectly, or  fails  to  reach  its  destination  in  time,  the  sender  has 
permission  to  petition  the  minister  of  communications,  within 
six  months,  for  the  sum  paid  to  be  refunded. 

26th.  The  officers  of  stations  must  report  monthly  to  the  min- 
ister of  communications,  a  full  account  of  their  transactions. 

REGULATION    OF    THE    CLOCKS'. 

27th.  All  the  clocks  on  the  telegraph  lines  are  to 'be  regula- 
ted by  the  time  in  St.  Petersburg.  Each  station  is  provided 
with  a  table  showing  the  difference  in  time.  Each  station  is 
required  to  correct  its  clock  daily ;  thus  before  8  o'clock,  A.  M., 
the  director  of  the  station  in  His  Majesty  the  Emperor's  palace, 
in  St.  Petersburg,  commands  "  attention."  At  that  moment  the 
pendulum  of  every  clock  on  all  the  lines  must  be  stopped,  and 
their  hands  placed  at  8  precisely.  Standing  in  the  window  of 
the  Winter  Palace  above  mentioned,  the  director,  at  8  o'clock 
exactly,  presses  upon  the  signal  key  of  his  instrument,  and  at 
that  instant  the  needle  of  the  galvanometer  at  each  station 
descends  to  its  normal  state,  and  the  clocks  are  set  in  motion. 

28th.  After  the  fixing  of  the  time,  each  morning,  the  direc- 
tors of  the  respective  stations  transmit  to  the  director  at  the 
palace,  the  business  of  the  preceding  day,  embracing,  1st. 
D  ispatches  transmitted  ;  2d.  Dispatches  received  ;  and  3d.  Dis- 
patches repeated  in  transitu. 


CHAPTEK    LVIII. 


European  International  Tariff— English  International  Tariff— Rules  and  Regu- 
lations— The  Hague  Range — Rules  and  Regulations — The  French  Range, 

EUROPEAN  INTERNATIONAL  TARIFF. 

THE  tariff  on  international  dispatches  between  most  of  the 
governments  of  Europe,  has  been  regulated  by  two  agreements : 
one  was  made  at  Berlin,  June  29,  1855,  and  the  other  at  Paris, 
December  29,  1855. 

The  first  agreement  embraced  Austria,  Prussia,  Holland,  and 
the  whole  Germanic  confederacy.  Russia,  Turkey,  and  the 
Italian  states — except  Sardinia — have  conformed  to  the  rules 
adopted  at  the  conventions. 

1st.  The  basis  of  the  tariff  is  as  follows,  viz. : 


DISTANCES. 

TARIFF  OF  CHARGES 

From  1  to  25 
words  inclusive. 

From  26  to  50 
words  inclusive. 

From  50  to  100 
words  inclusive. 

From     1  to      75  kilometers,  1st  zone. 
"        75  to    190          "            2d      " 
"      190  to   340          "           3d      <; 
"      340  to    525          "           4th    " 
«'      525  to   750          "            5th    " 
"      750-tol015          "            6th    " 

2}£  francs. 
5        « 
1%     « 
10        " 
12  M     " 
15        '• 

5  francs. 
10        " 
15        « 
20        « 
25 
30        « 

7^  francs. 
15        " 
22^     « 
30        " 
37  %     « 
45        " 

2d.  The  distances  are  computed  in  a  straight  line  across 
each  country.  A  single  dispatch  to  be  not  above  25  words. 
The  name  of  the  forwarding  station  and  the  date  are  sent  free. 
The  address,  when  not  exceeding  5  words,  is  free ;  beyond  5 
words  in  the  address,  the  additional  is  charged  at  the  same 
rates  as  the  dispatch.  Every  separate  character  or  figure 
counts  as  a  word.  Numbers  above  5  figures,  represent  as  many 
words  as  they  contain  5  figures,  that  is  to  say,  five  figures  is 
considered  equal  to  a  word.  Fractionals  under  5  figures  count 
as  a  word. 

3d.  The  greatest  length  of  a  dispatch  is  fixed  at  100  wor$s. 
Beyond  100  words,  commences  a  new  dispatch,  to  take  its  turn 
with  other  dispatches.  One  person  cannot  send  several  dis- 
patches in  succession,  except  when  no  other  dispatches  are 
waiting  for  transmission. 

4th.  An  acknowledgment  of  the  receipt  of  a  dispatch  is 
charged  one  fourth  the  price  of  a  dispatch  of  25  words.  If  the 
whole  dispatch  is  sent  back  in  order  to  be  collated,  the  charge 

784 


EUROPEAN     INTERNATIONAL    TARIFF. 


785 


is  to  be  one  half  of  the  price  for  a  dispatch  of  25  words.  If  the 
receiver  of  the  dispatch  wishes  to  collate  the  message,  he  will 
be  charged  the  full  price  of  a  dispatch  of  25  words. 

5th.  Answers  may  be  paid  for  in  advance,  such  answers  not 
exceeding  ten  words  (the  five  words  for  the  address  not  to  be 
counted),  the  charge  to  be  half  the  tariff  for  a  single  dispatch. 
If  the  answer  does  not  arrive  within  five  days  succeeding  its 
demand,  the  charge  made  for  it,  less  25  per  cent.,  is  refunded. 

6th.  Dispatches  to  be  forwarded  to  any  number  of  interme- 
diate stations,  are  to  be  considered  as  separate  dispatches  to 
each  station,  and  charged  in  full. 

7th.  Dispatches,  of  which  several  copies  are  to  be  delivered 
in  the  town  of  the  office  to  which  they  are  sent, — full  charge  to 
be  made  for  the  first,  and  nine  tenths  of  a  franc  for  each  addi- 
tional copy. 

8th.  When  any  one,  sending  a  message,  wishes  to  prove  his 
identity  to  the  place  to  which  his  dispatch  is  sent,  he  must 
pay  1J  francs  additional. 

9th.  Night  dispatches  are  charged  double  in  all  places  where 
night  service  is  not  permanent.  No  night  dispatch  is  to  be 
accepted  unless  notice  thereof  be  given  during  the  preceding 
day.  A  portion,  not  less  than  one  half  of  the  charge  on  a  sin- 
gle dispatch,  must  be  paid  when  the  notice  is  given.  If  the 
dispatch  is  not  presented  in  due  time  according  to  previous 
notice,  the  money  paid  is  not  to  be  refunded. 

10th.  The  expenses  of  the  delivery  of  dispatches  are  to  be  paid 
in  advance.  For  the  delivery  by  postal  registration  the  charge 
is  to  be  uniformly  15  centimes  in  the  country  in  which  the 
destination  office  is  located,  and  one  and  a  half  francs  for  local- 
ities out  of  the  country  on  the  continent  of  Europe.  Messages 
delivered  within  the  circle  of  the  locality  of  the  destination 
office,  a  charge  of  two  and  a  half  francs  is  to  be  made,  and  to 
be  paid  in  advance.  Beyond  the  circle  of  the  locality,  where 
it  is  possible  to  employ  horse  express,  the  charge  is  be  4  francs 
for  each  myriameter. 

The  second  convention  was  concluded  between  France,  Bel- 
gium, Spain,  Sardinia,  and  Switzerland.  The  following  table 
represents  the  tariff  scale  adopted,  viz. : 


DISTANCES. 

NUMBER   OF  WOR1>S. 

From  1  to  15  words. 

For  each  additional 
or  fractions  over  15 

5  words 

words. 

1st  zone, 
2d        " 
3d         " 
4th       " 
5th       " 

from  1  to    100  kilometers. 
100  to    250            " 
250  to    450            " 
460  to    700            " 
700  to  1000            " 

1* 
3 

4i 
6 

7* 

francs. 

M 

$  franc. 
1        " 
11      " 
!2        " 
2*      " 

786 


ENGLISH     INTERNATIONAL    TARIFF. 


1st.  Dispatches  for  private  persons  are  of  two  kinds,  ordina- 
ry and  urgent. 

The  first,  or  ordinary,  are  transmitted  under  the  rules  de- 
scribed. The  second,  or  urgent,  are  to  be  considered  under 
special  regulations,  viz. :  The  sender  must  direct  in  writing  the 
dispatch  to  be  transmitted  as  "  URGENT."  The  tariff  for  urgent 
dispatches  is  to  be  triple  The  length  of  such  dispatches  are 
not  to  exceed  fifteen  words,  the  name  of  the  office  from  which 
sent  and  the  date  to  be  free.  Five  words  for  address  to  be  free, 
and  all  additional  to  be  charged  full  rates  for  transmission. 

2d.  For  duplicate  dispatches  delivered  in  the  same  town  the 
charge  is  to  be  one  franc  for  each  copy. 

3d.  The  rules  adopted  by  the  preceding  convention,  not  in 
conflict  with  the  above,  to  be  adopted  by  this  convention. 

In  the  transmission  of  dispatches  destined  for  Sweden,  Nor- 
way, and  Denmark,  the  rules  of  the  first  convention  are  applied 
as  far  as  Hamburg,  beyond  which  place  the  charges  are  special, 
and  of  the  respective  countries  named.  The  following  is  the 
tariff  to  the  respective  capitals  to  and  from  Hamburg,  viz. : 


from  1  to  25  words. 

From  26  to  50  words. 

From  51  to  100  words. 

Stockholm  . 

Christiana  

10     "    24        " 

20    "        17        '' 

30    "        12        " 

Copenhagen 

2    "     85        " 

5     "        70        " 

8     "        55        " 

On  dispatches  for  England,  the  basis  adopt'ed  is  the  same  as 
the  rules  embraced  in  the  convention  between  France  and  Bel- 
gium, Sardinia  and  Switzerland. 

All  the  towns  in  the  "United  Kingdom  are  considered  in  the 
5th  zone,  reckoning  from  Calais.  The  charge  for  a  dispatch  of 
fifteen  words  to  any  part  of  England  is  seven  and  a  half  francs. 
The  charge  on  each  additional  five  words  or  fraction  thereof, 
is  two  and  a  half  francs. 

ENGLISH  INTERNATIONAL    TARIFF. 

Between  England  and  the  Continent  of  Europe,  through  the 
Hague  route,  there  is  a  separate  arrangement  from  those  describ- 
ed. The  rules  and  section  of  the  tariff  herewith  given,  are  not 
to  be  considered  as  fixed,  as  they  are  subject  to  continual 
change.  I  give  them  to  show  the  mode  of  business,  between 
the  countries  mentioned,  and  though  some  of  the  rules  and  the 
tariff  of  charges  may  be  changed  from  time  to  time,  yet  the 
general  course  of.  business  in  contradistinction  with  the  tele- 
graph in  America,  may  be  considered  as  permanent.  These 
rules  are  of  as  late  date  as  those  adopted  between  France  and 
the  other  continental  governments. 


ENGLISH  INTERNATIONAL  TARIFF.  787 

The  direct  telegraphic  connection  between  France  and  Eng- 
land, is  through  the  submarine  company,  via  Dover  and  Calais. 
That  route  is  embraced  in  the  rules  given  under  the  conven- 
tions with  France.  The  following  "  Explanations,"  &c.,  re- 
late to  the  route  to  Europe,  via  the  Hague,  in  Holland,  by 
the  International  Telegraph  Company  in  connection  with  the 
pioneer  company  of  the  United  Kingdom,  the  Electric  Tele- 
graph Company. 

In  the  arrangement  of  this  tariff,  however,  an  opportunity  is 
afforded,  for  the  sender  of  a  message  to  select  the  route  over 
which  he  desires  his  dispatch  to  be  transmitted,  whether  by  the 
submarine  cable  to  Calais,  France,  by  the  cable  to  Ostend, 
Belgium,  or  by  the  cable  to  the  Hague,  Holland. 

EXPLANATION  OF  MARGINAL    REFERENCES. 

The  letters  which  stand  first  in  the  margin  denote  the  "  Country/7  and 
at  once  show  the  route  by  which  the  message  must  be  forwarded. 

B — Belgium  ...  ...  ...  ...  . . .    B  route 

F — France ...  ...  ...  ...       ditto    . 

G — Germany,  or  places  belonging  to  the  Austro-Germanic  Union  A  route 
S — Sardinia  or  Switzerland,  direct,  quickest,  but  dearest  ...  C  ditto 
"  ditto,  indirect,  but  cheapest  ...  ...  A  ditto 

;'  B-7  route  is  only  to  be  used  in  case  of  break-down  on  "A"  and  "C" 
routes. 

The  figure  1  or  2,  in  margin,  directs  attention  to  the  rules  and  regula- 
tions followed  by  stations  to  which  they  are  affixed. 

The  letters  which  stand  next  in  the  margin  denote  the  language  in 
which  messages  may  be  taken - 

D         Dutch, 

E      :"  y.i'»  v      .  -  -          .  •  •          . .  ...          ...       English, 

F         French, 

G  ...          ...          ...          ...          ...       German. 

I          .'.'.'        * '.  Italian. 

The  languages  taken  at  each  station  are  indicated  by  initial  letters  in 
the  margin,  and  NO  OTHERS  ARE  ACCEPTED.     The  public,  therefore,  should 
be  particularly  requested  to  write  their  messages  in  one  of  these  lan- 
guages, and  in  case  they  fail  to  comply  with  this  request,  they  should  be 
informed  that,   although  the  utmost  care  will  be  taken  to  translate  their 
messages  correctly,  the  company  cannot  be  held  responsible  for  any  mis-  - 
takes  which  may  arise  from  this  cause. 
Stations  in  italics  are  always  open. 

In  case  of  "  Interruption  of  Communication/'  messages  must  be  for- 
warded by  the  route  specified  in  the  service  message  (SU)  announcing  the 
fact. 

In  such  cases,  the  words  «  For  answer  from/'  «  To  »  ("  No.  of  Words  ") 
"  Amount  paid/7  &c.,  are  to  be  telegraphed  without  charge. 


788 


TARIFF    OF    CHARGES. 


m 


P3 


M 
o 


ft 
fe 

H 
fi 


o 

c 


; 

I 

rc 

§ 

rH  • 

3 

i—  < 

o 

*Q  i£>  i»  CO                    CD        CD  CD  CO        CO        CO        CO 

^OOfM            •        O-CqcDO-CD        00     'CO 
T^  i""i  rH              •          rH       •          rH  rH       •  i-H          T—  •  <       • 

c^  co  cc  <M                co      rococo       co      oq      -* 

„  1 

"     B 

o-i 

y      "3 

u      « 

H 

1 

S 

o 

o 

3 
$ 

T3  O  O  O               OO         OOO         O         O         O 

c^t^t—  1C)             -t>.t^      •  O  T-I  rH       •  rH         Ci      -OS 

r-i             •                    •  T-H  rH  r-4      •  rH         rH      •  rH 

«f?  Cq  <M  rH                 rH  <M          (N  C<1  (M          C<I          rH          C^ 

.2 
'> 

J 

I 

E 

8 

3 

^'cococo           coco      cococo      co      co      co 

6,-COCOt^            -COCO      -t^lOlO      -10         OS      •  CS 
^r-lrHO                OrH         rHrHrH          rH         O         rH 

Germany. 

1 

£ 
g 

13  CD  CD  CD        CD        CO  CO  CD  CD  CO  CO  CD        CD        CD 

0,-OOr*        CO      -(TqcDCsJCOOOdCO        O      -CO 
^  rH  rH                 rH       •          rH                        rH  rH          rH       •  rH 

c^cccoco      co      •<*  co  TH  'TH  TH  cq  eo       co      co 

*i 

§ 

o 
o 

J 

^  O  O              O        O  O  O  O  O  O  O        O        O 
Oj't—  !>•                rH      •lOrHiOOSOSOr-l         !>.      .  rH 

u       bo 

"       « 

(4 

S 

«t}<N<N<M         <M         <M  C<l  (M  C<1  <M  rH  cq         (M         C<l 

.2 

t* 

I 

^ 
3 

T3  CO  CO  CD        CO        CD  CO  CO  CO  CO  CD  CO        CO        CO 
o^COCOrH         IO      -t>-iOt-O5OSt-lO         CO      -O 

£> 

8 

3 
i—  i 

10 

^  CO  CO  CO         CD  CO  CD  CD  CD  CD  CD  CO  CO          CD  CD  CD 

£  GO  00  O        T£  <N  CD  "tf  O  CO  CO  O  "*        COt-'* 
rH  rH  rH                 rH  rH          rH  rH  rH                         rH 

c+$  <?q  oq  co      co  c<i  co  co  co  co  co  cq  co      co  TH  co 

i\     S 

r.       S 

.i! 

u    t* 

VI           0 

| 

g 

g 
H 
• 

8 

3 
£ 

to  OS  CS  t>-          CO  O  rH  CO  t^  rH  rH  t^  CO          rH  OO  CO 
^  rH  TH                         rH  rH                 rH  rH                        rH  rH 

Cf&rHrH<M      <MrHcq<M<MoqcqrHcq      <MO<M 

& 

3 

pH 

IS  CO  co  CD        CO  CD  CO  CO*  CO  CD  CD  CD  CD        O  <N  CO 
Oj'OSOSCO          rHt^OrHCOlOOCOrH          OOSrH 

C*^OOrH          THOrHrHrHrHrHOrH          rH  O  i—  1 

1 

fl- 

5 

g 

0 

i1 

^J    ' 

i?; 

j 
{ 

:::::::::  :  J  |  :  :  :  :  ^ 

:^  :%:  :  :  :  ifig  :  «  fl  ^ 

s 

o 

Electric 
Company 

A 

1 

a 

^^^^^^^-t!^^^^^^^^^ 

ii 

gg.|i^g^Hgl-|| 

&  a 

THrHI?qTHrH<NC<JrHrHCqrHrHrHrH(?qrHTH 

OQOQPNGQOPQrHOQCPiHOQCiJaQCCPHOa} 

ENGLISH  INTERNATIONAL  TARIFF.  789 


RULES  AND  REGULATIONS THE  HAGUE  RANGE. 

The  Austro-Ger manic  Telegraph  Union,  including  Austria,  Prussia,  Ba- 
varia, Saxony,  Wirtemberg,  Holland,  Hanover,  Mecklenburg- Schwerin, 
and  Baden. 

1.  A  single  dispatch,  including  the  names  and  addresses  of  both  sender 
and  receiver,  is  to  contain  from  one  to   twenty  words.     Half  the  price 
of  a  single  dispatch  is  to  be  charged  for  every  additional  ten  words  or 
fraction  of  ten  words. 

2.  Words  must  not  exceed  seven  syllables;  the  overplus  is  to  be  counted 
as  one  word. 

Compound  words  not  coupled  by  hyphens  are  to  count  as  one  word. 

Words  coupled  by  hyphens  are  counted  separately. 

Words  or  letters,  followed  or  preceded  by  an  apostrophe,  count  as  one 
word. 

Hyphens,  apostrophes,  and  other  stops,  are  not  reckoned. 

Syllables,  such  as  «  Van,"  "Van-der,"  «  de/'  «le,"  "P,"  «  s',"  "St.," 
and  the  like,  which  precede  proper  names  or  words,  are  counted  as  separate 
words. 

Commas  and  parentheses  are  not  reckoned.  Words  underlined  count 
as  two  words.  Marks  indicating  a  new  line  count  as  words. 

Signs  or  marks  which  cannot  be  telegraphed  are  spelt  as  words,  and 
counted  as  such. 

Example:        (     )         "        "        $        &c. 

That  is,  instructions  must  be  given  at  the  end  of  message,  explaining 
which  words  are  to  be  so  marked  •  and  these  instructions  must  be  counted 
and  charged  as  part  of  the  dispatch. 

3.  A  single  letter  counts  as  one  word. 

Words,  such  as  "  Winemerchant,"  '•  Kegentstreet,"  "  Postoffice,"  "Lin- 
endraper,"  "  Onepenny,"  "  Threepence,"  &c.,  up  to  ft  Elevenpence,"  if 
written  in  one  word,  are  counted  as  one ;  but  if  separated  by  hyphens,  or 
separately  written,  they  count  as  two  words. 

11  1 

NOTE.  —  "  Telegraphenantwort,"  '•  Bestmoglichst,"  "  Damppfschiffschlepfahrtsgesell- 
schaft,"  and  the  like,  are  to  be  counted  as  one  word. 

4.  In  private  messages  every  separate  group  of  five  figures  or  less,  count 
as  one  word;  if  a  group  of  figures  contain  more  than  five,  it  reckons  as 
two  words  up  to  10  figures,  and  so  on. 

Compound  numbers,  written  in  figures,  count  in  the  same  manner,  the 
stroke  or  sign  which  divides  them  reckoning  as  a  figure — thus  :  |-f  is  one 
word,  and  l|f  two  words.  20s.,  25s.,  30s.  6d.,  40s.  6d.,  45s.  Qd.,  and  the 
like,  count  as  one  word. 

Decimal  points  and  signs  of  division  count  as  figures. 

5.  Numbers,  when  written  together  in  letters^  as  twenty -four,  thirty- 
six,  &c.,  are  to  be  counted  as  syllables,  and  to  be  charged  at  the  rate  of 
seven  syllables  per  word  ;  the  overplus,  if  any,  to  be  counted  as  one  word  ; 
but  if  written  separately,  as  twenty  four,  thirty  six,  they  must  be  charged 
as  two  or  more  words.     This  rule  is  also  applicable  to   compound  num- 
bers, as  one  eighth,  three  sixteenths. 

6.  In  secret  (government  cipher)  dispatches,  the  ciphers  and  letters, 
as  also  the  commas  and  all  other  signs  used  in  "  cipher  writing,"  are 
counted  together,  and  the  sum  divided  by  "  three ;"  the  quotient  gives  the 
number   of  taxable  words,   the  surplus  to  be  reckoned  as  one  word. 


790  ENGLISH    INTERNATIONAL    TARIFF. 

"Words  inserted  in  secret  dispatches  count  as  such.     Government  mes- 
sages may  be  written  in  any  language. 

NOTE. — Secret  or  cipher  despatches  can  be  sent  by  Government  only. 

7.  The  names  and  addresses  of  both  sender  and  receiver  must  be 
counted,  as  also  all  instructions  for  forwarding  beyond  the   telegraph 
lines,  which  instructions  must  be  placed  immediately  after  the  address  of 
the  receiver. 

8.  "When  a  message  cannot  be  delivered  on  account  of  insufficient  ad- 
dress, information  of  the  fact  must  be  telegraphed  to  the  sending  station, 
and  notice,  if  possible,  must  be  given  to  the  sender. 

The  sender  is  responsible  for  non-delivery  caused  by  an  insufficient  ad- 
dress, and  he  can  only  complete  it  by  forwarding  a  message  to  the 
receiving  station,  containing  the  necessary  correction,  for  which  the  usual 
tariff  charge  must  be  made. 

9.  Messages  addressed  to  more  than  one  person  in  the  same  town,  and 
containing  the  same  subject-matter,  are  considered  as  one  message ;  all 
the  addresses  are  reckoned,  and  for  every  copy  after  the  first  a  charge  of 
"  seven  pence'7  is  made. 

Messages  addressed  to  different  stations  containing  the  same  subject- 
matter,  are  counted  as  separate  messages ;  but  in  such  cases  every  separ- 
ate message  is  charged  according  to  the  aggregate  number  of  words, 
including  address  and  name  from. 

10.  If  the  sender  desires  to  attest  the  signature  to  his  correspondent, 
the  words  employed  must  be  inserted  immediately  after  the  name  from, 
and  counted  as  part  of  the  message. 

11.  Answers  to  messages  may  be  prepaid,  but  the  sender  must  deter- 
mine the  number  of  words  the  answer  is  to  contain  \  in  such  cases  the 
instructions  "  Answer  of        *         *         *         *         words  paid,"  must  be 
inserted  immediately  after  the  address  to,  and  must  be  charged  as.  part  of 
the  message. 

If  the  answer  to  a  message  contains  more  words,  than  have  been  paid 
for,  it  must  be  charged  to  the  party  sending  it  as  a  new  message. 

If,  after  the  expiration  of  ten  days,  the  paid  answer  to  a  message  has 
not  been  received,  or  in  case  the  sender  of  the  answer  has  paid  for  it  as 
an  ordinary  message  on  account  of  an  excess  of  words,  the  sender  of  the 
original  message  has  a  right  to  the  return  of  his  money  after  a  deduction 
of  Id.  having  been  made  (a  deduction  of  5d.  only  will  be  made  on  mes- 
sages to  Holland) .  Claims  for  the  return  of  money  deposited  for  pre- 
paid answers  must  be  made  within  five  days  of  the  abovementioned  ten 
days ;  if  not  made  within  these  fifteen  days,  no  notice  will  be  paid  to 
them. 

12.  All  telegraph,  messenger's,  postage,  and  estafette  charges  must  be 
paid  by  the  sender  of  the  message. 

13.  The  telegraph  •  administrators  of  the   Austro-Germanic  Union   do 
not  hold  themselves  responsible  for  the  forwarding  or  delivery  of  a  mes- 
sage within    any  given  space  of  time — neither  are  they  responsible  for 
any  loss  which   may  arise  from  delay,  error,  or  non-delivery  of  a  mes- 
sage. 

When  a  message  is  lost,  or  so  mutilated  and  delayed  as  to  frustrate  the 
object  of  the  sender,  or  when  it  reaches  the  parties  later  than  it  could 
have  been  sent  by  post,  then  the  sender  has  a  right  to  the  return  of  his 
money,  providing  the  claim  be  made  .within  six  months  of  the  day  the 
dispatch  was  forwarded. 

If  the  error,  loss,  or  delay,  takes  place  beyond  the  lines  of  the  Union, 


ENGLISH   INTERNATIONAL    TARIFF.  791 

the  claim  will  be  forwarded  to  the  proper  administration  for  investiga- 
tion on  behalf  of  the  sender. 

No  money  is  returned  upon  messages  which  are  delayed  after  leav- 
ing the  telegraph  lines,  and  which  may  be  conveyed  by  post,  messenger, 
or  estafette. 

14.  A  message  and  its  charges  may  be  returned  to  the   sender  upon 
payment  of  an  "  entry  fee"  of  Id.  (5d.  if  to  a   station  in  Holland),  pro- 
vided the  transmission  has  not  been  commenced,  and  the  person  apply- 
ing for  its  withdrawal  can  be  fully  identified  as  the  sender  or  his  repre- 
sentative :  should  the  sender  of  a  message  desire  its  withdrawal  during 
or  after  the  transmission,  the  following  regulation  must  be  observed : — 

a.  If  during  the  transmission,  the   message  not  having  been  entirely 

finished,  its  further  telegraphing  may  be  stopped,  and  it  may  be  re- 
turned, but  the  charges  must  be  retained. 

b.  If  after  the  transmission,  the  message  having  been  entirely  finished,  it 

may  then  be  recalled,  supposing  the  delivery  not  to  have  taken  place, 
but  this  must  be  done  by  means  of  a  private  message  to  that  effect 
from  the  sender  to  the  office  of  destination.  The  usual  charge  must 
be  made  for  a  message  of  this  description,  and  the  charges  of  the 
message  withdrawn  must  be  retained. 

In  each  of  the  above  cases  the  original  message  paper  must  be  re- 
tained, and  due  care  must  be  taken  with  regard  to  the  proper  identity  of 
the  sender. 

15.  The  sender  can  be  obliged  to  pay  short  charges ;  any  overcharges 
made  are  in  all  cases  returned  to  him  on  application. 

PORTERAGE. — There  are  only  three  means  of  delivery  on  the  Continent, 
viz.,'  by  post-,  foot  messenger,  or  estafette.  When  messages,  therefore, 
are  addressed  to  places  beyond  the  telegraphic  termini,  they  must,  with- 
out fail,  contain  positive  instructions  for  forwarding  them  on,  either  by 
post,  messenger,  or  estafette,  and  the  proper  charge  made.  In  the  event 
of  the  instructions  not  being  in  accordance  with  the  above,  or  in  the  ab- 
sence of  any  instructions,  messengers  will  be  sent  on  by  post. 

The  charges  for  delivery  in  Holland  by  p/st  (registered)  to  all  places, 
4d;  by/ooi  messenger  within  a  distance  of  15  Dutch  miles  (equal  to  9-j 
English  miles),  Is.  3d. 

By  Estafette. — Deposit  of  4d.  per  Dutch  mile  must  be  made.  If  sender 
has  no  idea  of  the  distance  he  must  make  a  sufficient  deposit  to  cover  the 
expenses  of  delivering ;  the  surplus  (if  any)  will  be  returned  to  him  on 
application. 

The  charges  by  the  Austro-Germanic  Union  stations  are,  by  post  (reg- 
istered) to  all  places,  lOd. 

When  a  message  is  addressed  to  "post-office/7  "post  restante,77  the 
usual  postage  of  the  country  the  place  is  in  to  which  it  is  addressed,  must 
be  prepaid  by  the  sender. 

Charge  for  special  messenger  within  a  distance  of  two  German  miles 
(equal  to  7  English  miles),  2s.  6d. 

Charge  for  messengers  beyond  2  German  miles  or  by  estafette  is  ac- 
cording to  the  money  actually  expended.  A  deposit  at  the  rate  of  2s.  bd. 
per  German  mile  must  be  made.  If  the  sender  has  no  idea  ot  the  dis- 
tance he  must  make  a  sufficient  deposit  to  cover  the  expenses,  the  surplus, 
if  any.  will  be  returned  on  application. 

No  charge  is  made  for  the  delivery  of  messages  within  the  town  where 
the  receiving  station  is  situated. 

A  uniform  charge  of  Is.  9d.  is  made  without  reference  to  the  number 
of  words,  for  messages  going  by  railway  telegraph. 

In  Great  Britain  no  charge  whatever  will   be  made  for  porterage, 


792  ENGLISH    INTERNATIONAL    TARIFF. 

or  for  forwarding  messages  received  from  the  Continent  (via  the 
Hague  and  Amsterdam),  beyond  the  telegraphic  termini  in  Great 
Britain. 

GERMAN  RAILWAY  TELEGRAPH  OFFICES. — Messages  destined  for  Ger- 
man railway  offices,  follow  the  Austro-Germanic  rules,  as  far  as  the 
ast  Union  station,  after  which  they  are  subject  to  the  following  differ- 
ences : — 

The  Austro-Germanic  or  last  Union  station  which  stands  opposite  each 
office,  must  be  inserted  immediately  after  each  address,  and  charged  for  as 
part  of  the  message,  as  "Telegraph  from  Manheim,"  &c. 

Messages  must  not  exceed  fifty  words. 

In  addition  to  the  usual  charges  to  the  "  last  Union  station,"  a  uniform 
charge  of  Is.  9df.  must  be  made,  without  reference  to  the  number  of  words 
a  message  may  contain. 

DENMARK,  NORWAY,  AND  SWEDEN. — The  rules  of  the  Austro-Germanic 
Telegraph  Union  apply  to  Danish,  Norwegian,  and  Swedish  stations,  with 
a  few  exceptions. 

In  addition  to  English,  French  and  German  messages  may  be  written 
in  the  Swedish  or  Danish  languages. 

NOTE. — These  countries  still  allow  5  free  words  in  the  "Name  and  Address  to,"  and 
count  their  messages  from  1  to  25,  26  to  50,  and  51  to  100  words  over  their  own  lines, 
while  the  Austro-Germanic  Union,  over  whose  lines  messages  to  these  countries 
must  pass,  charge  for  all  names,  addresses,  &c.  Provision  has  been  made  in  the 
table  of  charges  to  meet  this,  for  instance  :  If  a  message  contains  altogether  20  words, 
charge  as  per  1st  column  ;  if  it  contains  5  words  in  the  name  and  address  to,  and  25 
words  besides  (total  30),  charge  as  per  2d  column :  if  it  contain  only  3  or  4  in  the 
name  and  add  ress  to,  and  27  or  26  words  besides  (total  30),  charge  as  per  3d  column, 
and  so  on. 

Rules  and  Regulations  for  Messages  to  Belgium,  France,  Switzerland,  Sar- 
dinia, Spain  and  Portugal.  (All  Messages  must  be  ordered  u  Via  Bel- 
gium.") 

1.  A  single  message  from  any  of  the  Electric  .and  International  Tele- 
graph Company's  offices  in  Great  Britain  and  Ireland,  is  to   contain  15 
words,  the  tariff  graduating  with  five  words. 

NOTE. — The  Company's  proportion  of  the  charge  is  as  follows  : — 5s.  for  fifteen  words, 
6s.  Sd.  for  twenty  words,  8s.  4<i.  for  twenty-five  words,  10s.  for  thirty  words,  and  so 
on,  charging  one  third  tariff  price  for  each  additional  five  or  fraction  of  five  words. 

Five  words  are  allowed  free  in  the  "  address  to  ;;;  the  name  and  "  ad- 
dress from,"  is  counted;  Christian  and  surnames  count  separately ;  sur- 
names such  as  - 

1  2  123123 

Donker-Curtius,  Van  der  Berg,  Comte  de  Saint-Paul, 
&c.,  are  counted  as  marked. 

2.  Each  division  of  words,  joined  by  hyphens  or  apostrophes,  count  as 

1234  12345 

single  words;  thus  C'est-a-dire,  is  4  words,  Ce  qu  ;il  y  a,  5  words,  and 
so  on. 

Compound  words,  when  written  together,  count  as  single  words. 

The  maximum  length  of  a  compound  word  is  seven  syllables ;  the  over- 
plus to  count  as  one  word. 

Hyphens,  apostrophes,  and  other  stops,  are  not  reckoned. 


ENGLISH    INTERNATIONAL    TARIFF.  79$ 


Signs,  or  marks  which  cannot  be  telegraphed,  must  be  written  as  words 
and  counted  as  such ;  thus —  1^  y  (  ) 

Single  letters  or  figures  count  as  words. 

3.  Five  figures,  or  ciphers,  count  as  one  word.     Numbers  containing 
more  than  five  figures  reckon  pro  rata,  the  overplus  to  be  counted  as  one 
word. 

Numbers  written  at  full  length  in  letters  must  be  counted  as  words. 

The  letters,  or  figures  contained  in  cipher  messages  (which  are  only 
allowed  to  be  sent  by  governments)  are  added  together  and  divided  by 
five ;  the  quotient  gives  the  number  of  words. 

Words  contained  in  cipher  messages  count  as  such*;  thus,  a  message 
containing  500  figures  and  10  words — 

500  =  100  +  10  =  110—105  chargeable  words, 
5 

reckoning  five  free  words  for  the  address. 

Points  and  stops  used  in  the  division  of  cipher- writing  are  not  reckoned  ] 
thus, 

26,895  —  28,901  —  34,562  =  3  words. 

4.  Preliminary  instructions,  such  as  "  Post  from  Paris,77  "  Repetition 
paid,'7  &c.,  &c.,  are  not  charged. 

5.  If  the  sender  of  a  message  desires  to  know  of  its  safe  delivery,  half 
the  usual  price  of  a  single  message  must  be   charged,  and  the  words 
"  Accuse  de  reception  paye,77  telegraphed  in  the  preliminary  instructions, 
gratis. 

6.  Repetitions  of  messages  may  be  obtained  by  the  sender  for  half-price ; 
but  if  the  receiver  desires  a  repetition,  he  must  pay  as  for  a  new  dis- 
patch. 

The  words,  "  R6petition  payee'7  must  be  telegraphed  in  the  prelimi- 
nary instructions,  free  of  charge. 

7.  The  sender  of  a  message  may  pay  for  the  answer.     If  the  answer 
does  not  arrive  within  five  days,  the  money  may  be  returned. 

If  an  answer  contains  more  words  than  have  been  paid  for,  the  sender  of 
the  answer  must  pay  the  difference. 

8.  Messages  containing  the  same  subject-matter,  addressed  to  different 
places,  are  charged  as  distinct  messages ,  but  messages  of  this  descrip- 
tion addressed  to  different  parties  in  the  same  places  are  charged  as  one 
message,  with  an  additional  charge  of  lOd.  for  each  address  after  the 
first. 

All  the  addresses  must  be  counted — five  words  only  being  free. 

9.  If  the  sender  of  a  message  desires  to  prove  his  identity  to  his  cor- 
respondent, he  must  satisfy  the  counter  clerk  of  it,  and  pay  an  extra 
charge  of  Is. 

The  words  "  Identite  prouvee77  must  be  telegraphed  in  the  preliminary 
instructions  gratis. 

10.  The  sender  of  a  message  can  demand  its  withdrawal. 

If  it  is  in  course  of  transmission,  the  charges  must  not  be  returned  ; 
and  if  it  has  arrived  at  the  station  of  destination,  but  has  not  been  handed 
to  the  receiver,  it  may  be  withdrawn  upon  payment  of  half  the  price  of 
a  single  message  additional. 

11.  Messages  sent  during  the  night  to  stations  having  no  night  service, 
are  charged  double,  that  is,  all  charges,  of  whatever  nature,  are  doubled, 
whether  for  "  Repetition,77  "  Identite  prouvee,77  or  otherwise. 


794  ENGLISH    INTERNATIONAL    TARIFF. 

PORTERAGE. — By  post  (registered)  within  the  country,  5d.  j  to  other 
places,  Is.  2d. ;  beyond  the  Continent  of  Europe,  2s. ;  from  any  station  in 
Spain  to  Gibraltar,  Is.  Zd. 

When  a  message  is  addressed  to  "  post-office/7  (f  poste  restante,"  the 
usual  postage  of  the  country  the  place  is  in  to  which  it  is  addressed,  must 
be  prepaid  by  the  sender. 

By  foot  messenger,  a  maximum  distance  of  10  kilometres==6  English 
miles,  2s. 

By  estafette,  deposits  must  always  be  made. 

The  charges  will  be  communicated  by  the  receiving  to  the  sending  sta- 
tion, as  soon  as  they  are  known. 


Rules  and  Regulations,  for  Messages  to  Russia,   Turkey,  the  Principali- 
ties, Tuscany,  Modena,  Parma, 
Counting  Words  and  Syllables. 


ties,  Tuscany,  Modena,  Parma,  the  Papal  States,  Naples  and  Sicily.- 
Wo 


1.  A  single  dispatch  is  to  contain  from  one  to  twenty-five  words,  a 
double  dispatch  from  twenty-six  to  fifty,  and  a  treble  dispatch  from  fifty- 
one  to  one  hundred  words.     Messages  must  not  contain  more  than  one 
hundred  words — if  the  matter  required  to  be  forwarded  exceeds  that  num- 
ber, the  overplus  must  be  sent  as  a  new  dispatch. 

2.  Words  must  not  exceed  seven  syllables  •  the  overplus  is  to  be  counted 
as  one  word. 

Compound  words  not  coupled  by  hyphens  are  to  count  as  one  word. 

Words  coupled  by  hyphens  are  counted  separately. 

Words  or  letters  followed  or  preceded  by  an  apostrophe  count  as  one 
word. 

Hyphens,  apostrophes,  and  other  stops,  are  not  reckoned. 

Signs  or  marks  which  cannot  be  telegraphed  are  spelt  as  words  and 
counted  as  such. 

Example—          (      )  "      "  0          &c. 

That  is,  instructions  must  be  given  at  end  of  message,  explaining  which 
words  are  to  be  so  marked  •  and  these  instructions  must  be  counted  and 
charged  as  part  of  the  dispatch. 

A  single  letter  counts  as  one  word. 

Words  such  as  "  Winemerchant,"  "  Regentstreet,"  «  Postoffice,"  "  Linen- 
draper,"  "  Today,"  "  Tomorrow,"  "  Onepenny,"  "  Threepence,"  &c.,  up 
to  "  Elevenpence/'  if  written  in  one  word,  are  counted  as  one,  but  if 
separated  by  hyphens,  or  separately  written,  they  count  as  two  words. 

"One  shilling,"  "Two  shillings."  &c.,  &c.,  are  always  counted  as  two 
words;  nor  can  this  be  evaded  by  writing  tl Twelvepence,"  "Eighteen- 
pence,"  "  Twentypence,"  &c. 

l  i  l 

NOTE.  —  "Telegraphenantwort,"      "Bestmoglichst,"    "Damppfschiffschlepfahrtsgesell- 
schaft,"  and  the  like  are  to  be  counted  as  one  word. 

3.  In  private  messages,  every  separate  group  of  five  figures  or  less 
count  as   one  word ;  if  a  group  of  figures  contains  more  than  five,  it 
reckons  as  two  words  up  to  ten  figures,  and  so  on. 

Compound  numbers,  written  in  figures,  count  in  the  same  manner,  the 
stroke  or  sign  which  divides  them  reckoning  as  a  figure — thus,  44  is  one 
word,  and  Iff  two  words  ;  20|,  25|,  30|6,  40|6,  45 16,  and  the  like,  count  as 
one  word. 

Decimal  points  and  signs  of  division  count  as  figures. 

4.  Numbers  when  written  together  in  letters,  as  twenty-four,  Thirty- 


ENGLISH    INTERNATIONAL    TARIFF.  795 

six,  &c.,  are  to  be  counted  in  syllables,  and  to  be  charged  at  the  rate  of 
seven  syllables,  per  word  •  the  overplus,  if  any,  to  be  charged  as  one 
word,  but  if  written  separately,  as  twenty  four,  thirty  six,  &c.,  they  must 
be  charged  as  two  words.  This  rule  is  also  applicable  to  compound 
numbers,  as  one  eighth,  three  sixteenths,  &c. 

5.  In  secret  (government  cipher)  dispatches,  all  the  signs  are  counted 
together,  and   the  sum   divided  by  five  •  the  result  shows  the  number  of 
words — the  overplus  to  be  charged  as  one  word. 

NOTE. — Secret  or  cipher  dispatches  can  be  sent  by  Governments  only. 

Words  inserted  "in  secret  dispatches  count  as  such. 

The  signs  of  interpunction  in  secret,  as  in  other  dispatches,  are  not 
reckoned. 

6.  In  all  messages,  the  words  comprised   in  the  name  and  address  of 
the  receiver,  when  they  do  not  exceed  five  in  number,  can  be  sent  free 
of  charge.      Should  the  number  of  words   in  the  receiver's  name  and 
address  exceed  five,  the  extra  words  are  to  be  counted  and  charged  for. 

The  name  and  address  (if  any)  of  the  sender  are  still  to  be  counted 
and  charged  for  as  at  present. 

When  the  answer  to  a  message  is  prepaid,  and  such  answer  does  not 
exceed  ten  words  (exclusive  of  the  five  words  allowed  for  the  name 
and  address  of  the  receiver)  such  answer  to  be  one  half  of  the  usual 
rates  only. 

When  "a  message  is  received  from  the  Continent,  bearing  notice  that 
the  sender  has  paid  for  a  reply  of  ten  or  more  words  (exclusive  of  the 
usual  five  free  words  in  address  to)  a  note  to  the  following  effect  must  be 
inserted  on  the  delivery  form :  "  Answer  of  words  prepaid  by 

sender — to  be  sent  within -five  days.'7  Should  the  sender  of  reply  wish  to 
send  more  words  than  the  number  prepaid,  he  must  pay  as  for  a  new 
dispatch,  and  be  informed  that  the  deposit  left  by  sender  of  original 
message  will  be  returned  to  him 

7.  Syllables,  such  as  "  Van/'  "  Van-der,"  "  de,"  "  le,"  «  F,"  "  s7,"  «  St,r 
and  the  like,  which  precede  proper  names  or  words,  are  counted  as  separ- 
ate words. 

8.  The  instructions  for  forwarding  messages  to  places  beyond  the  termini 
of  the  telegraph  lines,  the  instructions  for  u  Repetition,"  "  Answer  paid 
for,"   "  Acknowledgment  of  receipt  paid  for,"  &c.,  are  not  charged. 

9.  Dispatches  addressed  to  different  stations,  containing  the  same  sub- 
ject-matter, are  counted  as  separate  messages;  but,  in  such  cases,  every 
separate  message  is  charged  according  to  the  aggregate  number  of  words, 
including  address  and  name. 

Dispatches  addressed  to  more  than  one  person  in  the  same  town,  and 
containing  the  same  subject-matter,  are  counted  as  one  message.  All  the 
addresses  are  reckoned,  and  for  every  copy  after  the  first,  a  charge  of 
eighteen  pence  is  made. 

10.  Should  the  sender  of  a  message  wish  to  prove  his  identity  to  his 
correspondent,  he  can  do    so   by  first  proving  it  to   the   officials  at  the 
original  station,  and  by  paying  an  additional  sum  of  60  cent.  .(Is.).     The 
words    "Identity  proved"  are    then    to    be    inserted,  and    telegraphed 
immediately  after  the  address  of  the  message. 

11  Half  the  usual  rate  is  charged  for  repeating  messages  for  the  send- 
ers at  the  time  the  messages  are  sent:  but  should  they  wish  to 
have  them  repeated  afterward,  the  whole  rate  must  be  charged.  At  the 
beginning  of  such  dispatch,  the  words  "  Repetition  paid  for'7  are  to  be 
signaled  without  charge. 


796  ENGLISH    INTERNATIONAL    TARIFF. 

If  the  receiver  of  a  message  desires  it  to  be  repeated,  he  must  pay 
as  for  a  new  dispatch.  The  money  deposited  for  such  repetition  must  in 
no  case  be  returned,  but  in  case  the  repetition  prove  an  error  to  have 
occurred  in  the  Original  Message,  the  receiver  must  be  informed  that  the 
money  for  such  original  message  will  be  returned  to  the  sender  on  his 
making  written  application  at  the  sending  station. 

12.  The  sender  cannot  be  obliged  to  insert  the  day  of  the  week,  date  or 
office  from  which  the  message  is  sent. 

13.  All  secret  messages,  without  exception,  must  be  repeated,  and  the 
usual  charge  for  such  repetition  made. 

NOTE.  —  B  D,  secret,  cipher,  or  single  letter  messages  are  repeated  from  station  to 
station  in  transmission,  and  the  sending  station  is  advised  of  due  delivery  at  the  trans- 
mitting station  for  half  price  ;  but  if  the  sender  desires  a  copy  of  the  repetition  to  be 
furnished  to  him  from  the  place  of  destination,  he  must  pay  the  rate  of  "  two  messages 
and  a  quarter."  If  he  determines  to  pay  this  charge,  it  must  always  be  sent  after  MM, 
"  To  be  repeated  from  Vienna,"  &c.  If,  on  the  contrary,  the  sender  is  satisfied  with 
the  simple  repetition  from  the  transmitting  station,  nothing  must  be  inserted  after 
MM  -  nor  must  the  sender  be  allowed  to  put  the  word  "  Repeat"  after  finishing 
his  message,  for  in  such  cases  the  Government  Telegraph  consider  such  an  indica- 
tion tantamount  to  "Repeat  from  Vienna,  &c.,"  and  charge  accordingly. 

14.  If  the  sender  desires  to  know  of  the  due  delivery  of  his  message, 
he  can  do  so.  by  paying  one  fourth  of  the  price  of  a  single  dispatch.     In 
such  cases,  the  worus  "  Acknowledgment  paid  for"  must  be  telegraphed. 

15.  If  the  sender  of  a  dispatch  desires  to  pay  for  the  answer,  he  must 
determine  the  number  of  words  such  answer  is  to  contain,  and  deposit 
accordingly. 

In  such  cases,  the  words  "  For  answer  from  to 

(No.  of  words.)     Amount  paid  7;  &c.,  are  to  be  telegraphed  with 

out  charge. 

16.  No  extra  charge  is  to  be  made  for  messages  telegraphed  in  the 
night  to  those  stations  which  are  open,  and  which  are  printed  in  italic. 

If  it  be  desired  to  send  messages  during  the  night  to  stations  at  which 
there  is  no  night  service,  those  for  stations  in  Holland  must  be  announced 
at  the  Hague,  before  8.30  p.  M  .  ;  and  for  stations  in  Germany,  the  Grand 
Duchy  of  Baden,  and  Denmark,  before  8  p.  M.  ;  and  it  must  be  stated,  at 
the  same  time,  at  what  hour  the  dispatch  will  be  sent. 

NOTE.  —  Due  notice  will  be  given  to  all  stations  of  "  interruption  of  communication  ;" 
immediately  after  receipt  of  which  the  sender  must  pay  the  full  rates  of  "  the  route" 
over  which  his  message  is  forwarded.  This  rule  applies  to  all  the  Continent. 

RULES  AND  REGULATIONS  -  THE  FRENCH  RANGE. 

Relating  to  Stations  marked  No.  2  in  margin  of  Tariff,  including  France, 
Belgium,  and  Switzerland,  and  Sardinia  when  sent  via  France. 

1.  A  single  dispatch  is  to  contain  from  one  to  twenty  -five  words,  a 
double  dispatch  from  twenty-six  to  fifty,  and  a  treble  dispatch  from  fifty  -one 
to  one  hundred  words.  Messages  must  not  contain  more  than  one  hun- 
dred words. 

2.  COMPOUND  WORDS.  —  Words  must   not  be  compounded.    Such  words  as 


"cliartrepartie,"4<8'il,"  "!',"  "del',"  "  voulez-vous,"  "  J'ai,"  "  est-il," 

1234  1         2          3  4  6  6         78         9        10      11 

"  c'eet-a-dire,"    "  J.  Van  den  Brande    Becker  comte  de    Saint-Paul    et  Cie.," 

1  23  456  789 

"  Frankfort  on  Maine,"  "  Aix-la-Chapelle,"  "  Chalons-sur-Saone,"  &c.,  &c.,  must  be 
counted  separately. 


ENGLISH    INTERNATIONAL    TARIFF.  797 

3.  Numbers,  if  written  in  figures,  as  2  4  5  1  6  7,  are  counted  at  the 
rate  of  five  figures  to  one  word;  but  if  written  at  full  length,  they  are 

counted  separately.     When  figures  are  written  in  groups,  as  247 :  656 : 

2 

341789,  those  between  each  colon  must  be  counted  as  one  word,  except 
the  group  contains  more  than  five,  when  it  must  be  reckoned  at  the  rate 
of  five  figures  to  a  word,  the  surplus  to  be  counted  as  one  word. 

121212  1  2  1  23  1  2 

Dix  sept,  dix  huit,  dix  neuf,  quatre  vingt,  quatre  vingt  dix,   soixante  dix, 

and  the  like,  must  be  counted  separately. 

4.  The  name   of  the  sender,  the  name    of  the  station  from  which  the 
message  is  sent,  and  the  day  of  the  week,  must  in  all  cases  be  inserted, 
and  the  excess  over  five  words  in  the  address  must  be  charged  for. 

5.  The  instructions  for  forwarding  messages  beyond  the  termini  of  the 
telegraph  lines,  the  instructions  for  "  Repetition,"   "  Answer   paid  for/; 
&c..  are  not  charged. 

6.  MESSAGES  TO  SEVERAL  ADDRESSES. — If  a  message  be  addressed  to 
several  parties  in  the  same  town,  nine  tenths  of  a  franc  will  be  charged 
for  each  duplicate  delivered. 

7.  Dispatches  addressed  to  different  stations,  containing  the  same  sub- 
ject-matter, are  counted  as  separate  messages  ;  but>  in  such  cases,  every 
separate  message  is  charged  according  to  the  aggregate  number  of  words, 
including  address  and  name  from. 

8.  REPETITION. — In  France,  Belgium,  and   Switzerland,  if  the  sender 
desires  to  have  his  message  repeated,  half  the  usual  charge  is  made  in 
addition ;  but  if  the  receiver  desires  it,  he  must  pay  as  for  a  new  dispatch. 

9.  SAFE  DELIVERY. — If  the  sender  desires  to  know  of  the  safe  delivery 
of  his  message,  he  must  pay  the  fourth  of  the  charge  for  a  single  dis- 
patch. 

10.  If  the  sender  of  a  dispatch  desires  to  pay  for  the  answer,  he  must , 
determine  the  number  of  words  such  answer  is  to   contain,  and  deposit 
accordingly. 

11.  NIGHT  SERVICE. — Night  messages  for  stations  not  printed  in  Italics, 
must,  if  for  France  or  Belgium,  be  announced  at  the  Hague,  before  8 
p.  M.  ;  if   for  Switzerland  or  Sardinia,  before    7  p.  M.,  and  double  the 
usual  charge  paid ;  it  must  also  be  mentioned  at  what  hour  the  message 
will  be  sent.     The  double  charge  for  a  "  single  message  "  must  be  deposit- 
ed at  the  time  the  dispatch   is   announced?       All  night   messages   are 
charged  double,  whether  for  night  stations  or  not. 

The  porterage  or  messenger  fees,  in  Russia,  Turkey,  Modena, 
Parma,  Tuscany,  Papal  States,  Naples,  Sicily,  etc.,  are  em- 
braced in  the  following  rules  : 

The  charges  for  forwarding  messages  beyond  the  terminal  telegraph  sta- 
tions must  in  all  cases  be  paid  by  the  sender,  at  the  following  rates  : 

By  Post  (Registered). — To  places  within  the  country  where  the 
telegraph  station  is  situated,  and  from  which  the  message  is 
ordered  to  be  posted  -  05.  5d. 

To  all  other  places  on  Continent,  from          ditto  ditto     -     Is.  3d. 

Post  Restante. — When  a  message  is  addressed  to  "  Post  restante," 
Post-office,  the  usual  postage  of  the  country  the  place  is  in  to  which  it  is 
addressed,  must  be  prepaid  by  the  sender. 


798  ENGLISH   INTERNATIONAL    TARIFF. 

By  Foot  Messenger. — No  porterage  is  charged  on  the  Continent  for 
messages  to  be  delivered  within  the  town  where  the  telegraph  office  is  situ- 
ated ;  but  if  the  distance  is  2,  3,  4,  5,  or  6  miles  from  the  office,  and  mes- 
sage is  directed  to  go  by  foot  messenger,  then  a  uniform  charge  of  2s.  is 
to  be  made.  No  delivery  in  Norway  by  foot  messenger  beyond  one  Eng- 
lish mile  from  telegraph  station  ;  if  for  further  distance,  message  must.be 
ordered  by  post  or  estafette. 

By  Estafette. — A  deposite  must  be  made  by  the  sender  of  20  cents.,  or 
4d.  per  mile  (Dutch) ;  25  silver  groschen,  or  2s.  6d.  per  mile  (German) ; 
and  30  cents.,  or  6d.  per  mile  (English).  The  surplus  of  which,  if  any, 
shall  be  returned  to  the  sender  within  five  days. 

NOTE. — Deposits  for  estafettes  (of  not  less  than  30s.)  should  in  all  cases  be  made 
where  the  sender  is  ignorant  of  the  exact  distance  to  be  traveled  over  beyond  the 
terminal  station. 

By  Railway  Telegraph. — A  uniform  rate  of  1  fl.  20  cents.,  or  2s. 

LANGUAGES. — On  the  Austro- Germanic  lines,  messages  arc 
received  when  written  in  English,  French,  Dutch,  German, 
and'  Italian.  On  the  Taunus  Railway  Telegraph,  private  mes- 
sages are  sent  in  German  only. 

On  the  Liibeck  and  Travemunde  line,  dispatches  are  received 
in  French,  German,  and  English.  On  the  lines  from  Bremen 
to  Brake,  Elsfleth,  Fedderwerdsiel,  Oldenburg,  Rastede,  Yarel, 
and  Vegesack,  dispatches  are  received  in  French,  German,  and 
English.  On  the  line  from  Altona  to  Elmshorn,  Neumunster, 
Kiel,  and  Rensburg,  messages  are  sent  in  French,  German, 
English,  and  Danish. 

In  Denmark,  Norway,  and  Sweden,  dispatches  are  received 
in  English,  French,  German,  Danish,  and  Swedish. 

On  the  Belgian  lines,  messages  are  received  in  French,  Eng- 
lish, German,  Dutch,  and  Italian.  On  the  French  lines,  mes- 
sages in- English,  French,  German,  and  Italian,  are  received. 

On  the  Corsica  lines,  English,  French,  German,  and  Italian. 
On  the  lines  in  Algeria,  Africa,  messages  are  sent  in  French, 
English,  German,  and  Italian.  In  Switzerland,  Sardinia,  and 
Island  of  Sardinia,  in  English,  French,  German,  and  Italian. 

On  the  Malta,  and  Corfu  lines,  in  English,  French,  and 
German.  On  the  lines  in  Spain,  English,  French,  Portuguese, 
Italian,  and  Spanish.  In  Portugal,  messages  are  received  in 
English,  French,  Italian,  Spanish,  and  Portuguese. 

On  the  Russian  lines,  interior  Russian  only,  foreign  messages 
in  French,  German,  English,  and  Russian.  On  the  Moldavian, 
Servian,  and  Wallachian  lines,  foreign  dispatches  to  be  in 
French  or  German.  In  Turkey,  French,  English,  and  German. 

On  the  lines  in  Modena,  Parma,  Tuscany,  the  Papal  States, 
Naples,  and  the  Island  of  Sicily,  the  messages  to  be  in  French 
or  Italian. 


ORGANIZATION  AND  ADMINISTRATION  OF 
ASIATIC  AND  AFRICAN  TELEGRAPHS. 


CHAPTER   LIX. 

History  of  the  Telegraph  in  Hindostan — Rules  and  Regulations  on  the  Bengal 
Lines — Classification  and  Qualification  of  Employes. 

ASIA HISTORY    OF    THE    TELEGRAPH    IN    HINDOSTAN. 

IN  the  months  of  April  and  May,  1839,  in  the  vicinity  of  Cal- 
cutta, Hindostan,  an  experimental  telegraph  line  of  twenty-one 
miles,  embracing  7,000  feet  of  river  circuit,  was  constructed  "by 
Dr.  O'Shaughnessy.  The  enterprise  in  India,  after  this  experi- 
ment, remained  at  rest  until  1851,  at  which  time  a  line  of  15 
miles  overground  and  15  miles  subterranean  was  constructed. 
In  1852  a  branch  line  was  built  from  Calcutta  to  Magapore 
and  to  Kedgeree,  some  80  miles  long.  In  1852,  the  Hooghly 
and  Huldee  rivers  were  successfully  crossed,  by  which  Calcutta 
was  brought  into  connection  with  the  sea.  In  the  same  year 
the  government  of  India  directed  the  construction  of  lines 
from  Calcutta  to  Agra,  to  Bombay,  to  Peshawur  and  Madras, 
and  since  then  lines  have  been  extended  to  other  places. 

The  telegraphs  of  Hindostan  have  been  constructed  by  the 
government  upon  a  more  expensive  and  permanent  scale  than 
the  lines  of  any  other  country.  Upon  these  lines  a  needle  sys- 
tem, invented  by  Dr.  O'Shaughnessy,  has  been  successfully  em- 
ployed. He  has  given  evidence  of  its  superiority,  in  working, 
over  the  instruments  employed  on  the  lines  in  England. 

RULES  AND  REGULATIONS  ON  THE  BENGAL  LINES. 

The  following  rules,  adopted  on  the  telegraph  lines  of  the  gov- 
ernment of  Bengal,  will  show  the  mode  of  the  management  of 
telegraph  lines  throughout  India  : 

1st.  Until  further  orders,  the  services  shall  be  conducted  by 
the  superintendent,  in  direct  communication  with  the  govern- 
ment  of  Bengal. 

799 


300  THE    TELEGRAPH  IN  HINDOSTAN. 

2d.  The  telegraph  station  shall  be  open  continually,  day  and 
night,  throughout  the  year,  for  the  receipt  and  transmission  of 
correspondence. 

3d.  The  secretaries  and  under-secretaries  of  the  government, 
superintendent  of  marine  and  his  secretary,  master-attendant 
and  his  assistants,  collector  of  the  customs,  deputy  collector 
and  his  assistants,  are  authorized  to  have  their  messages  on  pub- 
lic service  conveyed,  subject  to  pro  forma  charge,  at  the  usual 
rates,  taking  precedence  of  all  private  communications.  Other 
public  officers  having  messages  on  public  service  to  transmit, 
will  apply  to  the  superintendent ;  or,  in  emergent  cases,  to  one 
or  other  of  the  officers  above  named. 

4th.  All  ordinary  shipping  intelligence  is  to  be  transmitted 
in  writing  hourly  to  the  superintendent  of  marine,  and  the  mas- 
ter attendant.  Important  shipping  intelligence  is  to  be  trans- 
mitted, immediately  upon  its  receipt,  to  the  same  authorities. 

Oth.  Printed  reports  of  intelligence  are  to  be  issued  at  10  A. 
M.,  1,  4,  and  7  p.  M.  These  will  be  forwarded  to  the  members 
of  the  government,  secretaries  to  the  government,  private  secre- 
taries to  the  governor-general,  and  deputy  governor  of  Bengal, 
superintendent  of  marine,  master-attendant,  register  of  seamen, 
board  of  revenue,  collector  of  customs,  superintendent  of  pre- 
ventive officers,  military  board,  postmaster-general,  &c. 

6th.  Special  notice  of  the  arrival  of  any  specified  vessel  is  to 
be  sent  immediately  to  the  residence  or  office  of  any  person  with- 
in Calcutta,  requiring  it,  at  a  charge  of  four  annas  (6d.)  in  the 
case  of  a  subscriber,  and  one  rupee  (2s.)  in  the  case  of  any  other 
person. 

7th.  In  case  of  any  irregularity,  delay,  or  interruption  in  the 
transmission  of  messages,  or  the  delivery  of  notices  or  reports, 
on  public  or  private  service,  complaint  should  be  made  to  the 
superintendent. 

8th.  Any  officer,  signaler,  clerk,  or  other  person  employed 
in  the  telegraph  stations,  disclosing  improperly  the  particulars 
or  tenor  of  any  message  sent  by  telegraph,  whether  on  public 
or  private  service,  shall  be  dismissed,  forfeiting  all  arrears  of 
salary ;  and  shall  be  declared  disqualified  from  serving  govern- 
ment in  any  capacity. 

9th.  Messages  will  be  transmitted  at  the  following  rates  ; 

[The  rates  are  something  higher,  but  arranged  as  on  the 
American  lines.  Two  syllables  is  a  word,  and  each  additional 
syllable  is  counted  as  a  separate  word.] 

10th.  Between  sunset  and  sunrise,  the  tariff  of  charges  will 
be  doubled,  and  the  superintendent  will  be  allowed  to  divide 


BENGAL  LINES RULES  AND  REGULATIONS.  801 

the  receipts,  at  his  discretion,  among  the  signalers  who  may  he 
engaged  in  transmission  of  the  messages. 

llth.  The  transmission  of  messages  gratuitously  is  prohibi- 
ted on  penalty  of  dismissal. 

12th.  Messages  will  have  precedence  in  the  following  order, 
viz. : 

a.  Vessels  in  distress  ;  b.  Mail  steamers  ;  c.  Public  service  ; 
d.  Private  service  of  subscribers  ;  e.  Shipping  business ;  f.  Pri- 
vate service  of  individual  firms,  not  subscribers. 

13th.  Persons  using  the  telegraph  are  admitted  into  the  outer 
roo:n  of  the  office  ;  but  no  person,  whether  public  officers  or  pri- 
vate individuals,  will  be  admitted  into  the  inner  rooms.  Visit- 
ors can  be  allowed  access  to  the  signal  room  only  by  the  special 
order  of  the  superintendent. 

14th.  No  record  or  copy  is  to  be  kept  of  the  nature  or  con- 
tents of  any  dispatch  on  business,  but  an  entry  will  be  made  in 
the  stational  journal,  in  the  following  form,  viz. : 

Message  from  A B . 

Transmitted  to . 

Words  25;  not  more  than  two  syllables  each,  Tariff Additional 

Delivery Answer       

Signed  by  Signaler  C D 

15th.  All  fees  are  to  be  paid  in  cash,  before  the  sending  ot 
the  message.  All  receipts  on  this  account  are  to  be  carried  to 
the  credit  of  the  government,  and  to  be  accounted  for  in  the 
monthly  reports. 

16th.  Subscribers'  privileges  are  obtained  by  firms  and  indi- 
viduals, on  payment  of  a  subscription  of  eight  rupees  a  month. 

17th.  The  superintendent  is  vested  with  the  power  of  ap- 
pointing and  removing  all  persons  employed  in  the  establish- 
ment. He  may  inflict  fines  for  neglect  of  duty ;  but  should 
such  fines  amount  in  any  month  to  more  than  one-fourth  of  the 
salary  or  wages  of  the  persons  punished,  the  case  shall  be  es- 
pecially reported  for  the  orders  of  the  government. 

CLASSIFICATION    AND    QUALIFICATION    OF    EMPLOYEES. 

18th.  The  administration  or  establishment  consists  of  a  su- 
perintendent, assistant,  and  workmen.  The  assistants  are  of 
four  classes : 

FIRST  CLASS INSPECTORS. 

Qualifications. — A  good  English  education,  a  correct  know- 
ledge of  orthography,  a  perfect  knowledge  of  the  principles, 
construction,  working,  adjustment,  protection,  and  repairs  of 
the  lines  of  conductors,  and  of  all  the  instruments  employed. 


802  QUALIFICATION  OF  EMPLOYEES. 

Quickness  and  correctness  in  dispatching  and  receiving  sig- 
nals, knowledge  of  Marryat's  and  Bedford's  Marine  and  River 
Codes.  Grood  character  for  sobriety,  diligence,  activity,  and 
good  habitual  health.  Salary  to  be  100  rupees  (£10)  per 
month,  with  40  rupees  for  traveling  expenses  when  employed 
out  of  Calcutta. 

SECOND  CLASS READERS. 

Qualifications. — A  good  English  education,  correctness  in 
orthography  ;  rapidity  and  precision  in  transmitting  and  read- 
ing signals  by  spelling,  and  with  needle  telegraphs  ;  knowledge 
of  the  adjustment  of  instruments,  and  of  Marryat's  and  Bed- 
ford's codes.  Salary  55  rupees  (d£5.10s.)  to  75  rupees  (d£7.10s.) 
a  month. 

THIRD    CLASS— SIGNALERS. 

Qualifications. — A  good  English  education,  correctness  in 
transmitting  signals,  and  proficiency  in  reading  signals.  Sal- 
ary 27J  rupees  (£2. 15s.)  a  month. 

FOURTH  CLASS PROBATIONERS. 

Qualifications. — A  good  English  education.  A  guarantee 
from  a  guardian  or  parent,  of  readiness  to  enter  into  appren- 
ticeship, according  to  government  act. 

Probationers  receive  no  pay,  but  are  permitted  to  learn  the 
practice  of  signaling  at  such  stations  as  may  be  convenient,  for 
a  period  of  three  months,  when  they  will  be  subjected  to  an 
examination,  and  discharged  if  not  found  qualified  for  admis- 
sion on  the  apprentice  list.  If  employed  at  out-stations,  or  on 
temporary  duty,  they  will  receive  pay  at  the  rate  of  16  rupees 
(£,  1.12s.)  per  month. 

In  the  foregoing  I  have  not  referred  to  the  construction  of 
the  lines,  preferring  to  embrace  that  subject  in  another  part  of 
this  work,  especially  as  the  peculiarities  of  the  telegraphs 
in  Hindostan  are  different  from  other  parts  of  the  world. 
The  character  of  the  country,  the  climate,  and  other  con- 
siderations, have  required  from  Dr.  O'Shaughnessy  the  exer- 
cise of  wonderful  inventive  powers.  In  this,  he  has  fully  met 
every  difficulty.  And  though  his  wor  k  s  exhibit  a  strange  novelty, 
yet  he  has  consummated  the  enterprise  with  a  degree  of  perfec- 
tion, as  to  construction  and  administration,  singularly  novel. 

The  lines  of  Hindostan  are  the  most  substantial  in  the  world. 
They  are  subjected  to  severe  trials,  and  such,  too,  as  are  not 
common  to  other  climes ;  among  which,  for  example,  is  the  annoy- 
ance from  the  monkeys  playing  and  swinging  upon  the  wires. 


80S 


APPENDIX. 


SAMUEL   F.   B.    MOESE, 

©f  Ncto  gorfe. 

'  FINLEY  BREESE  MORSE  is  the  inventor  of  the  American-Electro- 
Magnetic  Telegraph.  He  was  the  eldest  son  of  the  Kev.  Jedediah  Morse, 
D.  D.,  the  author  of  Morse's  Geography.  He  was  born  at  Charlestown, 
Massachusetts,  on  the  29th  of  April,  1791.  His  mother's  name  was  Breese. 
She  was  a  descendant  of  the  Rev.  Samuel  Finley,  D.  D.,  a  former  President 
of  Princeton  College.  From  this  ancestor  and  his  mother,  Professor 
Morse  derives  his  Christian  name. 

He  graduated  at  Yale  College  in  1810. 

Young  Morse  had  a  passion  for  painting  so  strong  that,  in  1811,  his 
father  sent  him  to  Europe,  under  charge  of  Mr.  Alston,  that  he  might  per- 
fect himself  in  the  art  to  which  he  desired  to  devote  his  life.  He  had 
letters  to  West  and  Copley,  and  soon  had  the  satisfaction  to  excite  the 
peculiar  regard  of  the  former,  who  was  in  the  zenith  of  his  fame.  In 
May,  1813,  his  picture  of  the  "  Dying  Hercules ';  was  exhibited  at  the 
Royal  Academy,  Somerset  House,  eliciting  much  commendation.  Aux- 
iliary to  the  painting  of  this  picture,  he  had  moulded  a  figure  of 
"  Hercules  "  in  plaster,  which  he  sent  to  the  Society  of  Arts  to  take  its 
chance  for  a  prize  in  sculpture.  His  adventure  was  successful,  and,  on 
the  13th  May,  1813,  he  publicly  received  a  gold  medal  with  high  commen- 
dation from  the  Duke  of  Norfolk,  then  presiding. 

Thus  encouraged,  the  young  artist  prepared  a  picture  representing  the 
"Judgment  of  Jupiter  in  the  case  of  Apollo,  Marpessa,  and  Idas/'  to  con- 
test the  prize  of  a  gold  medal  and  fifty  guineas  offered  by  the  Royal 
Academy  in  1814.  Being  called  home  before  the  exhibition,  his  picture 
was  denied  admittance,  because  he  could  not  attend  in  person.  West,  the 
president,  to  whom  he  exhibited  the  picture  after  it  was  finished,  advised 
him  to  remain,  and  after  the  public  exhibition  wrote  him  that  he  had  no 
doubt  it  would  have  taken  the  prize. 

In  August.  1815,  Morse  returned  to  his  own  country,  flushed  with  high 
hopes,  based  on  his  success  abroad.  He  opened  his  rooms  in  Boston, 
where  he  exhibited  his  "  Judgment  of  Jupiter  : ;;  but  for  a  whole  year  he 
did  not  receive  a  single  offer  for  that  picture  or  a  single  order  for  any  other 
of  an  historical  character.  This  was  a  cruel  disappointment,  for  in  that  direc 
tion  his  ambition  lay.  Having  thus  far  depended  on  means  derived  from 
his  father,  and  seeing  no  prospect  of  independence  in  that  line,  he 
betook  himself  to  portrait-painting,  and  in  that  pursuit  visited  various 
towns  in  New-Hampshire.  In  a  few  months,  he  returned  with  a  consider- 
able sum  in  money  acquired  by  painting  small  portraits  at  fifteen  dollars 
each. 


804  APPENDIX. 

On  that  trip  he  became  acquainted  with  Miss  Walker,  whom  he  after- 
ward married.  He  also  fell  in  with  a  Southern  gentleman,  who  assured 
him  that  he  could  get  abundant  employment  in  the  South  at  quadruple 
prices. 

On  writing  to  his  uncle,  Dr.  Finley,  of  Charleston,  that  gentleman  gave 
him  a  cordial  invitation  to  his  house  while  he  made  the -trial.  He  com- 
plied, and  although  for  a  time  his  prospects  were  gloomy,  a  portrait  of 
his  uncle  finally  attracted  so  much  attention  that  orders  at  sixty  dollars 
each  came  in  much  faster  than  he  could  execute  them.  With  three  thou- 
sand dollars  in  hand,  and  engagements  for  a  long  time  to  come,  he  return- 
ed to  New-England  and  married  Miss  Walker.  For  four  successive 
winters  he  returned  to  Charleston,  in  the  practice  of  his  art,  where  he 
was  not  only  successful,  but  was  respected  and  beloved. 

In  January,  1821.  Morse,  in  conjunction  with  John  S.  Boydell,  origina- 
ted the  "  South  Carolina  Academy  of  Fine  Arts/'  of  which  the  late  Joel 
R.  Poinsett  was  president.  It  was  incorporated,  and  had  several  exhibi- 
tions ;  but  has  been  broken  up  for  lack  of  adequate  support. 

Circumstances  awakened  anew  Morse's  ambition  for  distinction  as  an 
historical  painter.  He  conceived  the  idea  of  painting  the  interior  of  the 
representatives'  chamber  in  the  Capitol  at  Washington,  and  raising  a 
revenue  by  its  exhibition.  He  located  his  family  in  New-Haven,  and 
devoted  eighteen  months  to  the  painting  of  this  picture.  It  measured 
eight  feet  by  nine,  and  contained  a  great  variety  of  figures.  Its  exhibi- 
tion, however,  instead  of  producing  an  income,  resulted  in  a  considerable 
loss,  and  this  with  contributions,  in  common  with  his  brothers,  to  discharge 
their  father's  pecuniary  liabilities,  swept  away  all  he  had  accumulated  at 
Charleston.  j 

Morse  then  sought  employment  in  New-York,  and  finally  obtained  from 
the  corporation  an  order  to  paint  a  portrait  of  Gen.  Lafayette,  who  was 
then  in  the  United  States.  For  that  purpose  he  visited  Washington  ,•  Iput 
in  February,  1825,  he  was  called  home  by  news  of  the  death  of  his  wife. 
His  labors  upon  this  picture  were  further  interrupted  by  the  sickness  of 
his  children,  and  the  death  of  his  excellent  father  and  mother. 

Morse  now  made  New- York  his  place  of  residence.  In  the  fall  of  1825, 
he  was  active  in  organizing  a  drawing  association,  wfiich  constituted  the 
germ  of  the  "  National  Academy  of  Design,"  of  which  he  was  president 
for  many  years  after  its  organization.  Though  gotten  up  under  great 
difficulties  and  amidst  much  controversy,  this  institution  was  eminently 
successful. 

In  1827,  Morse  delivered,  before  the  New-York  Athenaeum,  the  first 
course  of  lectures  on  the  fine  arts  ever  delivered  in  America. 

In  1829,  he  again  visited  Europe,  spending  three  years  among  artists 
and  collections  of  Art  in  England,  Italy,  and  France.  In  Paris,  he 
painted  the  interior  of  the  Louvre,  copying  in  miniature  the  most  remark- 
able paintings  hanging  on  its  walls.  In  the  fall  of  1832,  he  returned  to 
the  United  States,  and  resumed  his  position  as  President  of  the  National 
Academy  of  Design,  to  which  post  he  was  elected  every  year  during  his 
absence. 

When  American  artists  were  to  be  employed  to  fill  with  a  picture  one 
of  the  vacant  panels  in  the  Rotunda  of  the  Capitol,  the  American  artists, 
it  is  believed  without  exception,  considered  Morse  best  entitled  to  the 
honor;  and  great  was  their  disappointment  when  another  was  selected. 
They  exhibited  their  sense  of  the  wrong  done  him  by  voluntarily  raising 
a  subscription  to  pay  him  for  a  picture  suited  to  such  a  national  object. 
A  considerable  sum  was  collected  and  paid  over  to  him,  but  not  enough 
to  enable  him  to  complete  the  design  in  a  manner  satisfactory  to  himself. 
Determined  that  no  man  should  have  an  opportunity  to  charge  him  with 


EMINENT    TELEGRAPHERS.  805 

appropriating  his  money  without  an  equivalent,  he  resolved  to  refund 
the  amounts  paid  over  to  him ;  and  though  sorely  pressed  never  ceased  his 
efforts  until  he  had  paid  back  the  last  cent. 

Professor  Morse,  under  the  most  straitened  circumstances,  had  an  in- 
superable repugnance  to  contracting  debt,  or  living  on  the  bounty  of 
others.  His  dying  mother,  after  encountering  much  suffering  from  the 
kindness  of  his  father  in  lending  his  name  to  friends  whom  he  trusted, 
exacted  a  promise  from  her  son  that  he  would  never  thus  endanger  his 
own  peace  of  mind  and  the  comfort  of  his  household,  and  to  that  promise 
he  has  religiously  adhered. 

During  his  collegiate  course,  ending  in  1810,  Professor  Morse  had  been 
instructed  by  Professor  Sillimanin  all  that  was  then  known  on  the  subject 
of  electricity,  and  the  formation  of  electric  batteries.  During  the  resi- 
dence of  his  family  at  New-Haven,  or  about  1824,  enjoying  the  friendship 
of  Professor  Silliman,  and  having  free  access  to  his  Laboratory,  he  ob- 
tained from  those  sources  full  information  of  the  progress  of  electrical 
discovery  and  science  from  1810  up  to  that  time.  In  the  winter  of  1826- 
;27,  he  attended  a  series  of  lectures  on  electricity,  delivered  by  Professor 
Dana  in  New  York,  and  there  saw-  the  first  Electro-Magnet  which  probably 
was  ever  exhibited  in  America.  Dana  was  an  enthusiast  on  the  subject 
of  Electro-Magnetism,  and  being  an  intimate  friend  of  Morse,  made  it  a 
topic  of  constant  conversation.  Had  not  death  struck  him  down,  in  the 
spring  of  1828,  he  would  probably  have  become  the  leading  electrician 
of  America. 

In  the  month  of  October,  1832,  Mr.  Morse  sailed  from  Havre  for  Amer- 
ica. It  was  on  that  voyage  that  he  invented  the  telegraph.  He  made 
drawings  of  the  apparatus.  The  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States 
has  on  file  conclusive  proof  that  the  subsequent  telegraph  was  identical 
with  the  drawings  made  in  his  sketch-book  on  board  of  the  ship  Sully  in 
1832.  The  particulars  in  regard  to  the  progress  Mr.  Morse  made  in  his 
telegraph  subsequent  to  1832,  have  been  given  elsewhere  in  this  work, 
and  their  repetition  is  unnecessary. 

In  1837,  he  commenced  active  efforts  to  get  his  system  adopted  for  the 
government  use.  He  filed  a  caveat  for  his  invention  in  the  Patent  Office 
in  October  of  that  year,  and  at  the  subsequent  session  of  Congress  he 
applied  for  the  aid  to  test  its  practicability,  but  in  this  effort,  however,  he 
was  not  successful. 

In  1838,  the  Hon.  F.  0.  J.  Smith,  then  a  distinguished  member  of  Con- 
gress, from  the  State  of  Maine,  abandoned  his  seat  and  entered  into  the 
new  enterprise  with  Prof.  Morse  ;  and  in  May  of  that  year  they  sailed  for 
Europe,  having  in  view  the  procuring  of  patents  and  the  selling  of  the 
invention  to  the  different  governments. 

In  England,  the  patent  was  refused,  because  a  description  of  the  in- 
vention had  been  published  prior  to  the  application.  In  Trance,  a  patent 
was  granted,  but  by  royal  order  it  could  not  be  placed  in  operation 
before  its  expiration.  Efforts  were  made  to  get  it  established  in  Russia, 
but  without  success.  Having  remained  in  Europe  for  about  a  year  with- 
out effecting  anything,  Prof.  Morse  abandoned  further  effort  and  returned 
to  America. 

In  1840,  he  procured  his  first  American  patent,  and  he  then,  in  co-ope- 
ration with  his  partner,  Mr.  Smith,  endeavored  to  get  the  telegraph 
established  by  the  United  States  Government. 

At  the  session  of  Congress,  ending  in  March.  1843,  the  bill  appropria- 
ting thirty  thousand  dollars  to  test  the  practicability  of  the  telegraph  on 
an  experimental  line  to  be  constructed  from  Washington  to  Baltimore 
was  passed  and  became  a  law.  This  line  was  completed  in  May,  1844, 
and  the  successful  operation  gave  evidence  to  the  world  of  the  most 
complete  triumph. 


806  APPENDIX. 

In  the  year  1845,  Professor  Morse  again  visited  Europe,  for  the  purpose 
of  getting  his  telegraph  adopted  by  Russia  or  some  of  the  other  govern- 
ments. Having  arrived  in  Hamburg,  late  in  the  summer,  he  found  that 
he  could  not  make  the  visit  to  Russia  and  return  before  the  close  of  navi- 
gation. He  abandoned  his  intentions,  and  visited  Paris,  and  in  a  few 
weeks  thereafter  returned  to  America. 

While  Professor  Morse  was  at  Paris,  he  made  the  acquaintance  of 
Mr.  Daguerre,  and  saw  his  wonderful  discovery.  As  was  natural  with  a 
devoted  and  discriminating  artist,  he  soon  found  himself  an  enthusiast  in 
the  new  art.  He  supplied  himself  with  tho  necessary  apparatuses  and 
brought  them  to  America. 

Not  long  after  his  return  to  his  home,  he  commenced  the  art  of  daguer- 
reotyping.  It  was  the  first  introduction  in  America  of  that  novel  art. 
He  continued  in  this  new  vocation  about  one  year,  when  he  abandoned  it 
to  others,  and  from  that  time  he  has  devoted  his  life  to  the  telegraph. 

The  progress  of  the  telegraph  was  a  part  of  the  career  of  Professor 
Morse.  To  embrace  its  advancement  over  the  continents  would  require 
more  sjmce  than  is  possible  to  be  given  in  this  volume.  Wherever  his 
system  is  seen— and  they  are  scattered  nearly  over  the  whole  civilized 
world — the  instruments  serve  as  orators,  speaking  praise  to  his  name 
and  honor  to  his  nation. 

The  Morse  system  has  become  nearly  the  sole  telegraph  used  on  the 
American  lines.  Throughout  Europe  it  is  in  general  employment,  most 
of  others  having  been  abandoned.  Nations  have  laid  aside  their  pride 
for  their  own  peculiar  contrivances,  and  adopted  the  Morse  telegraph  as 
the  most  practical  for  governmental  and  commercial  purposes.  These 
are  manifestations  of  honor,  deserving  of  the  highest  appreciation. 

Besides  the  honors  just  above  alluded  to,  Professor  Morse  has  had  con- 
ferred upon  him,  by  the  voluntary  will  of  the  respective  sovereigns,  various 
medals  and  orders.  He  has  been  created  knight  of  the  first  class  of  the 
Turkish  order,  Nishan-Iftichar,  Knight  of  the  Danish  order  of  the 
Danebroge,  Chevalier  of  the  French  Legion  of  Honor,  Knight  Commander 
of  the  Spanish  Order  of  Isabella  the  Catholic.  &c.,  &c.  He  has  been 
constituted  a  member  of  the  Swedish  Royal  Academy  of  Sciences  of  Stock- 
holm ;  of  the  Belgian  Academy  of  Fine  Arts;  and  honorary  member 
of  various  American  and  Foreign  Scientific  societies. 

Wherever  Professor  Morse  has  visited,  in  either  hemisphere,  and  the 
isles  of  the  seas,  he  has  been  received  and  respected  with  the  greatest 
distinction.  Many  ovations  have  been  given  in  his  honor,  and  society  has 
appreciated  his  presence  as  one  of  the  greatest  of  the  age.  His  fame  has 
spread  throughout  the  world,  and  it  will  stand  with  increased  lustre  as 
long  as  time  lasts. 

The  most  distinguished  honor  that  has  ever  been  conferred  upon  any 
one  person,  has  been  awarded  to  Professor  Morse,  in  the  assembling  of 
the  representatives  of  ten  of  the  governments  of  Europe,  in  special 
Congress,  for  the  purpose  of  testifying  to  him  their  appreciation  of  his 
telegraph. 

This  Congress  met  at  Paris  in  1858,  and  was  composed  of  representatives 
from  France,  Russia.  Austria,  Sweden,  Roman  States,  Turkey,  Sardinia, 
Holland,  Belgium  and  Tuscany.  The  Congress  refused  to  look  at  the 
subject  as  to  value,  because  a  commercial  consideration  would  have  given 
Morse  millions,  but  as  an  honorary  testimonial  for  the  good  he  had  done 
man,  they  awarded  to  him  the  sum  of  four  hundred  thousand  francs. 
This  result  was  announced  il  de  litre  une  gratification  honorifique,  et  tote 
personelle" 

Professor   Morse  married  Miss  Lucretia  Pickering  Walker,   29th  of 


EMINENT    TELEGRAPHERS.  807 

September,  1818.  He  had  five  children  by  this  wife,  three  of  which  are 
still  living.  Mrs.  Morse  died  on  the  7th  of  February,  1825.  This  sad 
occurrence  was  a  heavy  blow  to  the  companion  of  the  departed.  On  the 
10th  of  August,  1848,  Professor  Morse  married  his  second  wife,  Miss 
Sarah  Elizabeth  Griswold.  He  has  four  children  by  this  lady. 

Professor  Morse  now  resides  in  the  vicinity  of  Poughkeepsie,  New- 
York,  and  he  has  everything  around  him  calculated  to  render  his  later 
days  happy.  He  is  blessed  with  an  amiable  wife  and  promising  children. 
He  is  surrounded  with  friends,  and  no  one  can  be  found  that  wishes  him 
an  UD pleasant  pang.  His  life  has  been  one  of  temperance,  industry,  and 
religion.  His  benevolence  has  exceeded  his  abilities  through  his  whole 
career.  A  reward  awaits  him,  richer  and  purer  than  all  the  world  can 
bestow. 


808 


APPENDIX. 


AMOS  KENDALL, 

©f  tije   misttitt  of  Columbia, 

AMOS  KENDALL  was  born  in  Dunstable,  in  the  State  of  Massschusetts, 
on  the  16th  day  of  August,  1789.  His  ancestors  were  farmers,  and  he 
labored  on  his  father's  farm  until  he  was  about  sixteen  years  old.  His 
fondness  for  books,  and  progress  in  the  free  schools  of  the  neighborhood, 
excited  in  his  father  a  desire  to  give  him  a  collegiate  education. 

He  was  fitted  for  college,  partly  in  New  Ipswich,  N.  H.,  and  partly  hi 
Groton,  Mass.  In  August,  1807,  he  entered  the  freshman  class  of  Dart- 
mouth college,  and  graduated  in  August,  1811.  For  want  of  means,  he 
was  unable  to  attend  the  fall  terms,  and  having  supplied  himself  by 
teaching  school  in  the  winter,  and  kept  up  with  his  class  by  studying  in 
the  long  evenings,  he  joined  the  class  in  the  spring,  so  that  he  entered 
college  five  times  within  the  four  years.  He  graduated  at  the  head  of  a 
large  class. 

Immediately  after  graduating,  Mr.  Kendall  commenced  the  study  of  the 
law,  at  Groton,  Mass.,  in  the  office  of  Wm.  M.  Richardson,  Esq.,  who 
afterward  became  chief  justice  of  New-Hampshire.  This  step  was 
taken  at  the  instance  of  Mr.  Richardson  himself,  who  learning  that  young 
Kendall  was  without  means,  proposed  to  take  him  into  his  office  and 
family,  allow  him  sundry  perquisites,  and  depend  entirely  on  the  future 
for  his  compensation. 

In  consequence  of  the  war  with  Great  Britain,  the  practice  of  the  law 
was  very  much  depressed  in  New-England,  and  having  no  prominent 
family  to  sustain  and  advance  him,  Mr.  Kendall  determined  to  seek  his 
fortune  in  the  South  or  West.  Mr.  Richardson  was  then  in  Congress,  and 
in  February,  1814,  Mr.  Kendall  went  to  Washington,  and  after  spending 
there  a  couple  of  weeks,  collecting  information  by  means  of  his  friend 
and  patron,  started  foi  the  West.  He  travelled  to  Pittsburg  in  the 
stages,  spent  two  weeks  there,  descended  the  Ohio  river  in  a  flatboat  to 
Maysville,  Ky.,  thence  in  a  skiff  to  Cincinnati,  and  then  ce  he  went  most 
of  the  way  on  foot  to  Lexington,  Ky.  Accident  there  made  him 
acquainted  with  the  family  of  Henry  Clay,  who  was  then  in  Europe,  and 
under  an  arrangement  with  Mrs.  Clay,  he  became  family  tutor  to  her 
children  for  nearly  a  year.  He  then  settled  in  Georgetown,  Ky.,  in  the 
prnctice  of  the  law,  and  was  soon  afterward  appointed  postmaster 
there.  It  was  not  until  after  he  settled  in  Georgetown,  that  he  first  saw 
Mr.  Clay. 

A  slight  incident  here  gave  direction  to  his  subsequent  life.  A  club  of 
young  men,  associated  for  mutual  improvement  in  speaking  and  composi- 
tion;  existed  in  the  neighborhood,  which  he  joined  upon  invitation.  A 
piece  of  composition  read  by  him  in  the  club,  attracted  attention,  and 
produced  solicitations  that  he  would  write  for  the  village  newspaper.  His 
productions  attracted  attention,  and  led  to  an  invitation  to  purchase  an 
interest  in  the  State  paper  at  Frankfort,  called  the  "  Argus  of  Western 
America."  After  some  hesitation  he  made  the  purchase,  and  in  the  fall 
of  1817,  became  in  effect  the  sole  editor  of  that  paper.  It  was  not  his 
purpose  to  abandon  the  practice  of  law,  though  by  no  means  pleased  with 
it ;  out  one  exciting  question  after  another  arose  in  State  politics  which 
engrossed  his  mind  and  weaned  him  from  the  law  altogether. 


EMINENT    TELEGRAPHERS.  809 

In  the  contest  for  the  Presidency,  which  ended  in  the  election  of  John 
Quiney  Adams,  Mr.  Kendall  supported  Mr.  Clay,  avowing  that  General 
Jackson  was  his  second  choice.  In  the  subsequent  contest  between  Mr. 
Adams  and  General  Jackson,  he  zealously  supported  the  latter.  In 
March,  1829,  he  was,  without  solicitation  on  his  part,  appointed  by 
General  Jackson,  Fourth  Auditor  of  the  Treasury  Department  at  Wash- 
ington. There  was  much  confusion  and  corruption  in  this  office,  all  of 
which  was  rectified  by  Mr.  Kendall,  who  held  the  office  five  years.  He 
was  then  unexpectedly  solicited  by  General  Jackson  to  take  charge  of 
the  Postoffice  Department,  whose  affairs  were  much  deranged.  Reluct- 
antly, and  only  because  the  President  placed  his  request  on  personal 
grounds,  Mr.  Kendall  undertook  the  herculean  task  of  reforming  that 
department.  In  one  year  it  was  efficiently  organized,  purged  from  abuses, 
and  freed  from  debt.  He  held  the  office  until  1840,  when  he  resigned. 
He  was.  much  persecuted  by  malicious  suits  instituted  by  certain  mail 
contractors  whose  exactions  he  had  resisted;  but,  after  years  of  annoyance, 
they  ended  in  his  triumphant  vindication,  and  the  payment  to  him  by  the 
unanimous  concurrence  of  all  parties  in  Congress,  of  all  costs  and  expenses 
which  they  had  occasioned. 

Much  has  been  said  about  Mr.  KendalPs  influence  with  General  Jack- 
son. That  the  General  had  great  confidence  in  him,  is  shown  by  the  trusts 
committed  to  his  hands.  But  in  his  public  measures,  General  Jackson 
was  a  man,  who,  having  once  formed  his  opinions,  might  be  aided  but  not 
influenced.  That  Mr.  Kendall  did  aid  him  by  his  pen  and  counsel,  par- 
ticularly in  his  warfare  with  the  Bank  of  the  United  States,  there  can  be 
no  doubt.  Mr.  Kendall's  opinions  in  relation  to  that  Bank  were  fixed  as 
early  as  1818,  and  perfectly  accorded  with  General  Jackson's,  and  he 
considers  the  aid  he  was  able  to  render  the  General  in  destroying  the 
Bank  the  highest  title  he  has  to  the  gratitude  of  his  country. 

Mr.  Kendall  left  public  life  poor,  and  betook  himself  to  the  publication 
of  a  newspaper  for  subsistence.  In  this  he  was  but  partially  successful ; 
and  not  being  able  to  transfer  his  establishment  to  a  more  promising  field 
on  account  of  embarrassments  arising  out  of  the  malicious  suits  already 
alluded  to,  he  discontinued  his  newspaper,  and  resorted  to  the  prosecution 
of  claims  against  the  government,  to  him  a  most  irksome  business. 

While  thus  employed,  he  fell  in  with  Professor  Morse,  who  was  en- 
deavoring, with  little  prospect  of  success,  to  get  an  appropriation  from 
Congress,  to  extend  a  line  of  his  telegraph  from  Baltimore  to  New- York, 
it  being  already  in  operation  between  Washington  and  Baltimore.  Find- 
ing the  Professor  much  discouraged,  he  inquired  whether  he  had  no 
project  to  render  his  telegraph  profitable  as  a  private  enterprise  if  he 
should  fail  in  obtaining  further  aid  from  the  government  ?  On  being 
answered  in  the  negative,  he  rejoined  that  if  the  appropriation  failed,  he 
would  be  glad  to  talk  further'  on  the  subject.  It  failed,  and  Professor 
Morse  asked  Mr.  Kendall  for  a  proposition  to  take  charge  of  his  telegraph 
business.  It  was  made  and  at  once  accepted.  It  vested  Mr.  Kendall  with 
full  power  to  manage  and  dispose  of  Morse's  patent  rights  according  to 
his  discretion.  A  similar  arrangement  was  made  with  Professor  L.  D. 
Gale,  who  owned  one  sixteenth,  and  Mr.  Alfred  Vail,  who  owned  two 
sixteenths  of  Morse's  patent.  Without  going  into  the  details  of  his  man- 
agement, suffice  it  to  say  that  it  has  placed  Professor  Morse  in  a  condition 
of  pecuniary  independence,  has  profited  in  the  same  proportion  the  other 
owners  of  the  patent,  and  has  secured  to  himself  and  family  the  means  of 
comfort. 

Mr.  Kendall  was  married  at  the  age  of  29,  lived  with  his  wife  five  years, 
and  had  four  children,  of  whom  only  one  survives.  After  living  a 
widower  two  years,  he  was  again  married,  and  by  his  second  wife  has  had 
ten  children,  of  whom  four  with  their  mother  still  survive. 


810 


APPENDIX. 


His  haoits  are  domestic,  and  he  has  always  been  happy  in  his  family 
Though  rf  a  feeble  constitution,  and  often  disabled  by  sickness,  Mr. 
Kendall  is  nearly  "  three  score  and  ten,"  with  apparently  as  good  a  prospect 
of  life's  continuance  as  he  has  had  for  the  last  thirty  years. 

It  is  nearly  twenty  years,  since  Mr.  Kendall  abandoned  active  political 
life,  though  he  has  never  lost  his  interest  in  the  nation's  welfare,  and  he 
still  holds  to  the  same  political  doctrines  which  he  advocated  with  great 
power  in  his  earlier  life.  The  duties  devolving  upon  him  as  the  attorney 
for  Professor  Morse,  have  engaged  the  whole  of  his  time  and'  energies. 
None,  save  those  who  have  been  connected  with  the  telegraph,  can  have 
a  correct  idea  of  the  immense  amount  of  labor  performed  by  Mr.  Ken- 
dall in  the  enterprise..  He  has  travelled  thousands  of  miles,  to  various 
parts  of  the  country,  and  at  all  seasons  of  the  year,  attending  negotiations, 
or  trials  in  the  federal  courts  in  the  States,  and  ably  defending  the  rights 
of  his  client  as  the  inventor  of  the  American  telegraph.  It  has  been  to 
Mr.  Kendall  a  period  of  most  extraordinary  labor,  and  yet  he  has  per- 
formed his  whole  duty  with  the  most  remarkable  skill. 

For  upward  of  twelve  years,  I  have  been  connected,  more  or  less,  with 
Mr.  Kendall  in  the  extension  of  the  Morse  telegraph  lines  throughout 
America,  and  in  all  the  various  relations  in  which  I  have  been  called  to 
act,  wherein  he  has  been  concerned,  I  have  always  found  him  to  be 
correct  and  undeviating,  ever  maintaining  a  rigid  adherence  to  truth,  and 
opposed  to  its  distortion  or  slightest  evasion.  I  confess  myself  much 
indebted  to  his  example  for  the  course  of  my  own  life,  aud  in  asking 
his  advice  from  time  to  time,  whether  upon  public  or  private  affairs,  I 
have  always  fouud  his  views  sustained  by  the  highest  points  of  morality. 
He  has  been  prompt  and  strictly  faithful  in  the  discharge  of  all  his  obli- 
gations. He  has  never  been  known  to  deviate  from  an  engagement  for 
his  own  gain,  but  on  the  contrary  he  has  been  liberal  in  the  interpre- 
tation of  contracts  resulting  unprofitably  to  others. 

In  society,  Mr.  Kendall  has  exercised  much  influence.  His  moral 
teachings  are  fully  appreciated  Iby  all  who  know  him.  He  is  not  a  pro- 
fessional member  of  the  church,  though  a  constant  attendant  of  the 
Christian  service. 

In  concluding  this  brief  sketch  of  the  Hon.  Amos  Kendall,  it  is  proper 
to  add,  that  it  is  impossible  to  do  the  subject  justice  in  the  small  space 
allowed  in  this  work.  His  life  has  been  remarkable.  He  has  probably 
"been  the  moft  persecuted  man  in  the  nation,  and  yet  his  pathway  through 
his  whole  life  has  been  lighted  by  principles  of  high  toned  morality,  so 
brilliant  indeed,  that  his  opponents  seem  to  have  been  blinded  by  their 
reflecting  rays. 

The  annals  of  the  nation  may  be  searched  in  vain  for  his  superior  in 
patriotism,  or  for  one  more  illustrious  and  worthy  of  example  to  coming 
generations. 


EMINENT    TELEGRAPHERS.  811 


FRANCIS  O.   J.  SMITH. 

©f 


THE  subject  of  this  memoir  was  born  in  Brentwood,  in  the  county  of 
Ilockingham,  State  of  New  Hampshire,  on  the  23d  of  November,  A.  D. 
1806.  His  ancestors,  on  both  the  paternal  and  maternal  side,  were  among 
tte  early  settlers  of  that  township,  and  the  township  of  Greenland,  in  the 
same  county,  bordering  upon  the  Piscataqua  river.  They  are  believed  to 
have  originated  in  Scotland.  The  maternal  family  name  was  Beau. 

The  father  of  Francis  0.  J.  Smith  was  educated  for  mercantile  pur- 
suits (which  he  subsequently  followed)  at  Phillips'  Exeter  Academy, 
where  so  many  of  the  sons  of  New  Hampshire  and  of  other  States  acquired 
the  rudiments  of  their  subsequent  distinction  in  life.  This  his  only  son 
also  was  educated  through  the  regular  courses  of  study  at  the  same  insti- 
tution, for  admission  as  junior  to  a  collegiate  class  ;  but  alike  from  dis- 
inclination, and  want  of  the  requisite  pecuniary  means,  he  pursued  that 
system  of  education  no  further,  but  entered  upon  the  study  of  law,  at 
about  the  age  of  fifteen,  in  the  office  of  the  late  Hon.  Ichabod  Bartlett,  in 
Portsmouth;  N.  H.,  with  whom  he  continued  nearly  two  years,  and  thence 
accompanied  the  removal  of  his  father's  family  to  Westbrook,  in  the 
immediate  vicinity  of  Portland,  Maine.  Shortly  after,  he  recommenced 
the  study  of  the  profession  of  law  in  the  office  of  Messrs.  Fessenden  & 
Deblois,  then,  and  for  many  years  subsequently,  a  leading  firm  in  the  pro- 
fession, in  Portland.  His  father's  residence  in  Westbrook  was  about  two 
miles  from  the  office  of  Messrs  F.  &  D.,  in  Portland,  and,  to  indicate  the 
toil  of  the  upward  progress  of  this  then  young  man,  I  may  remark,  that 
for  months  in  succession  he  walked  to  and  fro  that  distance,  morning 
and  evening,  limiting  himself  to  two  meals  per  day  whenever  he  did  not 
elect  to  double  his  daily  travel.  Necessity  begat  the  inclination,  and 
both  doubtless  contributed  to  his  welfare.  His  uniform  habits  of  sobriety 
and  industry,  and  his  marked  familiarity  with  and  turn  for  business,  and 
total  seclusion  from  social  indulgences,  very  early;  secured  to  him  the 
special  confidence  of  his  professional  tutors,  and  imparted  to  him  the 
consideration,  among  all  his  acquaintances,  of  much  more  advanced  years 
than  he  had  actually  attained.  These  characteristics,  probably,  operated 
to  shut  out  all  questions  respecting  his  age,  at  the  time  he  submitted  his 
claims  and  qualifications  to  the  members  of  the  Cumberland  bar  for  a 
recommendation  to  the  court  for  admission  to  practise  ;  and  no  rule  of 
qualification,  founded  in  age.  was  then  in  force,  to  render  any  disclosure 
on  his  part  necessary.  In  IViarch,  1826,  preceding  his  arrival  at  the  age 
of  twenty  years  in  the  following  November  ;  or,  when  he  was  only  about 
four  months  in  advance  of  nineteen  years  of  age,  he  was  honorably  admit- 
ted to  practise  as  an  attorney  at  law,  by  the  justices  of  the  Common 
Pleas  Court  for  Cumberland  county.  He  immediately  opened  an  office 
in  Portland,  and  soon  found  himself  favored  with  an  encouraging  practice, 
which  brought  him,  however,  into  professional  antagonism  with  those  who 
were  by  many  years  his  seniors,  and  among  them  the  ablest  advocates  at 
that  bar,  then  the  most  eminent  in  the  State.  He  has  often  acknowledged 
the  forbearance  with  which  these  leading  minds  of  the  profession,  with 
whom  he  was  thus  early  brought  in  contact,  must  have  treated  him,  and 
encouraged  his  aspirations  Of  this  number,  besides  his  own  immediate 


812  APPENDIX. 

tutors,  Messrs.  Fessenden  &  Deblois,  was  the  astute  Longfellow,  Un- 
learned Hopkins,  the  sagacious  Greenleaf,  the  facetious,  yet  thoughtful 
and  dignified  Emery,  the  courtly  Kinsman,  and  the  benevolent  Aclams. 
The  records  of  the  courts  in  that  county  bear  testimony,  that  our  strip- 
ling minor  stood  in  the  midst  of  those  professional  Goliaths  without 
suffering  any  retrograde  in  his  reputation  as  a  student  or  an  advocate, 
but,  with  a  constantly  increasing  practice,  approximating  that  of  the 
largest  among  them,  up  to  the  period  when  he  yielded  to  the  engross- 
ments of  politics. 

I  learn,  that  at  that  early  day,  he  entertained  an  exalted  idea  of  the 
vigorous  growth  that  awaited  the  Western  States,  and  had  resolved  to  seek 
his  home  and  fortunes  in  them.  From  this  purpose,  however,  he  was 
most  unexpectedly  diverted,  by  being -drawn  into  an  embittered  feeling  of 
personal  hostility  toward  himself  on  the  part  of  a  score  or  more  of  lottery 
ticket  venders,  whose  business  was  then  of  commanding  influence  in  Port- 
land. It  arose  from  his  being  professionally  retained  against  one  of  these 
firms,  by  a  simple  but  honest  man  from  an  interior  town,  who  was  believed 
at  the  time  to  have  been  designedly  defrauded  in  the  purchase  of  a  fic- 
titious lottery  ticket.  But  a  common  cause  was  made  by  the  venders,  first 
against  the  complaining  man,  and  next  against  his  professional  adviser, 
accompanied,  in  respect  to  the  latter,  by  threats  of  personal  violence, 
professional  ruin,  and  remediless  disgrace  ;  all  of  which  awakened  in  the 
young  lawyer  a  resolution  and  an  energy,  of  which  his  assailants  had 
taken  but  a  partial  reckoning.  In  fact,  he  had  not  himself  measured  his 
own  vigor  previous  to  that  occurrence.  Many  of  them  had  been  esteemed 
previously  among  his  professed  friends,  which  made  their  treatment  of 
him  so  much  more  exasperating  to  his  unsubdued  and  resentful  spirit. 
He  was  young,  and  dependent  on  his  own  reputation  wholly  for  success, 
without  family  influence  to  protect  him.  But  he  felt  the  more  keenly  this 
attempt  to  force  him  to  abandon  an  innocent  and  injured  client  against 
his  sense  of  duty.  Passing  over  many  details  of  this  acrimonious  contest, 
suffice  it  to  say,  that  it  resulted  in  the  indictment  and  conviction  for  illegal 
sales  of  tickets,  of  about  twenty  of  the  leading  and  wealthy  lottery  ven- 
ders, then  in  full  influence  over  the  business  and  sentiments  of  the  town} 
and  in  a  triumphant  vindication  of  himself  throughout  all  his  unpleasant 
relations  to  the  controversy.  This  sudden  assault  upon  his  personal  inde- 
pendence was  the  occasion  of  his  first  attempt  at  pamphleteering;  as  the 
large  advertising  patronage  of  the  ticket  venders  shut  his  side  of  the 
case  entirely  out  of  all  the  newspapers  in  the  town,  and  secured  the  use 
of  them  against  him,  leaving  him  for  being  heard  at  all  by  the  public 
ear.  the  sole  alternative  of  publishing  a  pamphlet  at  his  own  expense, 
and  exposing  the  dangers,  corruptions,  and  ruinous  policy  of  the  whole 
lottery  system.  It  was  a  full  and  elaborate  dissection  of  the  whole 
trade.  Whether  this  production  had  or  not  the  effect  to  awaken  the 
public  judgment  to  an  acknowledgment  of  those  fearful  influences  of 
the  lottery  system,  I  do  not  undertake  to  decide.  But  sure  it  is,  that 
the  public  mind  became  aroused  on  the  subject,  and  the  entire  system 
was  soon  after  swept  away  by  legislative  prohibitions,  and  has  never  been 
reinstated  in  any  part  of  the  State,  and  much  less  had  any  sanction  of 
law. 

It  is  a  notable  fact,  indicative  of  the  well-balanced  temperament  which 
at  that  early  day  characterized  Mr.  Smith,  that  of  nearly  twenty  princi- 
pals, who  were  thus  arraigned  under  his  complaints,  amidst  the  most 
excited  feelings  of  personal  hostility  toward  him,  in  subsequent  years 
with  a  single  exception  every  one  of  them  became  his  decided  friend,  and 
the  excepted  one  sent  from  his  dying  bed  to  Mr.  Smith,  his  "forgiveness 
and  blessing  !"  One  only  of  the  number  survives  at  this  day,  and  bears 
willing  testimony  to  the  accuracy  of  this  presentment  of  the  facts. 


EMINENT     TELEGRAPHERS.  813 

It  will  be  remembered  by  men  of  that  day.  and  by  the  student  in 
political  history,  that  immediately  upon  the  election  of  Mr.  Adams  as 
President  of  the  United  States,  by  the  House  of  ^Representatives  of  the 
United  States,  over  General  Jackson,  an  active  campaign  was  commerced 
at  Washington,  and  soon  after  was  lighted  up  in  the  South  and  West,  to 
question  the  integrity  of  their  action,  and  to  arouse  the  public  mind 
against  Mr.  Adams'  administration  and  to  secure  the  election  of  General 
Jackson  in  1828.  This  feeling  found  but  little  active  sympathy  in  the 
Eastern  States,  for  the  first  two  years  of  its  progress  in  the  South  and, 
West,  and  middle  States. 


At  that  time,  political  party  lines  had  not  been  restored  from  the  buried 
condition  into  which  they  were  sunk  by  the  general  understanding  of  the 
people  of  Maine,  as  the  basis  of  their  concurrence  in  securing  the 
admission  of  Maine  into  the  Union  as  an  independent  State.  This  hostile 
armistice  between  the  old  contending  parties  of  federalism  and  democ- 
racy was  still  in  force  in  1826-'27,  when  Mr.  Smith's  attention  was  first 
drawn  to  public  measures.  The  government  of  the  State,  and  its  repre- 
sentation in  both  Houses  of  Congress,  were  consequently  then  made  up 
indiscriminately  from  the  ranks  of  both  old  parties.  There  was,  neverthe- 
less, a  strong  tone  of  dissatisfaction  perceptibly  pervading  the  popular 
mind  of  the  State,  toward  this  mongrel  character  of  the  politics  of  the 
State.  There  seemed,  however,  to  be  no  commanding  mind  in  the  State, 
apart  from  those  holding  satisfactory  positions  under  either  the  State  or 
federal  government,  all  of  whom  were,  of  course,  contented  to  let  things 
alone  that  were  well  enough  for  them,  to  embody  into  argumentative 
form  the  popular  impulses  upon  this  subject ;  and  were  consequently 
bold  or  rash  enough  to  prepare  the  way  for  an  organized  sympathy 
with  the  popular  agitation  elsewhere,  in  support  of  a  new  organization  of 
the  old  democratic  war  party  of  1812,  to  battle  for  the  hero  of  New 
Orleans,  as  a  leader  in  the  presidential  election  of  1828. 

The  active  and  discriminating  mind  of  Mr.  Smith,  could  not  but  abhor 
this  apathy.  He  early  conceived,  therefore,  the  laborious  project  of 
giving  organization  to  the  dissatisfied  impulses  of  the  popular  mind,  to 
which  we  have  alluded,  and  to  revolutionize  the  political  relations  of  men 
in  the  State.  He  believed  it  was  in  this  way  only,  amid  the  agitations 
which  began  to  move  the  Congress  of  the  United  States  in  both  Houses, 
that  Maine  could  be  felt  in  the  Union,  and  command  the  respect  of  others, 
and  the  influence  that  belonged  to  her  as  an  integral  member  of  the 
Union.  He  accordingly  conceived  the  plan  of  embodying  the  consigna- 
tions that  tended  to  such  a  result,  in  a  series  of  articles  for  publication. 
And  he  at  once  set  about  the  execution  of  this  purpose,  "  solitary  and 
alone/'  They  were  upon  the  amalgamation  of  political  parties,  and 
appeared  in  the  leading  paper  of  democratic  antecedents  in  the  State — the 
Eastern  Argus,  published  in  Portland,  then  the  seat  of  State  government, 
and  the  germinal  source  of  State  politics. 

These  papers  were  anonymous,  and  for  some  time  the  author  was  un- 
known to  even  the  publisher  or  conductors  of  the  paper.  They,  however, 
had  a  vigor  and  fire  sufficiently  unusual  to  early  attract  public  notoriety, 
and  were  read  and  copied  extensively  through  the  State.  As  an  evidence 
of  their  estimated  ability,  they  brought  down  no  small  amount  of  person- 
al criticism  from  other  sources,  upon  several  successively,  of  the  leading 
and  ablest  public  men  in  the  State,  who  where  alone  supposed  capable  of 
their  authorship. 

But  Mr.  Smith's  authorship  was  at  length  traced  by  the  publisher  of 
the  Argus,  who  at  once  sought  an  interview,  and  earnestly  invited  him  to 
continue  his  contributions  to  the  paper.  After  several  interviews,  he 
consented  to  do  so,  on  condition  he  should  be  permitted  in  another  series 


814  APPENDIX. 

of   articles,  to  gradually  approximate  to   an   open  advocacy  of  General 
Jackson  for  the  Presidency. 

This  second  series  was  in  due  time  commenced,  under  the  title  of 
HICKORY  No.  1,  and  with  the  motto,  "  Strike,  but  hear  me !  " 

From  the  fact,  that  the  active  political  and  officeholding  men  in  this 
State,  and  the  masses  also,  had  been,  and  were  still  the  supporters  of  Mr. 
Adams,  after  the  withdrawal  of  Mr.  Crawford  from  the  canvass,  it  can 
easily  be  conceived,  that  the  title  chosen  by  Mr.  Smith  for  this  series  of 
articles,  was  indicative  of  a  revolutionary  movement  in  politics,  while 
the  motto  bespoke  a  consciousness  of  presumption,  but  fortified  by  the 
right. 

These  articles  began  far  back  in  the  history  of  parties,  and  of  opinions 
and  men  connected  with  the  federal  government,  and  approached  slowly  and 
temperately  to  the  intended  issues.  Being  written  with  studied  candor, 
yet  with  pointed  energy  and  decision,  they  soon  awakened  the  listless,  and 
startled  the  timid  among  politicians,  both  in  and  out  of  the  State.  They 
were  copied  far  and  wide,  entire  or  in  portions,  in  many  of  the  States, 
and  acquired  a  circulation  more  extended  than  any  other  articles  written 
during  that  memorable  political  canvass  of  Jackson  against  the»Adams 
administration.  And  this  fact  testifies  to  the  influence  they  exerted  upon 
the  public  mind  of  the  Nation. 

As  a  necessary  consequence,  these  articles  shortly  began  to  draw  down 
upon  the  author,  especially  in  Maine,  a  full  share  of  commendations  on 
one  side,  and  condemnations  on  the  other,  leading  him  deeper  and  deeper 
into  the  wranglings  of  the  party  organizations  that  were  generated.  He 
soon  became,  by  other  arrangements,  but  without  any  pecuniary  compen- 
sation whatever,  the  principal  editor  of  the  Argus,t  and  through  that 
paper  imparted  the  tone  and  energy  of  his  own  mind  and  preferences  to 
all  who  had  either  democratic  or  Jackson  proclivities  in  the  State.  As  an 
inevitable  consequence,  he  made  many  strong  and  chivalrous  friends,  and 
correspondingly  determined  opponents.  He  had  nothing  of  the  craven 
spirit  in  him,  toward  either  supporters  or  opponents. 

What  marked  historically  and  with  emphasis  the  extent  and  energy  of 
Mr.  Smith's  labors  at  this  period,  while  yet  so  young  and  inexperienced, 
was  the  fact,  that  the  county  of  Cumberland,  which  had  been  the  strong- 
hold of  Mr.  Adams  in  the  State,  from  the  withdrawal  of  Mr.  Crawford,  up 
to  the  hour  when  Mr.  Smith  unmasked  the  Eastern  Argus  in  support  of 
General  Jackson's  election,  was  the  only  district  in  New  England  which 
at  the  ensuing  election  in  1828  gave  General  Jackson  a  majority,  and 
elected  the  only  elector  from  whom  he  received  a  vote  in  the  electoral 
colleges,  north  and  east  of  New  York  !  This  gave  this  District  the  dis- 
tinguishing sobriquet  among  politicians,  of  THE  STAR  IN  THE  EAST  !  All 
concurred  in  awarding  to  Mr.  Smith  pre-eminent  credit  for  this  result. 

The  biography  of  Mr.  Smith,  from  the  year  1828  to  1840,  enters  so 
largely  into  the  political  history  of  the  State  of  Maine,  that  to  do  justice 
to  the  one  it  is  quite  indispensable  to  go  into  the  other — which  would 
extend  far  beyond  the  limits  contemplated  by  the  present  notice.  We 
must  content  ourselves,  therefore,  with  the  remark,  that  in  1828  he  wrote 
a  very  triumphant  pamphlet,  entitled  "  Vindication  of  the  Land  Agent 
and  Refutation  of  Anonymous  Remarks/  addressed  to  the  Governor, 
Council,  and  Legislature  of  the  State  of  Maine.  By  Honestus." 

This  was  published  in  pamphlet,  and  was  successful  in  protecting  the 
land  agent  of  the  State  against  a  powerful  and  influential  essay  for  his 
displacement  from  office. 

In  1830  he  wrote  "A  History  of  the  Proceedings  and  Extraordinary 
Measures  of  the  Legislature  of  Maine,  for  the  year  1830,"  which  was  at 
the  time  conceded  to  have  secured  the  triumph  of  the  Democratic  party 


EMINENT    TELEGRAPHERS.  -      815 

of  the  State,  at  the  then  next  ensuing  election,  and  possessed  them  of  a 
power  which  they  successfully  held  until  the  memorable  year  of  1840, 
when  Mr.  Smith  separated  from  their  organization,  and  confessedly  con- 
tributed far  more  potently  than  any  other  man  in  the  State  toward 
carrying  the  State  for  the  first  time  against  that  party.  He  introduced 
"  stump  speeches"  into  the  State  at  that  time,  opening  the  campaign  in 
an  interior  town  on  the  4th  of  July  of  that  year. 

In  September,  1830,  Mr.  Smith  was  elected  one  of  the  representatives  of 
Portland,  to  the  Legislature,  on  the  democratic  ticket — the  first  successful 
contest  of  that  party  since  its  reorganization  in  the  State.  In  1832  he  was 
elected  on  the  democratic  ticket  a  senator  to  the  Legislature  from  Cum- 
berland District,  and  by  that  body  was  elected  president,  although  many 
years  the  junior  of  all  the  members  at  that  board.  His  conceded  talents 
and  early  political  advancement  gave  countenance  to  the  imputation  by 
his  opponents,  of  a  vaulting  ambition  for  preferment  on  his  part.  But  so 
far  from  this  being  his  characteristic  then,  or  since,  I  learn  that  after  hav- 
ing been  nominated  in  caucus  for  the  presidency  of  the  State  Senate,  he 
declined  accepting  the  proffered  distinction,  that  a  colleague  very  much 
his  senior  in  years  might  be  selected  for  the  position ;  and  retired  from 
the  meeting  to  give  greater  freedom  to  the  discussion.  On  returning, 
however,  he  found  himself  again  selected  with  entire  unanimity,  when 
he  acceded  to  the  request,  and  his  selection  was  accordingly  confirmed 
by  the  official  election  of  the  Senate  on  the  following  day.  He  served 
the  term  with  the  fullest  approbation  of  senators  of  both  political  parties, 
whose  expression  at  the  close  of  the  session  was  full,  cordial,  and  giatify- 
ing  to  that  effect. 

On  the  ensuing  election,  in  1833,  Mr.  Smith  was  elected  from  the  Cum- 
berland Congressional  District,  member  of  the  25th  Congress,  and  was 
twice  re-elected,  serving  through  the  consecutive  years  from  December 
1833,  to  the  4th  of  March,  1839.  On  entering  Congress,  he  again  found 
himself  the  youngest  of  his  associates.  His  influence  and  appreciation 
in  the  House  is  traceable  through  the  different  standing  and  special 
committees  to  which  he  was  appointed — being  successively  on  the  Com- 
mittee on  Naval  Affairs,  the  Committee  of  Ways  and  Means,  and  Chairman 
of  the  Committee  on  Commerce.  He  was  a  leading  member  of  the  special 
committee  appointed  by  order  of  the  House  in  1836  on  the  West  Point 
Academy,  and  was  the  author  of  the  report  of  that  committee,  although 
it  was  submitted  by  its  chairman.  He  was  a  member  of  the  memorable 
committee  which  visited  New  York  city  on  the  Swartwout  defalcations 
and  wrote  the  majority  report  of  that  committee,  after  the  points  to  be 
elaborated  were  determined.  And  I  have  heard  it  remarked  by  a  mem- 
ber of  that  committee,  as  an  evidence  of  the  facility  and  dispatch  with 
which  Mr.  Smith  wields  the  argumentative  pen,  that  the  labors  of  the 
committee  were  unavoidably  protracted  until  the  very  close  of  the  ses- 
sion of  Congress,  by  reason  of  the  voluminous  nature  of  the  testimony,  so 
that  the  majority  report  had  been  only  in  part  prepared  when  the  final 
meeting  of  the  committee  to  dispose  of  the  subject  must  be  holden,  and 
the  reading  of  the  report  commenced.  The  reading  consequently  was  so 
close  upon  the  writing  of  the  report,  that  two  members  of  the  committee 
were  busy  in  receiving  and  conveying  from  Mr.  Smith's  lodgings  to  the  com- 
mittee-room, alternate  parcels  of  the  report  as  fast  as  produced  from  Mr. 
Smith's  pen,  so  that  no  hiatus  was  had  in  the  reading  until  completed. 
It  was  in  this  rapid  manner  that  he  produced  a  large  portion  of  the 
committee's  report  upon  the  huge  mass  of  testimony  they  had  taken,  and 
as  it  now  stands  in  the  printed  volume  of  the  House,  and  with  no  other 
revision. 

Passing  over  numerous  incidents  ni  the  congressional  life  of  Mr.  Smith, 


816  APPENDIX. 

which  would  help  to  elucidate  the  vigor  of  his  intellect  and  his  energy 
of  character,  I  recur  to  the  session  of  1838-'39  as  the  period  of  peculiar 
interest  in  the  history  of  the  American  Electro-Magnetic  Telegraph. 

It  was  at  that  session  that  Mr.  Secretary  Woodbury,  of  the  Treasury 
Department,  submitted  a  letter  to  Congress,  communicating  the  circular 
which  he  had  previously  issued  and  disseminated  widely,  seeking  informa- 
tion on  the  subject  of  the  best  modes  of  telegraphing  between  distant  places. 
To  this  call,  Prof.  Morse  forwarded,  as  did  many  others  theirs,  his  plan  of 
an  Electro-Magnetic  Telegraph.  Mr.  Smith  was  then  chairman  of  the 
Committee  on  Commerce  in  the  House  of  Representatives,  and  it  was  to 
that  committee  the  letter  of  Mr.  Woodbury  was  referred  by  the  House, 
carrying  with  it  the  various  answers  which  individuals  had  submitted  to 
him  on  the  subject. 

Mr.  Morse  appeared  in  person  to  ask  permission  of  the  chairman  to  be 
heard  by  the  committee,  in  explanation  of  his  plan,  which  was  readily 
granted,  together  with  the  use  of  the  committee's  room  for  exhibiting 
his  full-sized  telegraphic  apparatus,  as  it  had  then  been  matured.  The 
huge  hog-trough-looking  Cruikshanks  voltaic  battery,  and  two  immense 
wheels  of  insulated  copper  wire,  estimated  to  be  ten  miles  in  length,  and 
a  rude  arrangement  of  mercury  cups  and  forked  wire  levers  for  breaking 
and  closing  the  voltaic  circuit,  and  saw-toothed  plates  of  lead,  called  type, 
used  for  breaking  and  closing  the  voltaic  circuit  by  imparting  to  them 
mechanically  a  motion  forward,  under  one  end  of  the  forked  wire  lever, 
and  to  regulate  that  breaking  and  closing,  and  kindred  crudities,  all 
needful  for  marking  the  effects  of  the  operation  in  forms  selected  to  sig- 
nify the  different  letters  of  the  alphabet,  and  through  which  words  and 
sentences  were  to  be  formed  for  communicating  definite  intelligence  at 
pleasure,  were  soon  lodged  in  the  committee-room,  preparatory  to  the 
proposed  illustrations  by  the  inventor. 

I  have  heard  Mr.  Smith  remark,  that,  at  the  next  succeeding  meeting  of 
the  committee,  when  these  repulsive  looking  appointments  were  first 
seen,  a  general  expression  of  incredulity  characterized  the  judgment  of 
the  members,  as  to  the  merits  and  practicability  of  the  professor's  plan. 
But  Mr.  Smith  had,  in  the  meantime,  studied  the  scientific  laws  pertain- 
ing to  the  telegraph,  and  had  also  acquired  a  deep  sympathy  with  the 
professors  story  of  his  travails  and  poverty,  and  of  his  friends'  discourage- 
ment and  apathy  on  the  subject  of  his  invention,  and  each  was  such  a 
struggle  against  odds,  that  the  story  was  calculated  to  incite  the  mind  of 
Mr.  Smith  to  render  every  aid  in  his  power  to  advance  the  inventor's  ex- 
periment. Had  it  been  an  enterprise  full  of  light,  and  easily  understood 
and  readily  aided  by  everybody,  the  natural  inclination  of  Mr.  Smith's 
judgment  is  such,  that  he  would  have  probably  at  once  said,  Let  everybody 
give  their  help,  and  that  his  own  was  not  required.  However,  the 
hidden  power  of  the  crudely-formed  agencies  employed  by  the  professor 
were  seen  and  appreciated  by  Mr.  Smith's  searching  perceptions,  and 
their  sublimities  and  subtilties  seemed  to  challenge  his  admiration 
and  aid.  He  felt  the  awe  of  a  divinity's  wisdom  and  presence  as  he  con- 
templated the  mysterious  writings  of  this  invisible  but  swift  messenger  of 
thought;  the  same  he  expressed  so  happily  and  correctly  in  the  report 
which  he  drafted,  and  induced  all  his  colleagues  in  committee  to  unite 
with  him  in  attesting  by  their  signatures,  contrary  to  all  precedents  of 
Congressional  Reports.  He  explained  to  his  associates  on  committee,  the 
positive  and  wonderful  truths  which  the  clumsy  apparatus  before  them 
was  capable  of  demonstrating,  and  he  interested  them  to  pledge  a  full  and 
punctual  attendance  at  a  special  meeting,  to  listen  to  the  explanations, 
and  witness  the  trembling  and  half-confident  manipulations  of  the  inventor 
himself.  This  earnest  and  voluntary  interest  on  the  part  of  Mr.  Smith,  in- 


EMINENT    TELEGRAPHERS.  817 

spired  Professor  Morse  with  a  new  hope,  and  a  new  life,  and  the  prospect 
of  such  aid  was  to  him,  as  the  undoubted  guaranty  of  a  complete 
ultimate  success. 

The  time  for  the  appointed  exhibition  to  the  full  committee  arrived. 
Professor  Morse  was  there  with  punctuality,  and  filled  with  new  anima- 
tion by  the  continued  manifestations  of  a  purpose  on  the  part  of  the 
chairman,  to  render  him  every  possible  support,  from  conviction  that 
the  theory  of  the  invention  was  a  reality,  and  deserving  of  the  liberal 
patronage  of  the  government  in  hastening  its  development  practically. 

Suffice  it  to  say,  the  exhibition  was  convincing  and  conclusive  to  the 
committee,  and  the  chairman  obtained  the  necessary  instruction  to  report 
in  its  favor,  with  an  appropriation  bill  for  thirty  thousand  dollars,  to  con- 
struct an  experimental  line  between  Washington  and  Baltimore  cities. 
Mr.  Smith  proceeded  at  once  to  draft  the  report  and  bill — the  same 
report  which  has  been  given  elsewhere  it  this  volume.  It  was  unani- 
mously approved  and  signed  by  the  committee,  and  this  dawning  of  a 
future  so  much  brighter  than  all  previous  encouragements  had  opened  up  to 
him,  so  electrified  Professor  Morse,  that,  had  Congress  never  acted  further 
upon  the  subject,  he  would  still  feel  that  he  had  not  lived  in  vain. 

It  was  this  report  that  gave  vitality,  '•  habitation,  and  a  name,';  to  the 
Morse  Telegraph.  Its  language  spoke  in  the  tones  of  a  positive  convic- 
eion  of  the  reality  of  the  invention,  and  of  the  diversity  of  its  powers, 
and  the  grateful  inventor  owned  then,  that  he  had  been  providentially 
guided  to  a  friendship  in  the  zeal  of  Mr.  Smith,  such  as  he  had  most 
wished  for,  but  had  never  before  attained  among  his  fellow-men.  And, 
he  insisted  on  having  the  author  of  this  report  accompany  him  to  Europe 
and  to  stand  by  his  side  through  all  the  coming  struggles  for  the  inaugu- 
ration into  practical  use  by  the  world,  of  this  new  and  wonderful  agent  of 
intercourse.  It  was  thus,  and  then,  that  Professor  Morse  proffered  Mr. 
Smith  the  ownership  of  one  fourth  of  the  entire  invention  in  the  United 
States,  and  five  sixteenths  of  all  its  advantages  and  the  interests  that 
might  be  acquired  under  ft  abroad,  he  furnishing  the  requisite  means  of 
outfit  for  the  visit  to  Europe  together,  to  prosecute  its  adoption  there  by 
the  public.  Mr.  Smith,  filled  with  admiration  of  the  invention,  crude  as 
it  was  then  in  form,  accepted  of  these  proposals ;  and  in  May  following, 
(1838)  he  having  obtained  leave  of  absence  from  the  House  for  the 
remainder  of  the  session,  embarked  with  Professor  Morse  at  New  York  for 
Liverpool.  Having  arrived  in  London,  they  immediately  set  at  work 
reviewing  the  outposts  of  inventions  on  foot  there  in  the  same  line — 
visited  Mr.  Davy;s  Electric  Telegraph,  then  on  exhibition,  also  the  Patent 
Ofiice,  and  believing  the  way  clear  to  the  procurement  of  a  patent  for  the 
professors  invention,  submitted  the  application  in  due  form.  To  their 
astonishment,  notice  shortly  was  received  of  its 'disallowance  by  the 
Attorney-General :  upon  what  precise  grounds  was  not  explained,  so  as 
to  subject  the  opposition  to  a  full  and  open  contest.  But  upon  the  fullest 
insight  that  could  be  had,  at  the  request  of  Professor  Morse,  Mr.  Smith 
framed  a  concise  argumentative  letter  addressed  to  the  Attorney 
General,  which  was  copied  and  signed  by  Professor  Morse,  in  which  a 
further  hearing  was  sought,  and  was  finally  obtained  ;  but  with  no  more 
success  than  before.  This  letter,  while  it  successfully  refuted  every 
objection,  as  is  still  believed,  to  the  just  claims  of  Professor  Morse  to  a 
patent  from  the  English  government  for  t he  mode  of  operating  an  Electro 
Magnetic  Telegraph  which  he  had  invented,  without  claiming  all  modes,  _ 
presents  also  the  exact  sum  of  perfection  to  which  the  professors  inven- 
tion had  reached  at  that  period;  and  for  this  purpose  it  is  the  best  histori 
cal  expose  of  the  subject  which  exists,  for  substantiating  the  claims  of  the 
professor  to  inventive  genius  in  practical  telegraphing. 

52 


818  APPENDIX. 

With  this  unsuccessful  result  upon  them  in  London,  Mr.  Smith  next 
accompanied  Professor  Morse  to  Paris  (July  1838),  where  an  original, 
and  subsequently  an  additional  patent  was  obtained.  But  the  French 
government,  jealous  of  this  mystical  agency,  subsequently  interposed  a 
prohibition  to  the  establishment  of  it  under  the  patents,  so  that  they  ex- 
pired before  made  available  to  the  proprietors.  As  an  act  of  justice, 
the  government  of  France  has  recently  interposed  to  raise,  conjunctively 
with  some  other  of  the  continental  governments  in  use  of  the  system,  a, 
donation  of  $80,000  in  acknowledgment  of  the  great  merits  and  utility 
of  the  Morse  system  over  all  others — a  tardy,  but  merited  compliment. 

While  in  Paris,  as  early  as  October,  1838,  Mr.  Smith  brought  out  an 
article  in  the  Observer,  published  by  Galignani,  containing  theirs/  idea 
ever  announced  of  the  uses  that  were  destined  to  be  made  of  the  telegraph 
for  astronomical  purposes.  Even  Professor  Morse  did  not  then  fully  com- 
prehend this  important  element  of  its  ultimate  utility.  In,  fact  none  at 
that  early  day  appeared  to  measure  the  immense  scope  which  the  inven- 
tion had  in  the  future  uses  of  the  world  with  the  same  clearness  as  did 
Mr.  Smith.  His  early  report  to  Congress  and  his  contemporaneous  writings 
attest  fully  this  fact.  Mr.  Smith  embarked  at  Liverpool  for  the  United 
States,  in  November,  1838,  in  the  illy-provided  steamer  Liverpool — the 
newest  of  the  ocean  steamers  put  into  service  by  the  first  ocean  steam 
company.  An  almost  unprecedented  storm  set  in  on  the  same  night,  which 
continued  without  intermission  until  the  morning  of  the  sixth  day,  when  the 
ship  had  become  so  disabled,  having  been  swept  fore  and  aft  by  the  sea 
of  everything  on  deck,  including  most  of  her  boats,  and  been  in  the  most 
perilous  condition  for  many  hours,  was  then  put  about  and  run  with  the 
storm  into  Ireland,  where  she  arrived  on  the  morning  of  the  9th  day 
from  Liverpool.  The  passengers  were  landed  at  Cork,  and  Mr.  Smith 
with  most  of  them  returned  to  Liverpool  and  re-embarked  in  one  of  the 
regular  line  sailing  packets  for  New-York,  where  he  arrived  the  latter 
part  of  December,  too  late  to  resume  his  position  as  Chairman  of  the 
Committee  on  Commerce  in  the  House.  Mr.  Morse,  remained  in  the 
meantime  and  until  the  following  spring  in  Paris  to  foster  the  interests 
of  the  infant  telegraph,  with  alternate  hope  and  despair  of  success. 
Flattering  expressions  in  the  fulness  of  French  coquetry  were  showered 
upon  its,  to  the  multitude,  inscrutable  performances,  but  nothing  more 
substantial  resulted  to  the  proprietors. 

The  session  of  1838-'39   of  Congress  terminated  without  reaching  the 
Telegraph  Bill  on  the/calendar  for  action;  and  Mr.  Smith's  acquired ^ 
interest  in  the  enterprise  forbid  his  moving  the  subject  out  of  its  order.* 
His  split,  moreover,  from  the  dominant  administrative   party  on  the   Sub- 
treasury  Bill,  deprived  him  of  his  accustomed  influence  with  the  majority 
party  on  any  measure,  and  he  preferred  biding  his  time  out  of  Congress 
with  the  Telegraph,  to  any  injudicious  crowding  of  it  in  Congress  against 
well-measured  probabilities. 

He  retired  from  Congress  at  the  close  of  the  session ;  and  in  the  fol- 
lowing year  entered  with  heroic  zeal  upon  the  determined  purpose  of 
overthrowing  the  power  of  the  Van  Buren  Administration  in  Maine,  and 
wherever  else  it  might  be  favorable.  It  was  in  appearance  not  only  a 
Herculean  but  a  forlorn  task,  in  a  State  so  thoroughly  drilled  and  solidi- 
fied under  party  organization  as  Maine  then  was.  But  Mr.  Smith  had 
been  part  and  parcel  of  that  organization  too  long — had  aided  too  largely 
from  its  inception,  to  give  it  consistency  and  strength — not  to  understand 
all  its  elements  and  workings,  and  ins  and  outs  to  popular  feeling,  to  be 
wasting  power  in  blind  assaults  upon  battlements  which  he  knew  had 
become  hollow,  enfeebled,  and  destructible  at  certain  points  •  and  it  was 
at  these  he  made  and  led  on  the  rush  of  the  opposition  forces.  Federal 


EMINENT    TELEGRAPHERS.  8x9 

and  State  patronage  did  their  utmost  to  crush  him  out.  He  established, 
at  his  own  expense,  a  semi-weekly  paper  in  the  city  of  Portland,  entitled 
the  "Argus  Revived" — opened  the  campaign  in  full  blast  for  the  nomina- 
tion and  election  of  General  Harrison  against  Mr.  Van  Buren — took  the 
stump  at  the  first  formal  stump  meeting  ever  called  in  the  State,  held  on 
the  4th  of  July,  1640,  in  an  interior  town  of  his  old  congressional  dis- 
trict, and  made  a  clear  and  decided  success  of  the  meeting  for  the  oppo- 
sition forces,  and  inspired  doubting  and  timid  minds  with  confidence  to 
follow,  and  opened  up  a  sense  of  alarm  in  the  ranks  of  the  administration 
party  which  could  not  be  suppressed.  As  a  public  speaker  he  had  no 
superior  in  the  State ;  and  his  fervid  eloquence,  and  his  long  and  inti- 
mate acquaintance  with  the  whole  people  of  Maine,  through  their  poli- 
tics, enabled  him  to  draw  multitudes  at  the  meetings  he  appointed,  which 
no  one  else  could  command. 

In  conclusion  I  need  only  remark,  that  at  the  gubernatorial  election 
of  that  year,  to  everybody's  surprise,  an  overwhelming  administration 
majority  was  annihilated,  so  it  was  in  doubt  whether  any  election  of 
governor  had  been  made  by  the  people  ]  and  at  the  succeeding  November 
presidential  election,  the  State  was  carried  by  a  small  majority  for 
Harrison  and  Tyler. 

It  was  everywhere  and  by  everybody  freely  conceded,  that  this  result 
in  the  State,  was  accomplished  by  the  indomitable  energy,  labor,  tact 
and  eloquence  before  the  people,  of  Mr.  Smith.  It  was  an  unparalleled 
revolution  that  was  effected  in  September;  and  it  had  a  most  signal 
influence  for  hope  and  courage  upon  the  supporters  of  General  Harrison 
in  every  other  State.  But  the  revolt  in  November  was  complete,  and 
the  one  man  power  in  it  was  indisputable.  For  this  sore  defeat  the 
democratic  leaders  of  Maine  never  forgave  Mr.  Smith,  and  he  was  not 
of  stuff  to  ask  forgiveness  where  he  conscientiously  believed  himself  in 
the  right,  although  the  world  were  in  arms  against  him.  His  self  reli- 
ance has  ever  been  a  remarkable  characteristic  of  his  life,  and  equalled 
only  by  the  cool,  self  command  which,  under  all  circumstances,  he  suc- 
ceeds in  maintaining,  and  as  few  men  are  capable  of  doing,  and  none 
but  men  of  marked  intellectual  strength.  I  have  heard  it  remarked, 
that  one  of  the  chiefest  characteristics  of  General  Jackson  was,  a  skilful 
knowledge  of  lt  the  exactly  right  time  to  get  mad,/v  or  at  least,  to  appear 
so,  to  exert  the  greatest  effort  upon  an  adversary.  It  is  doubtless  a  species 
of  mental  strategy  worthy  the  study  of  all  men  in  all  the  relations  of 
life.  A  cool,  imperturbable  temper,  carries  most  potent  advantages  to  its 
possessor  over  all  others. 

It  was  at  the  session  of  1843-'44  that  Professor  Morse  succeeded  in 
getting  favorable  action  by  Congress  upon  the  original  thirty  thousand 
dollsft:  appropriation  reported  by  Mr.  Smith,  and  thus  enabled  the  pro- 
prietors to  construct  the  first  experimental  line  of  telegraph  in  the 
United  States.  It  was  in  the  expenditure  of  this  appropriation,  involving 
previously  untried  plans  that  gave  rise  to  some  differences  of  views  be- 
tween Professor  Morse  and  Mr.  Smith,  which  led  to  a  reciprocal  coldness 
ind  distrust  which  has  never  been  subsequently  removed;  and  which 
under  varying  aspects  of  personal  interests,  operated  powerfully  to  re- 
tard the  progress  and  productiveness  to  the  proprietors,  of  the  invention 
in  the  United  States.  I  do  not  propose  to  enter  into  a  discussion  of 
these  matters  here,  as  it  would  be  out  of  place  to  do  so,  and  the  time  for 
an  impartial  judgment  on  the  subject  of  these  personal  differences,  which 
all  friends  to  the  parties  deeply  regret,  has  not  perhaps  arrived. 

In  1844-;45  Mr.  Smith  enlisted  a  few  friends,  and  labored  to  enlist  the 
public  generally,  in  raising  the  necessary  funds  for  extending  the  telegraph 
from  New-York  city  to  Boston,  and  thence  to  Portland.  He  gave  one  or 


820  PPENDIX. 

more  puolie  lectures  upon  the  interesting  characteristics  and  destined 
influences  of  the  system,  which  all  were  pleased  in  listening  to,  but 
few  had  faith  to  hazard  their  money  in  putting  them  into  practical 
use.  The  consequence  was,  he  added  all  of  his  own  then  limited 
means  to  so  much  as  a  few  friends  and  a  few  citizens  of  intermediate 
towns  would  risk,  and  at  length  succeeded  in  completing  the  first  line 
between  New  York  and  Boston.  This  line  he  subsequently  extended  to 
the  city  of  Portland,  at  his  own  cost  exclusively.  From  Portland  east, 
the  successful  working  of  previously  constructed  lines,  operated  to  en- 
courage others  to  invest  in,  and  he,  with  less  difficulty,  through  private 
partners,  obtained  the  needful  capital  for  building  as  far  the  eastern 
boundary  of  New  Brunswick. 

But  few  can  appreciate  the  struggles  and  delays  which  the  early^-pro- 
jectors  of  this  now  important  institution  had  to  encounter  in  getting  it 
before,  and  into  the  use  of,  the  public.  Men  who  saw  with  their  own  eyes 
the  telegraph  in  actual  operation,  would  turn  round  and  yield  themselves 
up  to  doubts  of  its  reality — still  suspected,  there  was  some  undefined  and 
unseen  deviltry  about  it,  that  made  it  unsafe  as  an  investment. 

From  1838  until  the  present  time,  Mr.  Smith  has  continued  prominently 
engaged  in  the  organization  and  working  of  the  system,  laying  its  details 
aside  now  and  then  for  a  season,  to  indulge  his  tastes  and  preferences  in 
the  politics  of  a  presidential  election,  but  returning  speedily  to  his  gene- 
ral supervision  of  the  business,  in  conjunction  with  the  Hon.  Amos 
Kendall,  as  the  representative  of  the  other  patentees. 

In  the  meantime,  Mr.  Smith  has  displayed  the  diversity  of  his  powers 
and  genius  in  his  profession  as  a  lawyer,  attaining  instances  of  as  start- 
ling success  to  his  adversaries,  as  have  at  different  junctures  marked  his 
labors  in  politics.  By  far  the  largest  verdict  ever  obtained  in  his  State, 
and  I  think  the  largest  obtained  in  New  England,  was  won  and  held  by 
him  for  a  client  through  seven  years  or  more  of  sharply  conducted  liti- 
gation, in  a  railroad  suit  that  had  become  famous  in  Maine.  In  the  mean- 
time, however,  he  became  the  sole  owner  of  another  active  railroad,  of 
some  thirteen  miles  in  length,  and  extended  it,  with  his  own  capital, 
some  six  miles  further  into  the  interior  •  also  constructed  mills  in  another 
region,  and  a  steamboat  for  inland  navigation,  and  within  a  year  or  two 
has  become  principal  proprietor  and  manager  of  a  canal  commanding 
some  fifty  miles  of  inland  navigation  from  the  harbor  of  Portland :  he 
also  constructed,  mainly  in  the  first  instance  with  his  own  capital,  the 
public  gas  works  in  the  city  of  Portland,  amidst  great  but  unsuccessful 
opposition  ;  and  concurrently  with  these  diversified  cares  and  labors,  he 
has  been  so  mindful  of  the  pleasures  and  comforts  of  a  home,  as  to  construct 
and  support  one  of  the  most  finished  architectural  dwellings  and  little 
village  of  out-buildings  that  any  man  of  moderate  ambition  could  desire. 
For  this  he  selected  a  site  where  a  forest  of  ancient  oak  and  of  evergreen 
trees  admitted  of  utter  seclusion  from  the  world,  although  within  two 
miles  from  the  city  of  Portland,  and  where  for  twenty  years  he  has  been 
accumulating  a  library  that  is  second  to  none  of  a  private  character  in 
the  State  ;  and,-  unlike  the  purposes  of  many  such  accumulations,  more 
for  actual  use  in  the  varied  pursuits  of  the  owner,  than  for  show  to  others. 

Elaborate  as  has  been  this  notice  of  Mr.  Smith,  as  due  to  the  primary 
founder  of  the  now  extended  telegraph  system  of  the  United  States,  I 
claim  for  it  but  the  merit  of  a  limited  outline  of  his  "  battle  of  life,"  evin- 
,cing  a  diversity  of  talent,  and  an  energy  of  character,  and  a  steadfastness 
of  purpose  when  once  formed,  rarely  equalled,  and  perhaps  never  sur- 
passed as  a  whole,  by  any  man.  Of  course,  such  a  man  cannot  have  been 
without  earnest  opponents,  more  than  devoted  friends.  But  whether  in 
friendship  or  otherwise,  his  acts,  as  all  men  accord,  have  been  uniformly 


EMINENT    TELEGRAPHERS.  82l 

open,  manly,  consistent,  and  resolute.  To  have  been  always  in  the  right, 
would  be  more  than  fallible  man  can  claim ;  nor  probably  can  it  be 
claimed  for  Mr.  Smith.  But  the  claim  of  right  motives  at  all  times  on  his 
part,  is  best  attested  by  the  fact,  that  the  most  determined  of  his  enemies 
have  invariably  become  in  time,  and  on  better  acquaintance,  his  fast 
friends ;  and  I  know  not  the  man  in  this  time  who  can  count  among 
those  disposed  to  praise  him  for  his  attainments,  qualifications,  and  in- 
tegrity of  purpose,  so  many  who,  under  other  views  and  less  intimate 
acquaintance  with  him,  were  either  strongly  prejudiced  or  openly  hostile 
to  him. 

He  is  comparatively  yet  a  man  of  only  matured  years,  of  vigorous 
health,  of  careful  habits,  and  untiring  industry.  And  with  these  charac- 
teristics I  need  not  doubt,  but  sincerely  hope,  he  is  yet  to  make  new 
works  of  usefulness  to  mankind,  as  well  as  of  advantage  to  himself  and 
family. 

He  has  been  twice  honorably  connected  by  marriage,  and  has  offspring 
surviving  by  his  first,  as  well  as  second  marriage.  Of  these  the  future 
will  speak  honorably,  if  kindness  and  devotion  as  a  parent  and  husband 
can  on  his  part  merit  that  gratification. 


822 


APPENDIX 


WILLIAM  M.  SWAIN, 


THE  subject  of  this  brief  sketch  was  born  in  1809,  in  Manlius,  Onondaga 
county,  New-York.  It  was  but  a  few  years  after  the  birth  of  Mr.  Swain 
that  the  last  war  with  Great  Britain  took  place,  and  his  father  was  among 
the  brave  patriots  of  that  day,  who  at  once  left  their  comfortable  and  well- 
supplied  homes  to  take  part  in  that  struggle  for  their  country's  honor. 
While  in  the  performance  of  his  duties  as  a  soldier,  Mr.  Swain's  father 
caught  a  very  severe  cold,  and  was  brought  home.  He  died  from  its 
effects,  leaving  his  son  William  but  three  years  old.  Fortunately  for  Mr. 
Swain,  his  mother  was  an  uncommon  woman  of  that  day.  She  was  well 
educated,  and  possessed  tho  ability  and  experience  necessary  for  the  proper 
management  of  domestic  affairs.  In  his  earlier  years  Mr.  Swain  received 
a  liberal  education,  and  his  clear  and  discriminating  judgment  of  the 
present  time  was  manifested  then.  He  studied  his  Euclid  with  assiduity 
and  the  most  complete  success,  and  the  evidences  he  gave  of  a  well-culti- 
vated mind  in  after-years  induced  his  friends  to  urge  him  to  give  to  the 
young  the  benefits  of  his  richly  stored  mind  by  opening  a  school.  He  was 
thus  employed  for  several  years,  but  the  life  of  a  teacher  did  not  harmon- 
ize with  his  tastes,  and  he  abandoned  it.  In  1825,  he  selected  the  art  of 
printing  as  the  most  congenial  to  his  disposition  as  an  affair  for  life,  and 
in  due  time  he  was  found  standing  at  the  case.  The  superior  talents  of 
Mr.  Swain  could  not  be  confined,  however,  to  the  labors  of  the  compos- 
itor. and  a  greater  range  for  the  exercise  of  his  thought  was  necessary. 
In  a  few  years  thereafter  he  occupied  a  position  in  the  establishment 
which  gave  him  an  opportunity  to  exhibit  his  singularly  well  matured 
administrative  powers. 

His  abilities  seemed  to  be  diversified  and  capable  of  commanding  the 
whole  routine  of  a  publishing  establishment,  and  the  evidences  given 
secured  for  him  the  charge  of  the  New-  York  Sun.  As  an  editor  he  was 
talented  and  vigorous.  As  manager  of  its  business  affairs  he  had  no 
equal.  He  toiled  day  and  night  in  the  discharge  of  his  duties.  The 
dawning  of  day  often  found  Mr.  Swain  at  work,  having  passed  the  whole 
night  in  the  service  of  the  establishment.  He  discharged  his  business 
first,  and  his  personal  comforts  were  the  last  matters  that  he  cared  for. 

Iii  1837,  Mr.  Swain,  in  company  with  two  others,  Messrs.  Abel  and 
Simmons,  started  the  "  Public  Ledger  "  in  Philadelphia,  and  subsequently 
the  "  Sun  "  in  Baltimore.  These  were  u  penny  papers,1-*  and  were  opportune 
for  the  laboring  classes  of  the  country.  In  establishing  these  papers 
the  gentlemen  were  not  adventurers,  without  means,  abilities,  and  experi- 
ence. Mr.  Swain  had  become  a  perfect  master  of  the  publishing  business, 
and,  as  well  as  his  partners,  brought  into  the  company  his  proportion  of 
capital.  The  "Ledger77  was  thus  introduced  to  the  world  for  patronage; 
it  was  founded  with  ample  means  by  gentlemen  energetic  and  talented. 

*The  Ledger  was  not  long  an  experiment,  but  it  soon  commanded  the  confi- 
dence of  the  public  and  the  most  extended  patronage.  It  still  continues 
to  wield  an  influence  unsurpassed  by  any  other  paper. 


EMINENT  TELEGRAPHERS.  823 

I  much  regret  the  impossibility  to  do  justice  to  the  career  of  Mr.  Swain 
in  this  outline.  His  life  has  been  full  of  usefulness,  and  his  example  is 
worthy  of  imitation. 

In  the  administration  of  the  affairs  of  the  "  Ledger  ';  Mr.  Swain  never 
yielded  the  responsibility.  He  was  known  as  the  "  Ledger  man,"  and  he 
was  the  master  of  the  enterprise  in  every  particular.  He  always  exer- 
cised the  right  of  determining  what  was  suitable  for  publication,  and  no 
one  has  ever  had  the  authority  to  publish  in  the  columns  of  that  paper  a 
line,  editorial  or  otherwise,  except  by  his  sanction,  implied  or  expressed. 
Mr.  Swain  was  the  "Ledger  man"  and  he  was  alone  responsible  for  the 
contents  of  that  paper.  It  has  been  owing  to  this  fact  that  the  tone  and 
tenor  of  the  "  Ledger  ;;  has  been  so  uniform  and  judicious. 

Mr.  Swain  has  been,  on  all  occasions,  a  liberal  patron  of  new  and  use- 
ful enterprises.  When  the  electric  telegraph  had  given  proof  of  its  com- 
mercial utility,  on  the  experimental  line  between  Baltimore  and  Wash- 
ington, he  was  among  the  first  to  appreciate  its  merits.  In  due  time 
efforts  were  made  to  extend  the  line  to  Philadelphia,  and  in  order  to  com- 
mand the  necessary  capital,  each  of  the  cities  through  which  the  line  was 
to  pass,  was  allotted  a  certain  proportion  of  the  stock.  To  Philadelphia 
was  given  four  thousand  dollars.  Mr.  Swain  was  urged  to  promote  the 
enterprise  among  his  friends.  Their  efforts  in  obtaining  the  capital  re- 
quired at  that  city  were  crowned  with  success,  though  that  success  was 
due  entirely  to  the  "Ledger,"  and  the  "United  States  Gazette,"  the 
former  subscribing  three  thousand  five  hundred  dollars,  and  the  latter  five 
hundred  dollars.  Commercial  men  could  not  be  induced  to  embark  in  the 
new  and  to  them  untried  enterprise.  They  did  not  appreciate  the  pros- 
pective usefulness  of  the  telegraph.  With  Mr.  Swain  it  was  no  adventure, 
because  his  comprehensive  mind  and  practical  sagacity  enabled  him  to 
look  into  the  future.  History  has  since  demonstrated  the  correctness  of 
the  judgment  he  exhibited,  in  the  extraordinary  and  most  liberal  sub- 
scription above  given. 

Early  in  1846,  Mr.  Swain  was  elected  a  director  of  the  Telegraph 
Company,  and  he  gave  to  the  new  enterprise  the  benefit  of  his  commer- 
cial experience.  He  fully  appreciates  the  grandeur  of  the  invention,  and 
of  its  transcendent  position  as  an  art ;  but,  as  in  all  other  things,  Mr. 
Swain  has  studied  it  as  an  element  of  commerce,  as  an  art  for  the  useful 
purposes  of  man ;  and  no  one  has  done  more  toward  perfecting  the  tele- 
graph for  business  relations  than  he.  The  influence  of  his  teachings  has 
spread  throughout  the  whole  country. 

In  1850,  Mr.  Swain  was  elected  President  of  the  Magnetic  Telegraph 
Company,  extending  from  New-York  to  Washington.  He  sought  not  the 
position,  but  the  friends  of  the  enterprise  desired  his  experienced  and 
well-methodized  mind  in  the  perfection  of  the  system.  The  telegraph  was 
new,  it  had  not  established  itself  in  the  affairs  of  trade,  and  it  required  an 
organization  commensurate  with  the  wants  of  the  age.  Mr.  Swain  yielded 
to  the  wishes  of  his  friends,  and  accepted  of  the  presidency,  though  it 
was  to  him  a  great  pecuniary  sacrifice.  He  contemplated  limiting  his 
services  to  a  single  term.  He  entered  upon  the  duties  of  the  office,  with 
his  usual  resolve,  to  be  the  master  of  his  vocation.  He  travelled  over  the 
line,  and  reviewed  its  whole  structure,  and  aided  in  the  perfection  of  its 
outdoor  organization.  In  this  new  and  novel  labor  he  shared  with  others, 
and  soon  became  as  thorough  in  his  knowledge  of  the  construction  of  the 
lines,  as  though  he  had  taken  part  in  its  original  erection.  Having  be- 
come fully  informed  as  to  the  exterior  department  of  the  service,  he  next* 
gave  his  attention  to  the  administration  of  the  stations.  He  soon  found 
opportunities  to  present  improvements,  and  as  the  science  and  art  of  tele- 
graphing became  more  and  more  developed,  Mr.  Swain  was  prepared  to 


824  APPENDIX. 

meet  any  emergency,  with  a  commercial  talent  that  was  productive  of 
good  results. 

Contrary  to  his  wishes,  Mr.  Swain  was  induced,  by  the  unanimous  desire 
of  the  company,  to  continue  as  president  until  1858,  when  he  felt  constrained 
to  terminate  his  services  as  its  executive. 

Mr.  Swain  continues  as  a  director  of  the  old  pioneer  telegraph  com- 
pany, for  which  he  has  done  so  much  as  its  founder  and  constant  patron. 
He  has,  also,  extended  liberal  aid  to  other  companies,  pecuniarily  and 
intellectually. 

Among  the  dhanges  made  by  Mr.  Swain,  in  the  management  of  the 
stations,  may  be  mentioned,  the  more  prompt  delivery  of  dispatches.  It 
was  the  former  practice  for  the  manager  of  the  station,  to  send  out  his 
messengers  every  hour,  or  at  such  times  as  an  accumulation  of  dispatches 
would  require.  Mr.  Swain  discovered  that  messages  were  received  from 
pl&ces,  a  thousand  miles  distant,  in  less  time  than  was  required  to  deliver 
them  a  few  squares  from  the  station.  This  delay  seemed  to  him  out  of  pro- 
portion,' and  contrary  to  the  very  spirit  of  telegraphing.  He  directed  that 
the  messengers  be  increased,  and  that  as  soon  as  a  dispatch  was  received, 
it  should  be  delivered.  This  change  in  the  delivery,  was  as  effective  as  a 
revolution  in  the  art  of  telegraphing,  and  the  benefits  resulting  were  at 
once  observable,  by  the  increase  of  dispatches,  and  of  the  revenues  of  the 
company.  The  same  rule  was  soon  after  adopted  by  all.  the  other  com- 
panies throughout  America,  and  it  has  been  productive  of  the  best  re- 
sults. 

Besides  Mr.  Swain's  transcendent  powers  as  a  business  man,  he  is  one 
of  the  most  liberal,  enterprising,  and  benevolent  men  of  the  age.  He  has 
distributed  his  gains  in  thousands  of  ways,  that  neither  he  nor  any  one 
else  can  ever  account  for.  What  he  has  done,  has  been  without  display — 
without  heralding  it  to  the  world.  His  charities  stand  unrecorded  in  the 
annals  written  by  man,  but  they  are  engraven  on  golden  tablets  by  One 
whose  ken  fathoms  the  ft  innermost  recesses  of  the  heart." 


EMINENT    TELEGRAPHERS.  82-5 


WILLIAM  TANNER, 


MR.  TANNER  was  born  in  Montgomery  county,  Kentucky,  in  1802,  and 
is,  consequently,  fifty-seven  years  of  age,  though  he  does  not  look  so  old 
by  several  years.  When  a  boy  not  ijfteen  years  of  age,  having  as  good 
an  education  as  the  schools  near  him,  at  that  time,  could  afford,  he  was 
placed  in  the  printing  office  of  the  Argus  of  Western  America,  a  news- 
paper published  at  Frankfort,  Kentucky,  and  edited  by  the  Hon.  Amos 
Kendall,  then  a  young  man,  where  he  learned  the  printing  business. 
Mr.  Kendall  was  then  the  public  printer  of  the  State,  and  his  paper  the 
leading  Republican  journal  of  the  West,  which,  doubtless,  had  its  influ- 
ence in  making  the  subject  of  this  sketch  a  firm  democratic  politician 
all  his  after-life.  It  is  worthy  of  mention  here,  and  alike  creditable  to 
both  parties,  that  from  the  time  Mr.  Kendall  was  a  young  man  and 
Mr.  Tanner  a  boy,  they  have  continued  to  be  warm  and  confidential 
personal  friends,  now  more  than  forty  years,  and  much  of  the  time  in 
some  way  associated  in  the  same  pursuits. 

From  a  respectably  educated  printer  the  transition  to  an  editor  was 
almost  a  matter  of  course,  and  as  early  as  1823,  Mr.  Tanner  entered  upon 
the  life  of  an  editor  and  publisher,  before  he  was  quite  of  legal  age,  and 
so  continued,  with  occasional  intermissions,  until  1854.  At  that  time  he 
was  the  oldest  editor,  in  point  of  time,  in  Kentucky.  He  published  the 
Western  Monitor  ,  at  Lexington,  the  first  semi-weekly  paper  printed  in 
the  State,  next  the  Morning  Post,  at  Louisville,  the  first  daily  paper,  and 
in  1843  he  started  the  first  daily  paper  published  at  Frankfort,  the  capital 
of  the  State.  During  several  years  of  the  time  he  was  sole  editor  and 
publisher  of  the  Kentucky  Yeoman,  the  present  State  journal  at  Frank- 
fort; it  was  unquestionably  the  organ  of  the  democracy  of  that  State, 
and,  besides  the  influence  it  exercised  in  national  politics,  it  wielded  an 
influence  over  many  questions  of  local  and  State  policy,  the  defeat  or 
success  of  which  have  left  their  impress  upon  the  permanent  destinies  of 
his  native  State.  I  may  mention,  as  the  leading  measure  of  this  kind,  of 
which  he  was  the  earliest,  most  persistent,  and  devoted  advocate,  the 
adoption  of  the  present  Democratic  Constitution  of  the  State.  In  l845-;6, 
he  found  the  State  government  not  only  in  the  hands  of  his  political  oppo- 
nents, as  it  had  been  for  a  long  series  of  years,  but  nearly  all  of  the 
public  offices  of  every  description  were  in  possession  of  persons  who  had 
either  inherited  them  from  generation  to  generation,  or  who  had  pur- 
chased them  in  open  market  for  a  stipulated  price,  to  be  paid  in  hand  or 
out  of  the  annual  profits  arising  from  abuses  of  the  office.  Through  his 
own  paper,  the  Kentucky  Yeoman,  and  another  paper  which  he  caused  to 
be  established  and  published,  almost  entirely  at  his  own  expense,  devoted 
to  that  particular  subject,  he  not  only  exposed  the  venality  of  the  official 
corps  of  the  State,  but  made  such  appeals  to  the  pride  and  patriotism  of 
|fcier  chivalrous  people,  that  he  soon  had  enlisted  in  the  cause  the  leading 
men  of  both  parties,  and  upon  the  submission  of  the  question  to  the  peo- 
ple by  the  Legislature,  they  voted  for  a  new  convention  with  almost 
unexampled  unanimity.  The  result  was,  that  in  1849  delegates  were 
chosen  by  the  people  from  the  best  men  of  the  State  to  form  a  new  con- 


826  APPENDIX. 

stitution,  and,  to  the  surprise  of  the  whole  country,  a  majority  of  them 
were  democrats.  The  Legislature,  which  had  provided  in  advance  for 
defraying  the  expenses  of  the  convention,  appointed  Mr.  Tanner  and  a 
gentleman  of  opposite  political  views,  to  provide  for  having  the  debates 
of  the  delegates  to  the  convention  reported,  and  the  convention,  when  it 
assembled,  appointed  him  and  the  same  gentleman  the  printers  and  pub- 
lishers of  their  proceedings  and  debates,  all  of  which  services  were  faith- 
fully performed.  The  liberal  constitution  which  at  the  present  time  con- 
trols the  destinies  of  the  proud  State  of  Kentucky,  contains  but  few  leading 
E  revisions  not  recommended  to  the  people  and  advocated  by  Mr.  Tanner 
efore  the  delegates  met  in  convention.  The  feature  which  requires  the 
election  by  the  people  of  all  public  officers  he  insisted  on  with  more 
vehemence  than  any  other,  and,  for  a  time,  in  opposition  to  the  wishes  of 
some  of  his  own  political  friends.  *The  election  of  the  judges  was  par- 
ticularly objectionable  to  many  of  the  new  convention  lawyers. 

I  have  referred  to  this  particular  period  in  the  life  of  the  subject  of 
this  sketch,  so  much  in  detail,  because  I  know  he  takes  more  pride  in  the 
acknowledged  influence  which  he  exercised  on  the  occasion  than  in  any 
other  of  his  political  achievements. 

A  few  years  before  the  success  of  Mr.  Tanner  and  his  friends,  on  the 
question  of  the  constitutional  convention,  I  was  his  senate  reporter  in 
Legislature  of  Kentucky,  and  I  well  remember  his  unceasing  efforts  in 
behalf  of  that  important  political  measure,  aud  J  know,  from  personal 
observation,  that  Mr.  Tanner  then  enjoyed,  as  he  had  done  for  many  pre- 
vious sessions,  a  large  share  of  the  confidence  of  men  of  all  parties  in  the 
Legislature,  and  that  he  oftener  exerted  his  influence  with  the  members 
to  secure  the  success  of  measures  for  the  benefit  of  the  State  and  his 
friends  than  to  promote  his  personal  interests.  But  that  course  has 
been  one  of  the  chief  characteristics  of  his  life. 

In  1837,  after  about  twenty  years'  service  in  a  printing  office  in  one 
capacity  or  another,  Mr.  Tanner  went  to  Washington  City,  where  he 
served  for  about  two  years  as  a  corresponding  clerk  in  the  Postoffice 
Department,  under  his  old  friend  and  editorial  preceptor,  Mr.  Kendall, 
wbo  was  tnen  Postmaster-General.  There,  in  the  following  year,  he 
married  Miss  Orme,  his  present  amiable  wife.  The  subordinate  position 
and  dull  routine  of  a  clerk's  life  were  not  agreeable  to  his  active  mind 
and  sanguine  temperament,  and  he  has  often  told  me  he  could  not  fall  into 
the  sluggish  ways  then,  ancl  perhaps  yet,  so  prevalent  in  the  public  offices 
at  Washington.  To  relieve  himself  from  the  mental  tedium  and  bodily 
inertness  consequent  upon  his  dull  public  duties,  he  not  only  became  the 
regular  Washington  correspondent  of  several  distant  newspapers,  but 
took  the  principal  charge,  privately,  of  an  independent  daily  democratic 
paper  called  the  Metropolis,  where  he  enjoyed  himself  by  keeping  mem- 
bers of  Congress  of  both  parties,  and  other  official  personages,  uneasy  in 
their  high  places.  The  paper,  while  he  controlled  it,  enjoyed  much 
popularity  in  subordinate  official  circles,  and  received  a  good  deal  of 
attention  from  some  high  functionaries.  It  was  much  in  favor  of  the 
Canada  patriots  during  the  so-called  rebellion  of  1837-'8,  and  Mr.  Tanner 
received  the  personal  thanks  ofPassenue.  one  of  the  McKenzies,  Wolford, 
and  others  of  the  leaders  of  that  movement,  for  his  advocacy  of  their 
cause. 

Becoming  tired  of  Washington  he  was  offered  a  more  congenial  busi- 
ness because  it  gave  more  active  employment,  and  was  made  one  of  the  t 
four  Special  Mail  Agents  which  the  Postoffice  Department  then  employed 
for  the  whole  United  States.  With  a  good  salary  for  that  time,  and  freed 
from  official  surveillance  and  subordination,  with  the  enjoyments  incident 
to  constant  travel  over  a  large  portion  of  the  Union,  this  was  an  employ- 


EMINENT    TELEGRAPHERS.  827 

ment  not  only  agreeable  to  the  taste,  but  suited  to  his  peculiar  capacity, 
and  consequently  he  continued  to  serve  the  department  in  that  office 
until  the  political  wheel  of  fortune  changed  the  national  administration. 

Twice  afterward,  however,  Mr.  Tanner  received  commissions  as  special 
agent.  As  an  evidence  of  the  confidence  then  reposed  in  him,  at  Wash- 
ington, it  may  be  stated  that  he  was  sent  to  Wisconsin  and  Iowa  under 
special  appointment,  when  those  present  States  were  still  territories,  to 
collect  large  sums  of  public  money,  without  being  required  to  enter  into  any 
sort  of  bond,  or  to  give  any  security.  He  filled  the  delicate  duty  thus 
intrusted  to  him,  so  much  to  the  satisfaction  of  the  department,  that  his 
return  and  account  were  received  without  the  detection  of  an  error  or 
the  change  of  a  figure,  and  called  from  the  Auditor,  Peter  G.  Washing- 
ton, Esq.,  a  letter  of  thanks. 

Soon  after,  in  1846,  Mr.  Tanner  was  sent  by  the  Postoffice  Depart- 
ment, to  Texas,  to  arrange  the  mail  service  of  that  new  State,  after  its 
annexation  to  our  constellation,  and  to  bring  that  service  under  our  gov- 
ernment. There,  for  nearly  six  months  he  travelled  over  most  of  the 
then  settled  parts  of  the  State,  making  postmasters,  establishing  post- 
offices,  collecting  money  from  postmasters,  letting  out  mail  contracts,  and 
doing  everything  in  his  own  person  which  belonged  to  the  several  bureaux 
in  the  Department,  and  finally  making  out  the  first  advertisement  calling 
for  proposals  for  mail  service,  which  also  furnished  material  for  the  first 
post-route  bill  passed  by  Congress  for  the  State  of  Texas,  a  bill  which 
was  afterward  very  much  in  the  way  of  some  politicians  who  voted  for 
it,  for  it  denied  them  the  privilege  of  asserting  the  claim  of  Mexico  over 
the  territory  between  the  Rio  Grande  and  the  Nueces.  This  duty  per- 
formed, during  which  the  correspondence  to  his  paper  gave  a  view  of 
Texas  theretofore  unknown  in  ll  the  States,"  Mr.  Tanner  continued  to 
hold  the  commission  of  special  agent,  performing  the  duties  required,  and 
to  publish  his  paper  in  Frankfort  until  the  autumn  of  184?,  when  he 
resigned  his  commission  for  the  purpose  of  again  joining  his  old  friend, 
Mr.  Kendall,  in  the  then  almost  untried  telegraph  experiment 

And  here  commences  the  only  legitimate  part  of  Mr.  Tanner's  career 
in  life,  which  it  is  the  province  of  this  work  particularly  to  chronicle, 
except  as  collateral,  to  show  what  kind  of  persons  it  was  who  originally 
took  hold  of  an  enterprise  then  of  doubtful  success,  but  which  is  now 
exercising  so  vast  an  influence  over  the  social,  commercial,  and  political 
destinies  of  the  world.  But  aside  from  this  reason,  I  give  as  another, 
that  as  an  associate  in  this  great  enterprise,  it  is  to  me  a  source  of  great 
pleasure  to  acknowledge  Mr.  Tanner,  now  as  during  nearly  twenty  years 
past,  my  steadfast  friend,  and  whose  superior  years  and  n  ore  matured 
judgment,  I  never  failed  to  respect.  And  in  giving  this  brief  biographical 
sketch  of  one  of  my  earliest  friends  as  well  as  one  of  the  earliest  adven- 
turers in  the  great  field  of  telegraphic  enterprise,  I  but  discharge  a  duty 
I  owe  to  myself,  to  Mr.  Tanner,  and  to  my  countrymen,  who  have  chosen 
the  pursuits  of  telegraphy  as  the  vocation  of  their  lives. 

In  the  fall  of  .1847,  Mr.  Tanner  and  myself  became  joint  contractors  for 
building  the  first  section  of  two  hundred  and  seventy-five  or  eighty  miles 
of  the  present  "  National  Line,"  from  Lexington,  Kentucky,  to  Nash- 
ville, Tennessee,  the  first  telegraph  line  constructed  south  of  the  Ohio 
river.  We  finished  that  section  in  three  and  a  half  months  from  the 
time  the  first  post  was  cut  in  the  forest.  The  wire  then  put  up,  and 
many  of  the  posts  are  those  now  standing,  and  in  use  on  that  line.  After- 
ward Mr.  Tanner  was  successively  secretary,  treasurer,  president,  and 
superintendent  of  the  whole  line,  from  Pittsburg  to  New-Orleans,  part 
of  the  time  before  the  line  was  completed,  having  no  one  to  aid  him  in 
any  of  those  capacities.  He  yet  holds  the  nominal  position  of  president 


828  APPENDIX. 

of  the  old  New-Orleans  and  Ohio  Company,  the  stockholders  in  which, 
or  their  successors,  will  be  the  owners  of  the  '•'  National  Line"  at  the  expi- 
ration of  the  present  lease.  Like  most  others  of  the  Western  Compan- 
nies,  the  fortunes  of  this  one  were  disastrous.  And  like  most  of  the  great 
improvements  of  the  age  in  this  country,  it  is  probable  the  pioneers,  those 
liberal-minded  and  free-handed  men  whose  money  constructed,  and 
whoso  energies  pushed  it  to  the  paying  point,  are  not  destined  to  reap  the 
rewards  due  to  their  enterprise.  It  is  not  an  exceptional  case  for  any  one 
company  to  be  placed  in  this  category^  as  the  history  of  two  thirds  of 
the  great  enterprises  of  the  age,  on  this  side  of  the  Atlantic,  will  show 
that  it  has  been  the  fortunate  second  or  third  owners  of  such  property 
who  have  secured  the  profits  which  in  the  ordinary  course  of  events, 
should  have  been  due  to  those  who  first  inagurated  and  carried  nearly  to 
a  successful  completion,  the  greatest  improvements  of  the  time. 

Mr.  Tanner,  yet  in  the  vigor  of  life  and  health,  is  now  engaged  in  the 
telegraph  service  as  a  local  superintendent  of  the  Magnetic  Telegraph 
Company's  great  Southern  line,  and  the  present  success  of  that  company 
South,  as  elsewhere,  is  testimony  in  favor  of  his  efficiency  in  the  dis- 
charge of  his  duties. 

Of  this  world's  goods,  after  a  life  of  more  than  usual  industry  and  toD, 
devoted  to  useful  and  meritorious  pursuits,  Mr.  Tanner  may  not  have  a 
superabundance ;  but  in  the  affections  of  an  estimable  wife,  and  several 
charming,  intelligent  children,  he  is  as  rich  as  the  Roman  matron,  who  so 
proudly  pointed  to  her  jewels;  and,  with  a  respectable  income  and 
moderate  desires,  we  are  pleased  to  learn  he  lives  contented,  in  the  enjoy- 
ment of  all  the  comforts  essential  to  a  united  and  happy  family,  in  a  com- 
fortable home  in  the  "sunny  South.7' 


EMINENT    TELEGRAPHERS.  829 


JOHN    JAMES    SPEED,    JR., 

©f  JWdjtgan. 

ON  the  20th  of  July,  1803,  in  Mecklenburg  County,  Virginia,  was  borD 
the  subject  of  this  brief  memoir. 

His  parents  belonged  to  a  very  old  family  of  that  ancient  Common- 
wealth ;  and  were  known  as  high-toned  in  sentiment  and  of  the  old 
patriotic  school. 

With  a  view  of  expanding  his  means  for  the  best  ends,  Mr.  Speed's 
father  emigrated  from  the  thickly  inhabited  Old  Dominion  in  the  year 
1807,  to  the  more  sparsely  settled  county  of  Tompkins,  in  the  State  of 
New-York,  where  he  had  full  opportunities  to  develop  his  wealth  and 
enterprise. 

In  the  education  of  the  son,  the  father  devoted  all  the  attention  possible, 
and  every  opportunity  was  afforded  him  common  to  that  time. 

Having  arrived  at  his  majority,  he  commenced  his  career  in  the  world 
as  a  merchant,  but  he  soon  returned  to  the  more  genial  pursuits  of  his 
earlier  years,  and  fixed  himself  upon  one  of  the  largest  farms  in  that  part 
of  New- York,  containing  some  950  acres,  of  which  he  cleared  700  acres 
for  cultivation.  He  continued  in  the  tilling  of  the  soil  until  the  year 
1836,  when  he  sold  his  farm  and  stock  for  the  very  respectable  sum  of 
$26,000,  which  amount,  in  that  day,  as  well  as  the  present,  was  anally 
sufficient  to  afford  a  moderate  disposition  all  the  comforts  and  luxuries 
enjoyed  by  the  millionaire  of  the  Old  World. 

In  1836,  Mr.  Speed  established  himself  as  a  merchant  at  Ithaca,  New- 
York,  where  he  continued  for  some  ten  years.  In  the  meantime,  however, 
he  liberally  embarked  with  other  citizens  in  all  the  enterprises  calculated 
to  promote  the  welfare  of  the  city  and  the  respective  individuals  engaging 
their  services  and  capital.  Among  the  most  noted  branches  of  industry  to 
which  Mr.  Speed  gave  much  of  his  energy  and  means,  was  a  woollen  manu- 
factory, at  that  time  one  of  the  most  extensive  in  America. 

In  1846,  Mr.  Speed  commenced  his  career  as  an  active  telegrapher,  and 
to  this  day  his  mind  and  energies  are  directed  in  the  same  pursuits.  In 
1847,  he  removed  to  Detroit,  Michigan,  as  a  more  central  place  in  the  net- 
work of  telegraph  lines  with  which  he  was  connected. 

In  domestic  affairs  Mr.  Speed  has  been  fortunate  and  singularly  blessed. 
He  married  an  estimable  daughter  of  Mr.  Charles  Morrell,  in  1829,  and 
at  the  present  time  his  fireside  is  ornamented  with  the  bright  smiles  of 
eight  intelligent  and  affectionate  children. 

Though  not  an  ambitious  man,  Mr.  Speed  has  made  his  mark  as  a  poli- 
tician. In  1832  he  was  elected  to  the  Legislature  of  New-York,  from  the 
county  ot  Tompkins,  and  in  1840  he  was  the  presidential  elector  of  the 
then  great  Whig  party,  whose  signal  triumph  in  the  national  government 
has  distinguished  the  time  as  an  era. 

In  military  affairs  Mr.  Speed  has  always  taken  an  active  part,  having 
a  view  to  the  perfection  of  the  militia  system  of  the  country ;  and  he  has 


830  APPENDIX. 

passed  through  many  of  the  official  positions,  holding  a  commission  from 
De  Witt  Clinton. 

The  purp  osos  of  this  work  do  not  allow  of  an  extended  notice  of  the 
many  distinguished  services  rendered  by  Col.  Speed  in  the  advancement 
of  the  Arts  and  Sciences.  I  will,  therefore,  more  particularly  notice  his 
connection  with  the  telegraph;  in  the  service  of  which  he  has  been  recog- 
nized as  one  of  the  most  distinguished. 

From  1832  to  1846,  Col.  Speed  made  many  experiments,  having  in  view 
the  perfection  of  telegraphing.  He  was  aided  by  Mr.  Charles  J.  Johnson,  of 
Oswego.  Their  attention  at  first  was  directed  to  the  visual  system,  and 
they  succeeded  in  making  some  very  valuable  improvements,  greatly 
facilitating  the  transmission  of  intelligence  by  the  semaphore.  In  1837, 
they  sent  their  improvements  to  the  Emperor  Nicholas  of  Russia,  and  in 
return  they  received  a  highly  complimentary  letter,  fully  appreciating  the 
invaluable  services  they  had  rendered  the  imperial  government. 

These  gentlemen  devised  means  of  communicating  intelligence  by  elec- 
tricity, but  as  they  did  not  press  their  inventions  and  discoveries  to  an 
early  fruition,  other  systems  were  introduced  and  became  generally 
accepted — the  most  distinguished  of  which  was  the  apparatus  invented  by 
Prof.  Morse. 

In  1846,  Col.  Speed  became  associated  with  Mr.  Ezra  Cornell,  of  Ithaca, 
New- York,  in  the  extension  of  the  Morse  telegraph  lines,  in  the  northeast 
and  northwest.  These  gentlemen  united  their  energies  and  talents  in  the 
perfection  of  the  various  apparatuses  of  the  system  ;  and  to  them,  perhaps, 
more  than  any  other  two  telegraphers,  we  are  indebted  for  the  successful 
operating  of  the  lines.  They  invented  innumerable  simple  and  useful 
contrivances,  effecting  rapidity  and  convenience  in  the  manipulation  of  the 
telegraph. 

The  united  energies  of  these  gentlemen  and  their  conjunctive  associates, 
Messrs.  J.  H.  Wade,  S.  W.  Hotchkiss.  Tower  Jackson,  and  others,  in  a 
short  time  erected  and  successfully  operated  some  five  thousand  miles  of 
lines,  traversing  New-York,  Ohio,  Indiana,  Michigan,  Wisconsin,  and  Illi- 
nois. 

At  the  present  time  Col.  Speed  is  associated  with  Mr.  Henry  O'Reilly 
in  the  extension  of  the  telegraph  westward  of  the  Mississippi  to  the  Pacific 
ocean,  traversing  the  widespread  plains  of  the  far  West,  and  the  mean- 
dering passes  of  the  Rocky  Mountains.  He  is  also  connected  with  Mr. 
Tal.  P.  Shaffner  in  the  consummation  of  the  telegraph  between  the  eastern 
and  western  hemispheres,  via  Greenland,  Iceland,  and  the  Faroe  Isles. 

Col.  Speed  continues  in  the  enjoyment  of  full  vigor,  good  health,  and 
energies  as  active  as  the  youth  of  twenty.  Through  his  co-operation  the 
world  may  confidently  expect  to  see  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific  oceans  united 
by  the  lightning  cord,  and  the  continents  connected  by  the  fiery  chain 
beneath  the  bosom  of  the  ocean. 


EMINENT    TELEGRAPHERS.  831 


JEPTHA    H.    WADE, 

ffif  ©f)to. 

MR.  WADE  was  born  August  llth,  1811,  in  Seneca  county,  New- York. 
At  an  early  day  of  his  life,  after  having  a  very  fair  education,  Mr.  Wade 
commenced  his  career  as  a  mechanic,  and  his  ingenious  mind  gave  many 
proofs  of  more  than  ordinary  powers.  His  perceptive  faculties  were  not 
only  active,  penetrating  the  whole  of  a  subject,  but  he  had  a  singular 
power  of  discriminating  between  the  relative  forces  of  things.  These 
early  characteristics  gave  unmistakable  evidences  of  the  power  of  his 
mind  and  his  future  career  in  life. 

From  1835  to  1846  Mr.  Wade  assiduously  devoted  himself  to  the  study 
of  portrait  and  miniature  painting,  in  which  he  gained  considerable 
celebrity.  I  have  said  he  was  engaged  in  the  study  of  the  art,  because 
the  term  seems  to  comport  with  Mr.  Wade's  views,  as  he  considered  the 
perfection  of  the  art  unattainable,  save  by  Him  who  gives  brilliancy  to  the 
sun,  and  circles  the  heavens  with  the  rainbow  tints. 

Mr.  Wade  entertained  the  highest  appreciation  of  the  beautiful  art  of 
painting,  but  he  found  it  necessary  to  change  his  pursuit  to  one  of  more 
activity.  In  1846,  he  abandoned  the  alluring  art,  and  entered  the  pro- 
fession of  telegraphing.  In  this  new  vocation  he  had  an  opportunity  of 
giving  his  physical  energies  an  activity  commensurate  with  the  powers 
of  his  mind.  He  seemed  to  be  singularly  fitted  for  the  telegraphic 
enterprise,  and  in  a  short  time  he  distinguished  himself  as  one  of  the  most 
successful  administrators  engaged  in  telegraphic  affairs. 

Mr.  Wade  was  in  telegraphic  connection  with  Col.  John  J.  Speed,  Jr., 
and  Mr.  Ezra  Cornell's  lines,  and  he  aided  materially  those  gentlemen  in 
the  extension  of  a  large  range  of  telegraphs  in  the  Northwest,  extending 
over  New-York,  Ohio,  Indiana,  Michigan,  Illinois,  and  Wisconsin. 

Mr.  Wade  was  very^  successful  in  getting  subscriptions  for  stock,  as 
every  one  who  knew  him  had  unlimited  confidence  in  his  opinions.  He 
constructed  the  Cleveland,  Columbus  and  Cincinnati  line,  and  the  Cin- 
cinnati and  St.  Louis  line,  and  also  several  branch  lines,  occupying  du- 
plicate routes,  for  the  benefit  of  his  main  lines. 

In  1854  Messrs.  Wade  and  Speed  consolidated  their  lines  with  the 
Western  Union  Telegraph  Company,  then  operating  the  House  apparatus. 
By  this  important  union  of  lines,  the  great  Northwest  was  brought  into  a 
more  immediate  connection  with  tW  city  of  New- York,  a  consummation, 
for  many  years  previous,  u  devoutly  wished." 

The  new  organization  secured  the  invaluable  services  of  Mr.  Wade  as 
a  general  agent,  intrusting  to  his  superior  skill  and  negotiating  tact,  the 
consolidating  other  lines  into  the  Western  Union  Company.  The  end 
desired  has  been  accomplished  to  the  full  and  complete  satisfaction  of  all 
parties  interested,  and  now  the  consolidated  company  has  within  its  juris- 
diction the  vast  range  of  lines  running  from  the  east  and  northeast  to  the 
west  and  northwest. 

Though  the  field  of  Mr.  Wade's  negotiations  was  not  enrobed  with 
the  splendor  of  the  careers  of  Talleyrand,  Metternich,  or  Nesselrode,  yet 
I  presume  no  one  will  deny  but  what  the  diplomatic  skill  necessary  to  be 


832  APPENDIX. 

exercised  in  his  pathway  was  as  intricate  as  any  duty  ever  discharged  by 
those  stars  of  European  political  diplomacy. 

I  have  enjoyed  the  acquaintance  of  Mr.  Wade  for  many  years,  and  the 
utterance  of  these  truths  is  but  just,  and  I  confidently  believe  they  are  in 
full  consonance  with  the  universal  opinion  entertained  of  him  by  others 
wherever  he  is  known. 

Mr.  Wade  has  filled  the  various  positions  of  the  practical  telegrapher, 
and  ho  failed  not  to  comprehend  at  an  early  day  a  thorough  knowledge 
of  the  whole  science  and  art. 

As  a  result,  springing  from  his  untiring  energies,  and  the  correct  ad- 
ministration of  his  affairs,  he  is  blessed  with  this  world's  goods  enough  to 
comfort  the  remainder  of  his  days  and  those  of  his  estimable  family. 

In  1853,  I  wrote  of  Mr.  Wade  as  in  the  annexed  paragraph,  and  in  the 
sentiments  and  opinions  then  expressed  I  now  concur,  and  reiterate  with 
increased  confidence  in  their  entire  correctness  : 

"  By  his  indomitable  energy,  and  punctuality  in  all  his  engagements,  he 
has  succeeded  in  securing  for  himself  an  ample  fortune,  and  his  reputation 
as  a  successful  and  energetic  telegraph  superintendent,  is  permanently 
established.  The  companies  over  whose  affairs  he  has  been  called  to  pre- 
side, have  been  eminently  fortunate  in  obtaining  his  services.  He  manages 
their  interests  with  wonderful  industry  and  skill,  and  has  secured  for  them 
a  reputation  and  prosperity  second  to  none  in  the  country. 

He  is  a  capital  business  man — ready,  active,  and  vigilant — shrewd  and 
penetrating,  out  honorable,  fair,  and  conciliatory.  He  is  liberal  in  his 
arrangements,  and  commands  confidence  by  punctuality,  and  a  generous 
disposition  to  divide  the  field  of  labor  with  others.  Possessed  of  that  rare 
quality  known  as  tact,  he  seldom  errs  in  his  arrangements,  which  are,  for 
the  most  part,  eminently  fortunate.  As  a  financier,  he  is  prudent,  skilful, 
and  punctilious.  The  fine  points  in  his  character  endear  him  to  his 
friends,  and  his  courtesy  and  affability  have  rendered  him  most  acceptable 
to  his  agents,  by  whom  he  is  universally  respected,  and  held  in  high 
esteem ;  and  he  has  rendered  himself  peculiarly  agreeable  to  the  mana- 
gers of  other  lines,  whose  personal  regard  and  fullest  confidence  he  has 
won,  and  which  materially  contributes  to  his  signal  success/' 


EMINENT    TELEGRAPHERS. 

LEVI  LINCOLN  SADLER, 

©f  iHassarfjusetts, 

LATE    Secretary  and  Treasurer  of  the  New-York    and    New-England 
Union  Telegraph  Company,  is  the  subject  of  this  brief  memoir. 

Mr.  Sadler  was  one  of  the  remarkable  men  of  his  age,  and  most  pecu- 
liarly fitted  for  the  speciality  of  telegraphing,  in  which  he  had  been  en- 
gaged for  some  years  prior  to  his  death. 

I  cannot  more  truly  present  the  character  of  Mr.  Sadler  than  as  re- 
corded in  the  journal  of  proceedings  of  the  telegraph  company  above 
mentioned,  viz. : 

At  a  meeting  of  the  Board  of  Directors  of  the  New-York  and  New- 
England  Union  Telegraph  Company,  holden  at  New-York  city  on  the  17th 
of  November,  1857,  the  following  merited  tribute  to  the  memory  of  the 
late  L.  L.  Sadler ,  an  associate  Director,  and  Treasurer  and  Secretary  of 
the  Company  from  its  origin,  was  unanimously  adopted : 

Whereas,  it  hath  pleased  Almighty  God  to  remove  by  death  from  our 
midst  our  associate  Director,  Treasurer  and  Secretary,  the  late  L.  L.  Sad- 
ler, since  the  last  monthly  meeting  of  this  Board;  and  it  is  befitting  that 
at  this  first  succeeding  meeting  we  should  express  our  sense  of  the  ex- 
ceedingly great  loss  which  has  befallen  the  interests  and  business  of  this 
Company,  and  ourselves,  his  associates  in  office,  by  this  sudden  dispensa- 
tion ,  therefore, 

Resolved,  That  to  profound  respect  for  his  memory,  we  bear  cheerful 
recollections  of  his  uniform  urbanity  and  exemplary  worth,  as  a  man,  and 
of  his  scrupulous  integrity,  carefulness,  and  promptitude,  as  an  officer  ; 
faithfully  and  perseveringly  discharging  all  his  varied  duties  with  ability 
and  fidelity,  and  maintaining  a  character  for  manly  uprightness  in  all  his 
relations,  and  toward  all  men. 

Resolved,  That  we  sincerely  lament  his  death,  and  mingle  our  sympa- 
thies with  those  of  his  bereaved  widow  and  immediate  relatives,  in  appre- 
ciation of  their  irreparable  calamity  in  this  event. 

Resolved,  That  the  Treasurer  be,  and  is  hereby  directed,  to  continue 
the  monthly  salary  to  the  widow  of  the  deceased,  which  would  have  been 
payable  to  him,  for  the  remainder  of  the  official  year  for  which  he  was 
elected  Treasurer  and  Secretary,  terminating  on  the  thirtieth  day  of  June 
next. 

On  motion  of  Mr.  Lefferts — 

Resolved,  That  as  a  further  testimonial  of  the  great  regard  we  entertain 
for  the  memory  of  the  worth  and  exemplary  character  of  the  deceased, 
the  President  and  Mr.  Smith  be  constituted  a  committee  to  prepare  an 
appropriate  memoir  of  his  life,  and  that  the  same  be  extended  upon  the 
records  of  the  Directors. 

Resolved,  That  these  resolutions  be  entered  upon  the  records  of  the 
Directors,  and  that  the  President  be  requested  to  communicate  a  copy  of 
the  same  to  Mrs.  L.  L.  Sadler,  the  widow  of  the  deceased. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  Board  of  Directors,  held  in  the  city  of  New  York, 
March  20th,  1858,  the  following  proceedings  transpired  : 

Pursuant  to  the  vote  of  the  Directors,  November  17,  1857,  the  Com- 
mittee report  and  place  upon  record,  in  behalf  of  the  Company,  the  fol- 
lowing brief  memoir  of  the  late  L.  L.  SADLER  : 

The  remains  of  Rev.  LETI  LINCOLN  SADLER,  who  died  somewhat  sud- 
denly (though  for  years  an  invalid),  in  Brooklyn,  N.  Y.,  at  the  residence 

53 


834  APPENDIX, 

of  his  brother-in-law,  Mr.  Charles  Munroe,  on  the  29th  ot  October,  1857, 
were  borne  to  the  city  of  Portland,  Maine,  on  the  Monday  following,  and 
entombed,  under  the  charge  of  two  sorrowing  brothers,  and  his  brother- 
in-law  (Hon.  F.  0.  J.  Smith),  and  Charles  F.  Wood,  Esq.,  Superintend- 
ent of  the  "  New -York  and  New-England  Telegraph  Company,"  of  which 
Company  the  deceased  was  a  Director,  Secretary  and  Treasurer,  from  its 
origin.  The  funeral  ceremonies  were  held  in  Brooklyn  by  the  Rev.  E.  H. 
Chapin,  of  New-York  city,  and  Rev.  B.  Peters,  of  Brooklyn,  in  a  manner 
solemn,  instructive,  and  every  way  consistent  with  the  known  convictions 
and  quiet  judgment  of  the  lamented  deceased. 

Of  the  life,  and  performance  of  its  duties  throughout,  of  Mr.  Sadler, 
others,  to  whose  service  in  the  ministry,  as  well  as  in  secular  affairs,  he 
was  devoted,  will  hereafter  speak  more  becomingly  than  we  can  here  ; 
but  a  brief  allusion  to  his  characteristics  is  an  appropriate  tribute  to  his 
past  relations  to  this  company.  He  resided  several  years  in  the  city  of 
Portland,  Maine,  among  numerous  devoted  friends.  There  he  was  also 
married  in  1841,  and  there,  also,  he  ably  discharged  the  duties  of  pastor 
of  the  First  Universalist  Society,  until  broken  health  imperatively  de- 
manded that  he  should  somewhat  change  his  pursuits.  None  knew  him 
but  to  respect  him  to  the  fullest  extent  of  their  knowledge  of  him, 
whether  in  secular,  social,  or  temporal  relations. 

Previous,  and  down  to  the  time  of  his  call  as  pastor  in  Portland,  Maine, 
he  resided,  and  for  some  period  of  time  he  officiated  as  pastor  of  the  Uni- 
versalist Society,  in  New  Bedford,  Mass.,  where  still  survive  many,  very 
many,  to  whom  his  memory  will  be  forever  endeared  by  associations  of 
profound  mutual  esteem  and  attachment. 

From  his  early  manhood  he  was  deeply  imbued  with  a  mastering  love 
and  reverence  for  the  teachings  of  the  Gospel,  and  became  a  sincere  con- 
vert to  the  doctrines  and  faith  to  which  he  clung  throughout  after  life, 
and  in  which  he  felt  ever  prepared  to  encounter  the  demands  of  death. 

Among  his  first  labors,  we  believe,  when  scarcely  having  reached  man- 
hood, was  a  mission  of  his  own  conception,  that  occupied  many  months 
in  execution,  through  western  New-York  and  Ohio,  in  the  formation  of 
numerous  local  religious  societies  of  the  Universalist  denomination,  look- 
ing forward  in  them  to  what  has  since  been,  his  judgment  joyously  real- 
ized in  various  localities,  the  growth  of  vigorous,  and  useful,  and  perma- 
nent associations  o  f  worshipping  communities,  where  tall  church-spires 
attest  the  footprints  of  this  early  pioneer  of  the  doctrine  of  man's  ulti- 
mate redemption  from  a  condition  of  sinfulness  and  sin. 

We  allude  to  these  sectarian  labors  of  Mr.  Sadler  only  in  illustration  of 
his  life  and  character,  and  not  as  the  sponsors  of  his  religious  views,  nor 
to  sit  in  judgment  upon  their  merits  or  demerits  as  a  creed.  It  is  our 
high  gratification  to  believe  that  in  him,  however,  they  never  suffered 
detriment  by  affectation  or  abuse  in  any  way.  He  was  always  tolerant, 
however  decided  for  or  against  the  views  of  others. 

He  was  engaged  for  some  time  as  pastor  of  the  Universalist  Society  in 
Columbus,  Ohio,  which  we  believe  was  one  he  had  organized;  and  at  an- 
other period,  before  ministering  as  a  permanent  pastor  in  Portland,  he 
was  engaged  in  like  duties  in  Bangor,  Maine.  But  we  leave  to  others, 
more  conversant  with  his  labors  in  the  ministry,  to  particularize  them. 
In  the  funeral  service,  Rev.  Mr.  Chapin  alluded  to  them  as  within  his 
own  knowledge,  in  the  most  feeling  and  eloquent  terms  of  eulogy  and 
pleasurable  remembrance.  Suffice  it  to  say.  everywhere  he  resided  he 
commanded  the  respect,  and  love,  and  confidence  of  his  acquaintances  in 
all  his  associations,  both  social  and  religious,  for  his  ardent  and  sincere 
convictions,  for  his  scrupulous  advocacy  of  the  right,  under  all  circum- 
stances, and  in  respect  to  every  being  and  every  creature,  of  every  con- 
dition, under  God's  providence. 


EMINENT    TELEGRAPHERS.  835 

It  was  not  choice,  but  seemingly  necessity,  imposed  by  the  state  of  his 
health  under  an  increasing  bronchial  affection,  caused  by  his  public 
speaking,  and  which  laid  the  foundation  of  his  final  illness,  that  induced 
him  to  leave  the  cares  and  service  of  the  ministry,  for  the  most  part,  and 
engage  in  secular  affairs.  It  was  some  eleven  years  since  that  he  was 
thus  circumstanced.  Attracted  by  the  beautiful  mysteries  of  the  Electric 
Telegraph,  as  a  thing  of  curious  art,  as  well  as  of  unmeasured  utility  in 
the  business  world,  he  consented,  upon  the  ardent  solicitations  of  his 
brother-in-law,  Mr.  Smith,  to  become  an  extensive  supervisor  of  its  ope- 
rations, in  which  he  has  ever  since  continued,  winning  alike  the  respect 
and  confidence  of  the  numerous  business  communities  with  whom  he  was 
brought  into  intercourse,  and  imparting  a  systematic  responsibility  and 
character  to  the  operations  of  the  lines  which  have  been  under  his 
charge,  unsurpassed,  if  equalled,  by  the  services  of  any  other  individual 
engaged  in  the  business. 

Few  men  can  ever  know  the  embarrassments  and  perplexities  which 
attended  the  inauguration  and  establishment  of  this  new  agency  in  the 
commercial  and  social  world.  It  was  like  grasping  and  holding  the 
nerves  of  a  sensitive,  jealous,  untrained  world  of  men,  where  the  indivi- 
dual most  seen,  and  not  the  yet  untutored,  inscrutable  agency,  and  yet  im- 
perijpctly  adjusted  physical  means,  would  alone  be  recognized  as  the  re- 
sponsible author  of  every  disappointment,  as,  perhaps,  the  contriver  of 
every  failtfre.  The  acting  man  it  was,  therefore,  who  became  the  focal 
point  of  every  distrust — the  accused  exponent  of  every  mystery  con- 
nected with  the  great  new  agent.  It  is  only  those  who  have  been,  like 
Mr.  Sadler,  centrally  circumstanced  in  the  introduction  and  adaptation  of 
this  wonderful  agent  to  the  public  comprehension  and  use,  that  can  ap- 
preciate this  fact  in  all  its  truthfulness  and  force.  Nothing  short  of  a 
well  proved  personal  integrity,  a  calm  endurance  of  angry  suspicion 
without  untimely  resentment — a  perseverance,  with  a  will  to  repair  what- 
ever might  have  resulted  from  a  mistake,  accident,  or  ignorance,  and  a 
promptitude  in  reproving  whatever  might  be  of  wrong  in  the  operation 
of  telegraphing  in  its  earliest  stages  of  use,  coupled  with  clear  know- 
ledge of  electric  agencies  and  of  mechanism,  could  succeed  in  winning  to 
a  telegraphic  administration  general  confidence  as  a  great  business  agent, 
and  maintaining  for  it  the  good  will  of  every  class  of  the  community. 
In  all  these  needful  capabilities  Mr.  Sadler  proved  himself  a  master,  and 
a  master  so  practically  and  so  pre-eminently  successful,  that,  at  the  close  of 
his  labors,  to  the  widest  extent  of  those  interests  that  were  intrusted  to 
him,  every  associate  of  his,  in  whatever  position,  was  ready  to  bear 
witness  that  no  living  man  can  make  good  to  them  his  place  and  his  use- 
fulness. The  records  of  his  company,  a  company  that  now  ranks  among 
the  fixed  institutions  of  the  country,  bear  an  undying  testimony  to  his 
fidelity,  and  industry,  and  grasp  of  practical  superiority,  that  will  not 
only  forever  speak  to  his  honor,  but  remain  an  instructive  example  to 
others.  His  administration  of  the  financial  department  of  his  company 
was  exactly  suited  to  the  going  down  of  every  day's  sun,  and  is  a  model 
record  for  others  to  imitate.  But  a  few  days  only  previous  to  his  decease 
he  attended  the  monthly  meeting  of  his  associate  Directors  in  New-York, 
and  enjoyed  the  high  satisfaction,  as  the  crowning  performance  of  his 
official  life's  duties,  of  submitting  to  them  the  largest  results  of  his  finan- 
cial administration  that  any  month  had  wrought  for  his  company,  and 
although  the  settled  gloom  of  pecuniary  distress  was  still  upon  every 
other  branch  of  industry,  and  upon  almost  every  other  industrial  institu-- 
tion  in  the  country  ;  in  view  of  this  fact,  coupled  with  his  reports  of 
other  recent  successful  measures  intrusted  mainly  to  his  official  execution, 
gratefully  did  he  remark  to  his  friends  iust  then,  "  I  believe  my  star  is  at 
last  in  the  ascendant  for  my  friends." 


836  APPENDIX. 

Yet  a  better,  a  less  troubled  star  of  his  glory,  was  then  about  to  rise 
upon  his  vision,  and  bear  him  calmly,  peacefully,  resignedly,  and  confi- 
dently upward,  even  to  the  bosom  of  his  everlasting  God. 

To  his. friends,  and  especially  to  those  who  knew  him  best,  there  is  left 
this  undying  consolation,  that  never  did  man  pass,  in  a  useful  sphere  of 
activity,  through  the  duties,  obligations,  and  trials  of  life  with  more  uni- 
form composure  and  evenness  of  judgment  and  temper,  with  less  of  the 
taints  of  the  pollutions  of  the  world  upon  him,  than  did  our  departed  and 
lamented  friend.  As  a  son,  as  a  brother,  as  a  husband  especially,  and  as 
a  friend  of  his  kind  everywhere  and  however  circumstanced,  his  life  was 
unexceptionable,  and  in  every  phase  exemplary.  His  own  home  was  the 
abode  of  his  soul's  pleasures  and  yearnings,  and,  without  ostentation,  it 
was  the  fulness  of  human  happiness  to  every  inmate.  Although  without 
children  to  weep  his  absence,  the  tears  of  a  devoted  wife,  and  the  hal- 
lowed thoughts  of  endeared  friends,  will  forever  linger  tnere,  until  the 
changes  of  earth  and  time  shall  order  all  hence  and  away. 

Mr.  Sadler  was  a  native  of  Grafton,  Mass.,  and  was  aged  a  few  months 
more  than  fifty-one  years.  He  has  a  brother,  Judge  E.  B.  Sadler,  residing 
at  Sandusky,  Ohio  ;  another,  Mr.  C.  C.  Sadler,  a  merchant  in  Philadelphia; 
another,  Mr.  Wm.  W.  Sadler,  in  New-Haven;  another,  Mr.  Manlius  Sad- 
ler, in  Brookport,  N.  Y. ;  and  one  other,  whose  name  we  have  not,  resid- 
ing in  Buffalo,  N.  Y. — to  each  and  all  of  whom  the  deceased  was  greatly 
endeared.  Besides  his  labors  to  which  we  have  alluded,  he  was,  at  times, 
a  contributor  to  the  editorial  department  of  two  or  more  religious  period- 
icals, and  published  one  or  more  treatises  npon  his  religious  doctrines. 
But  in  nothing  of  Introductions  is  there  any  mark  of  acerbity  or  other 
feeling  inconsistent  with  a  well-disciplined  benevolence  and  forbearance 
toward  all  men*. 

And  it  was  the  will  of  his  Master  in  heaven,  that  was  ever  present  to 
his  mind  as  the  ruling  guide  of  all  his  actions.  Well  may  the  loss  of 
such  a  man  be  deplored  within  and  without  the  circle  of  his  labors. 

As  a  mark  of  regard  for  his  memory,  the  officers  of  each  of  the  six 
connecting  railroads  between  New-York  city,and  the  city  of  Portland  ac- 
corded to  his  remains  and  their  attendants  the  freedom  of  their  roads  on 
their  sorrowful  mission  to  and  from  his  tomb. 


EMINENT   TELEGRAPHERS.  837 


ANSON  STAGER, 

©f  ©ijto. 

THE  subject  of  this  memoir  was  born  in  Ontario  county,  State  of  New- 
York,  April  20th,  1825,  and  for  the  first  twenty  years  of  his  life  he  resided 
in  the  city  of  Rochester. 

At  an  early  age,  and  during  the  progress  of  his  education,  Mr.  Stager 
entered  the  printing  establishment  of  Mr.  Henry  O'Reilly,  for  the  purpose 
of  learning  the  "art  preservative  of  all  arts.77  His  expertness  soon 
became  observable  by  his  employers,  and  to  him  was  intrusted  service  in 
the  business,  which,  in  most  instances,  required  greater  experience.  His 
singular  and  perfect  discriminating  powers,  gave  him  the  advantage  of 
readily  determining  matters,  requiring  the  exercise  of  that  peculiar  talent 
necessary  for  success  in  the  art  of  printing. 

In  1846,  Mr.  Stager  abandoned  the  vocation  of  printing,  and  adopted 
the  telegraphic  profession  as  an  affair  for  life.  He  gave  this  new  field  of 
labor  his  whole  mind,  and  he  was  not  long  in  attaining  an  eminent  posi- 
tion as  a  practical  telegrapher,  and  to  this  day  he  holds  the  recognized 
honor  6f  being  the  most  expert  manipulator  in  the  service.  He  has  been 
ambitious  in  the  perfection  of  his  profession,  and  his  labors  have  been 
crowned  with  the  most  signal  success.  His  career  is  worthy  of  imitation. 
He  bid  adieu  to  the  art  of  printing,  though  with  some  reluctance,  and 
followed  in  the  service  of  his  old  employer,  Mr.  O'Reilly,  in  the  then  new 
and  novel  enterprise  of  telegraphing. 

Mr.  Stager  entered  into  the  new  service  with  energy,  and  having  be- 
come "  quite  an  expert,"  as  he  was  then  called,  he  was  placed  on  the  first 
link  of  the  O'Reilly  lines,  between  Philadelphia  and  Harrisburg,  in  Oc- 
tober, 1846.  On  the  extension  of  the  line  west  of  the  Alleghany  moun- 
tains, he  was  transferred  to  the  Pittsburg  station.  When  the  lines  were 
extended  west  of  Pittsburg,  thoir  manipulation  at  Pittsburg  was  placed 
under  the  care  of  Mr.  Stager,  and  in 'their  management  he  exhibited 
administrative  abilities  fully  equal  to  the  important  and  responsible 
position. 

When  the  O'Reilly  lines  were  extended  to  the  Mississippi  in  the  west. 
to  the  Lakes  in  the  north,  and  to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico  in  the  south,  the 
Cincinnati  station  was  the  most  commanding  on  those  lines,  requiring  the 
first  skill  in  manipulation  and  talerft  in  administration.  In  the  selection 
of  the  superior  men  for  that  station.  Mr.  Stager  was  among  the  first  chosen, 
and  at  an  early  day  thereafter  he  was  made  Chief  Operator,  having  in 
charge  the  manipulating  department  of  the  respective  lines  centering  in 
Cincinnati.  No  operator  ever  discharged  the  trust  reposed  in  him  more 
faithfully  than  did  Mr.  Stager,  reflecting  not  only  credit  upon  himself, 
but  upon  the  enterprise. 

Through  the  indefatigable  energies  and  superior  expertness  of  Mr. 
Stager,  the  modes  of  operating  the  apparatuses  in  the  transmission  and 
reception  of  despatches,  both  as  to  celerity  and  correctness,  were  per- 
fected, so  much  so  in  reality  that  the  Cincinnati  station  was  then,  and 
since,  considered  the  model  station  on  the  American  lines.  He  practi- 
cally combined  mechanical  contrivances,  coupling  circuits  together,  so 
that  the  necessity  of  re-writing  was  dispensed  with.  This  is  not  novel  at 
the  present  moment,  and  its  universality  takes  from  the  feat  the  greatness 
of  the  then  recognized  achievement.  Those  of  us  who  commenced  to  toil 


838  APPENDIX. 

iu  this  enterprise,  at  an  early  hour  of  the  day,  know  well  how  to  appre- 
ciate the  consequence  and  merit  of  the  success. 

It  was  during  his  services  in  this  station  as  chief  operator,  that  he 
devised  the  plan  of  working  any  number  of  circuits,  or  lines,  from  the  one 
voltaic  organization.  He  was  the  first  to  accomplish  the  end  by  practical 
demonstration,  notwithstanding  others  had  theorized  that  it  could  be 
done.  It  was  accomplished,  however,  by  novel  modes,  original  with  Mr. 
Stager,  essentially  differing  from  the  supposed  theories  advanced  by 
others.  He  arranged  the  battery  and  the  wires  according  to  the  laws  of 
electrical  phenomena,  as  manifested  from  time  to  time  in  the  manipula- 
tion of  the  telegraph,  observable  to  the  operator.  He  connected  the 
various  lines  centring  at  his  station  with  the  one  battery,  and  successfully 
worked  all  of  the  different  lines  at  the  same  time  from  the  one  battery. 
This  was  an  achievement  far  ahead  of  any  other  progress  of  the  age,  and 
one  entitling  the  inventor  to  more  honor  and  reward  than  has  fallen  to  his 
lot  to  realize. 

During  the  years  of  1848.  '49,  and  750,  Mr.  Stager  was  employed  as  an 
auxiliary  in  the  Coast  Survey  Department  of-  the  United  States  Govern- 
ment. He  was  the  telegrapher  for  the  service,  and  was  under  the  direc- 
tion of  the  late  Prof.  Sears  C.  Walker,  in  "  determining  longitudes/' 
''  wave  time  of  electric  currents,7'  and  in  testing  the  astronomical  clocks 
of  Profs.  Mitchell  and  Locke.  In  this  important  service  he  won  new 
laurels ;  and  his  ability  was  duly  appreciated  by  the  United  States  gov- 
ernment. 

In  January,  1852,  Mr.  Stager  was  appointed  superintendent  of  the  new 
line  of  telegraph,  constructed  by  the  New  York  and  Mississippi  Valley 
Printing  Telegraph  Company.  The  line  extended  from  Buffalo  to  Louis- 
ville, and  operated  the  House  Printing  apparatus.  During  the  same  year 
his  administration  as  superintendent  was  extended  over  the  line  from 
Buffalo  to  New- York  City.  These  respective  lines,  and  others  east  and 
west  of  Buffalo,  were  ultimately  united,  by  lease,  purchase,  or  otherwise, 
under  the  name  of  the  "Western  Union  Telegraph  Company.  This  new 
organization  has  grown  to  be  the  largest  and  most  extensive  telegraph 
company  in  the  world.  Its  lines  extend  over  the  northwestern  states, 
and  proximate  fifteen  thousand  miles  in  length,  and  it  is  extending  its 
lines  with  wonderful  rapidity.  This  vast  range  of  the  telegraph  has  a 
centralized  administration,  under  the  direction  of  gentlemen  of  distin- 
guished telegraphic  ability.  Each  department  is  placed  in  charge  of 
those  competent  for  the  discharge  of  the  speciality  ;  and  in  this  manner 
it  has  gone  on,  like  the  rivulet  that  rises  in  the  Rocky  Mountains  • — at 
its  source  very  small,  but  ere  it  reaches  the  ocean  it  is  gigantic  in  pro- 
portion and  power,  and  is  hailed  as  the  :<  Father  of  waters.77 

The  immense  range  of  lines  under  the  Western  Union  Company  is 
supplied  from  one  central  station  with  all  the  various  equipments,  such 
as  magnets,  batteries,  sounders,  insulators,  &c..  &c.  As  general 
superintendent  of  these  lines,  Mr.  Stager  has  done  well  for  his  company 
in  the  adoption  of  the  u  Supply  Department,77  as  great  economy  must 
result  therefrom. 

In  connection  with  Mr.  Wade,  his  sterling  coadjutor,  Mr.  Stager  com- 
pleted a  system  of  Railway  Telegraphs  which  are  now  in  successful  ope- 
ration throughout  the  northwest.  He  has  had  arranged  all  the  necessary 
contrivances  to  effect  the  most  good  for  that  important  public  enterprise, 
having  in  view  the  welfare  of  the  people  and  the  interests  of  the  respec- 
tive companies.  I  have  seen  the  various  railway  telegraph  systems  in 
Europe,  the  most  prominent  of  which  are  the  French,  the  Belgian,  and 
the  Prussian.  But  they  are  far  behind  the  arrangements  operated  under 
the  direction  of  Mr.  Stager.  No  system  of  telegraph  works  with  more 
perfection  than  that  established  on  the  American  railways  above 


EMINENT    TELEGRAPHERS.  839 

referred  to.  It  is  impossible  to  enter  into  an  explanation  of  their  utili- 
tarian organization  in  this  sketch,  though  nothing  could  give  greater 
evidences  of  Mr.  Stager's  merits  than  its  comprehension  by  the  reader. 

I  have  referred  elsewhere  in  this  work  to  the  fact,  that  the  operator  on 
the  American  lines  frequently  cuts  the  wire  on  the  route,  and  communi- 
cates with  the  distant  station  by  manipulating  the  two  ends  of  the  wire 
together.  This  has  been  frequently  done,  but  the  most  remarkable  feats 
performed  in  the  art  of  telegraphing  have  been  by  Mr.  Stager,  in  the 
reception  of  messages  by  the  motion  of  his  tongue.  One  of  these  feats 
was,  some  years  since,  thus  noticed  by  the  press,  viz. : 

"  An  engine  on  the  Pittsburg,  Fort  Wayne  and  Chicago  Kailroad  broke 
down  last  week,  at  nine  o'clock  at  night,  nine  miles  distant  from  a  station, 
The  conductor  went  on  foot  through  the  snow  to  get  another  machine.  A 
telegraph  operator  on  one  of  the  cars,  named  Stager,  hearing  the  cause 
of  the  detention,  got  out  and  taking  down  the  main  wire  from  the  pole 
alongside  the  track,  cut  it,  *  dotted ;  the  distress  of  his  train  to  the 
Pittsburg  and  Brighton  stations,  and  putting  one  of  the  brass  points  to  hig 
tongue,  read  the  answer  that  an  engine  should  be  immediately  sent,  and 
then  talked  off  this  pleasant  lightning  to  his  anxious  and  impatient  fellow- 


passengers." 


It  is  difficult  for  one  not  acquainted  with  the  art  of  telegraphing  to 
appreciate  this  remarkable  feat.  In  1746,  Muschenbroek  received  the 
first  shock  from  the  Leyden  vial,  of  which  he  said,  that  "  he  felt  himself 
struck  iii  his  arms,  shoulders,  and  breast,  so  that  he  lost  his  breath,  and 
it  was  two  days  before  he  recovered  from  the  effects  of  the  blow  and  the 
terror."  and  that  "he  would  not  take  a  second  shock  for  the  kingdom  of 
France."  One  century  thereafter,  the  shock  became  intelligible,  giving 
information  from  miles  distant !  The  thought  is  too  sublime  ! !  Did  I 
not  know  it  to  be  true,  both  by  observation  and  as  a  philosophical  fact,  I 
might  question  the  truth  of  the  record. 

Mr.  Stager  projects  his  tongue  so  that  he  can  see  it,  and  th'en  places 
one  end  of  the  wire  above,  and  the  other  end  below  it.  The  operator 
three  hundred  miles  distant,  manipulates  with  the  key  of  the  apparatus, 
and  the  electric  current  when  passing  through  the  tongue  from  the  end 
of  one  wire  to  that  of  the  other,  produces  a  convulsion  which  answers  to 
the  motion  of  the  armature  of  the  electro-magnet.  These  motions  are 
intelligible  to  Mr.  Stager,  and  in  this  manner  he  has  received  various 
messages  at  different  times  and  under  different  circumstances. 

Mr.  Stager  has  never  been  an  ambitious  man  for  public  notoriety.  He 
has  not  sought  office,  but  the  office  has  sought  him.  In  all  his  obligations 
with  others  he  has  performed  his  faith  with  the  most  complete  satisfac- 
tion. He  is  young,  and  his  future  career  cannot  be  else  than  one  of  use- 
fulness and  honor.  At  morn,  noon,  and  eve,  he  can  break  bread  with  an 
estimable  companion,  and  with  those  treasures  given  only  by  God  to  man. 
His  home  is  decorated  with  ornaments  purer  and  richer  by  far  than  the 
pearls  gathered  from  the  depths  of  the  sea. 


840 


APPENDIX. 


TALIAFERRO  P.  SHAFFNER, 

©f 


[In  giving  place  here  to  the  following  brief  biographical  sketch  of  himself,  the  Editor  deems 
it  proper  to  say  that  he  yields  to  the  solicitations  of  friends,  by  one  of  whom  it  was  written  ; 
he  would  also  add  that  one  prepared  for  and  published  some  years  since  in  DE  Bow'sREViBW 
and  HUNT'S  MERCHANT'S  MAGAZINE,  formed  the  basis  of  it,  with  such  additions  and  emenda- 
tions as  seemed  called  for  by  the  lapse  of  time  since  the  publication  referred  to.] 

MR.  SHAFFNER  was  born  in  Smithfield,  Jefferson  county,  Virginia,  and  the 
earlier  part  of  his  life  was  s^ent  in  that  ancient  commonwealth.  At  the 
age  of  thirteen  he  accompanied  a  relative  to  St.  Charles  county,  Missouri, 
and  participated  in  the  establishment  of  the  town  of  Flint-hill,  in  that 
county,  and  was  actively  engaged  in  all  the  varieties  of  western  forest 
life.  In  the  store,  driving  the  team,  at  the  plow,  with  the  axe,  he  toiled 
faithfully  —  enduring  with  patient  and  becoming  fortitude  the  privations 
and  wearying  cares  and  labors  of  the  pioneers  of  the  great  West. 

Having  advanced  sufficiently  in  his  preparatory  education,  Mr.  Shaff- 
ner,  in  1840,  commenced  the  study  of  the  law,  and  in  April,  1843,  he  was 
admitted  to  the  Maryland  bar.  He  returned  to  the  West,  and  commenced 
the  practice  of  law  in  Louisville,  Kentucky,  where  he  had  previously 
resided  some  three  years  during  his  preliminary  studies. 

During  the  several  years  in  which  Mr.  Shafther  was  engaged  in  his 
studies,  he  did  not  devote  himself  exclusively  to  Blackstone,  Coke,  and 
Chitty.  Under  the  especial  instruction  of  the  principal  of  the  Alleghany 
Academy,  he  applied  himself  to  the  perfection  of  those  attainments  which 
he  had  commenced  under  his  own  guidance,  and  which  were  to  invest  him 
with  those  advantages  which  were  most  essential  aids  in  the  development 
of  his  energetic  character. 

By  way  of  relieving  the  monotony  of  close  and  steadfast  application, 
Mr.  Shaffner,  in  time  of  vacation,  undertook  pedestrian  tours  to  neighbor- 
ing States,  visiting  all  the  institutions  of  learning  and  of  interest  in  the 
States,  north,  south,  and  east.  In  these  excursions  he  rendered  himself 
familiar  with  the  history  and  character,  the  statistics  and  people  of  every 
important  town  or  city  in  the  middle,  eastern,  and  southern  States.  His 
topographical  knowledge  alone  has  to  him  been  invaluable,  and  his  im- 
pressions of  the  whole  eastern  and  southern  portion  of  this  great  republic 
are  almost  as  thorough  and  perfect  as  if  they  were  the  result  of  laborious 
and  scientific  surveys.  His  motto  seems  to  have  been  :  «'  What  is  worth 
understanding  at  all,  is  worth  understanding  well  :''  and  consequently  he 
has  not  been  content  with  less  than  a  thorough  knowledge  of  all  he  has 
investigated. 

Early  in  his  career  as  a  practitioner  at  the  bar,  Mr.  Shaffner  employed 
his  spare  hours  in  writing  for  various  magazines,  annuals,  &c.  In  1844, 
he  was  selected  to  act  as  an  editor  of  the  leading  publication  of  the  Order 
of  Odd-Fellows. 

In  1845,  he  was  selected  to  edit  the  official  organ  of  the  Grand  Lodge 
of  Masons  in  Kentucky. 


EMINENT    TELEGRAPHERS.  841 

In  1847,  Mr.  Shaffner  prepared  a  small  volume,  known  as  the 
11  KentuckyRegister,"  containing  statistics  and  much  useful  information 
for  the  officials  of  the  government  and  others. 

In  1844,  Mr.  Shaffner  was  elected  Secretary  of  the  Kentucky  Historical 
Society,  and  for  several  years  he  continued  to  perform  the  duties  of  that 
important  position  with  much  credit.  In  the  same  year  he  was  selected 
as  Recording  Secretary  of  the  Home  and  Foreign  Missionary  Society  of  the 
Methodist  Church,  South. 

The  various  labors,  above  recited,  were  enterprises  in  which  Mr.  Shaff- 
ner engaged  his  spare  hours,  having  in  view  the  perfection  of  his  educa- 
tion in  general. 

In  1844,  he  was  in  Baltimore,  and  witnessed  the  operation  of  the  tele- 
graph, then  under  the  direction  of  Prof.  Morse.  From  the  moment  of 
first  seeing  the  apparatus,  he  commenced  the  study  of  its  operation.  On 
his  return  to  Kentucky,  he  commenced  his  efforts  for  the  extension  of  the 
telegraph  to  the  West.  The  enterprise  was  new,  and  Mr.  Shaffner  s  la- 
bors did  not  receive  the  appreciation  they  merited.  So  little  confidence 
was  placed  in  the  telegraph,  that  when,  about  1846,  he  sought  for  the 
passage  of  a  bill  by  the  Legislature  of  Kentucky,  for  the  protection  of 
the  telegraph,  it  only  passed  by  one  vote  in  the  affirmative,  and  none  in 
the  negative,  in  the  Senate,  all  the  other  senators  preferring  not  to  vote, 
than  to  oppose  the  measure,  so  energetically  pressed  by  Mr.  Shaffner. 

In  the  year  1846,  Mr.  Shaffner  commenced  active  efforts  for  the  ex- 
tension of  the  telegraph  to  Louisville,  and  places  south.  In  1847,  in  as- 
sociation with  Col.  William  Tanner,  he  commenced  the  construction  of 
the  first  line  south  of  the  Ohio  river,  the  first  section  being  from  Louis- 
ville to  Lexington,  Kentucky,  and  the  second  to  Nashville.  Tennessee, 
both  of  which  were  completed  early  in  1848. 

In  the  fall  of  1848,  Mr.  Shaffner,  in  association  with  Messrs.  Thomas 
C.  and  William  L.  McAfee,  commenced  the  construction  of  the  St.  Louis 
and  New-Orleans  telegraph,  which  was  completed  in  1850. 

In  the  spring  of  1850,  he  associated  with  him  Mr.  Isaac  M.  Veitch,  and 
commenced  the  construction  of  the  telegraph  from  St.  Louis  to  St. 
Joseph,  Missouri,  connecting  the  principal  river  towns. 

On  the  organization  of  the  St.  Louis  and  New-Orleans  Company,  Mr. 
Shaffner  was  elected  President  of  the  Company,  and  was  successively  re- 
elected  until  he  resigned  the  position,  a  few  weeks  after  the  annual 
meeting  in  1853. 

During  the  same  years  he  was  an  active  assistant  to  Mr.  Veitch  in  the 
administration  of  the  St.  Louis  and  Missouri  River  Company. 

In  the  spring  of  1852,  he  was  unanimously  elected  Secretary  of  the 
New-Orleans  and  Ohio  Telegraph  Company,  extending  from  Pittsburg, 
Pennsylvania,  through  Louisville  to  New-Orleans. 

Although  Mr.  Shaffner  was  thus  at  the  same  time  singularly  connected 
with  three  companies,  extending  over  several  thousands  of  miles,  yet  his 
duties  to  each  were  fully  discharged  to  the  satisfaction  of  the  respective 
companies. 

In  the  spring  of  1853,  he  was  elected  Secretary  of  the  American  Tele- 
graphic Confederation,  an  association  formed  at  Washington  by  repre- 
sentation from  the  different  companies  in  America.  Having  accepted  the 
above  position,  he  returned  to  the  West,  resigned  the  various  offices  he 
held  there,  and  arranged  his  affairs  for  taking  up  his  residence  in  the 
East ;  previous  to  doing  which,  however,  and  during  the  summer  months, 
he  submerged  cables  across  the  Mississippi,  Ohio,  and  Tennessee  rivers. 
In  the  fall  he  entered  upon  the  duties  of  his  new  position  at  Washington* 


842  APPHNDIX. 

In  regard  to  his  labors  in  the  West,  a  publication  thus  spoke  of  them 
in  1853 : 

11  From  having  been  one  of  the  most  prudent  and  energetic  men  of  the 
age  Mr.  Shaffner  has  not  toiled  in  vain.  In  addition  to  the  accumulation 
of  other  interests,  he  has  become  proprietor  of  the  largest  amount  of  tele- 
graph capital  in  the  Western  and  Southern  country,  and,  except  the 
patentees,  doubtless  the  largest  in  the  United  States.  This  immense 
interest  demands  and  receives  his  constant  attention;  and  his  whole  time 
and  undivided  labors  are  devoted  to  the  exclusive  duties  he  owes  as  sole 
conductor  of  the  management  of  the  one  line,  and  the  co-operative  services 
he  most  assiduously  renders  as  secretary  of  the  united  lines.  In  both 
stations  he  employs  that  prudent  economy  and  untiring  energy  which 
have  distinguished  him  in  every  station  he  has  occupied;  and  the  bene- 
ficial results  arising  therefrom  are  visible  in  the  improved  condition 
of  the  resources  and  revenues  of  the  lines,  as  far  as  he  controls. 

"  It  was  remarked  that  Mr.  Shaffner  devoted  his  whole  time  to  the  ful- 
filment of  his  official  undertakings.  Perhaps  such  another  instance  of 
complete  absorption  in  the  performance  of  what  he  considers  his  duties, 
is  not  to  be  found.  Without  hesitation,  he  enters  upon  and  prosecutes 
the  most  arduous  and  difficult,  not  to  say  hazardous,  tasks  that  could  be 
imposed.  In  the  office,  he  is  unremitting,  and  consequently  performs  an 
enormous  amount  of  labor.  But,  when  he  deems  it  expedient,  he  is  out 
upon  the  line,  partaking  of  the  toil  and  exposure,  and  braving  the  severest 
weather  and  the  most  perilous  situations.  His  efforts  to  keep  up  the 
telegraphic  connections  between  New-Orleans  and  St.  Louis,  with  unin- 
terrupted regularity,  while  the  Ohio  river  was  filled  with  floating  ice, 
crashing  and  grating  against  the  shores — constantly  crossing,  while  steam 
navigation  was  entirely  suspended — when  the  common  ferries  plied  no 
more,  and  laborers  and  men,  used  to  exposure,  refused  to  encounter  the 
hazardous  enterprise,  even  for  the  certainty  of  rich  reward — commanded 
the  admiration  of  every  beholder.  He  was  not  to  be  deterred  by  danger 
or  severity  of  weather.  Succeeding  in  securing  the  services  of  two  of  his 
men;  he  daily  crossed  the  Ohio,  battling  with  the  floating  ice,  that  mo- 
mentarily threatened  to  crush  his  frail  bark,  and  consign  him  and  his  com- 
panions to  a  watery  grave.  But  Providence  smiled  upon  these  un- 
paralleled efforts  to  preserve  a  telegraphic  connection :  and  he  had  the 
satisfaction  of  knowkig,  while  his  general  health  was  unimpaired,  that  he 
had  performed  a  great  service,  from  which  one  of  feeble  temperament 
and  less  determination  would  have  shrunk  as  a  thing  impracticable. 

"  The  acquaintance  and  connection  of  Mr.  Shaffner  with  the  Hon- 
Amos  Kendall  and  Professor  Morse,  have  been  intimate  and  most  agreea. 
ble  to  all  parties.  He  has  on  all  occasions,  and  with  the  earnest  elo- 
quence which  distinguishes  his  conversations  or  public  addresses,  de- 
fended the  rights  of  the  latter  to  the  profitable  results  of  his  great  in- 
vention ;  and  to  his  ability  and  persevering  energy,  much  of  the  favorable 
feeling  which  exists  throughout  the  community  toward  that  desideratum 
is  decidedly  due. 

"^As  a  financier,  Mr.  Shaffner  has  exhibited  a  prudence  and  foresight 
which  have  commanded  the  confidence  of  the  many  large  banks  and 
banking  houses  with  which  he  has  had  business  transactions.  The  reve- 
nues of  the  lines  with  which  he  is  connected  as  president  or  secretary, 
amount  to  about  three  hundred  thousand  dollars  per  annum,  and  this 
large  sum  comes  under  his  special  supervision  in  its  disbursement.  That 
it  has  been  scanned  with  unwavering  fidelity  and  consummate  ability 
none  can  for  a  moment  doubt,  who  witness  the  unflinching  and  active 
zeal  with  which  he  pursues  the  difficult  and  intricate  labors  by  which  he 
is  surrounded,  and  which  would  puzzle  and  confuse,  if  not  overwhelm 


EMINENT    TELEGRAPHERS.  843 

any  one  less  methodical  and  less  indefatigable.  The  system  is  to  him  a 
science,  and  he  comprehends  it  in  general  and  particular.  Th^-e  is  nothing 
beyond  the  grasp  of  his  quick  perception,  and  no  minutia  o  small  to 
escape  his  penetration. 

"Mr.  Shaffner  is  a  young  man.  notwithstanding  his  active  life  has  de- 
volved the  performance  of  more  labors  upon  him,  and  caused  him  to 
encounter  more  vicissitudes,  than  ordinarily  fall  to  the  lot  of  twice  his 
number  of  years.  Strictly  temperate  in  his  habits,  undeviating  in  the 
performance  of  the  duties  which  the  laws  of  God  and  man  inculcate,  blest 
with  all  that  can  make  home  happy,  he  can  be  pointed  to  as  an  example 
worthy  of  all  imitation." 

Early  in  1854,  Mr.  Shaffner  visited  New- York  city,  to  aid  in  the  re- 
organization of  the  Newfoundland  Telegraph  Company,  the  secretaryship 
of  which  had  been  offered  to  him  with  a  salary  of  twelve  thousand  dol- 
lars per'annum.  The  new  company  was  organized,  having  as  proprietors 
some  ten  members,  of  whom  Mr.  Shaffner  was  one.  Not  satisfied  with 
the  administration  of  the  company's  affairs,  he  withdrew  from  the  com- 
pany forever. 

Mr.  Shaffner  had  entered  into  the  Newfoundland  enterprise  with  a  view 
of  carrying  out  his  ocean  telegraph,  which  he  had  commenced  the  year 
before.  About  the  same  time  the  phenomenon  of  the  retardation  of  the 
electric  force,  transmitted  through  sub-aqueous  conductors,  was  an- 
nounced by  Prof.  Faraday.  This  new  development  in  philosophy  caused 
Mr.  Shaffner  to  abandon  his  idea  of  a  telegraph  from  Newfoundland  to 
Ireland,  and  he  commenced  his  labors  for  a  telegraph  to  run  from  Labra- 
dor to  Greenland,  to  Iceland,  to  the  Faroe  Isles,  and,  with  branches,  to 
Norway  and  Scotland.  To  this  end  he  visited  Europe  in  1854,  and  ob- 
tained a  Koyal  Concession  from  His  majesty  the  King  of  Denmark  for 
the  exclusive  right  to  run  the  telegraph  over  the  route  above  mentioned 
for  the  term  of  one  hundred  years.  He  also  obtained  concessions  from 
Norway  and  Sweden  for  the  same  purposes. 

While  Mr.  Shaffner  was  at  Copenhagen,  His  Excellency  Baron  Stem- 
berg,  Envoy  Extraordinary  and  Minister  Plenipotentiary  for  the  govern- 
ment of  Kussia,  notified  him  that  His  Majesty,  the  Emperor  Nicholas, 
desired  him  to  visit  St.  Petersburg,  and  that  all  the  necessary  facilities 
had  been  commanded.  In  accordance  with  the  august  behest,  Mr.  Shaff- 
ner visited  St.  Petersburg,  and  was  received  by  the  imperial  government 
with  distinguished  honor,  and  after  the  fulfilment  of  his  mission  to  Kus- 
sia,  he  received  from  the  Emperor  evidences  of  appreciation  for  the 
services  he  had  rendered. 

Mr.  Shaffner  returned  to  America  in  the  latter  part  of  1854,  and  con- 
tinued his  efforts  for  the  perfection  of  his  Atlantic  Ocean  Telegraph.  In 
the  spring  of  1855,  he  was  again  requested  to  visit  St.  Petersburg,  by 
order  of  His  Majesty  the  Emperor  Nicholas,  for  the  purpose  of  aiding  the 
imperial  government  to  construct  a  railway  to  the  Crimea.  His  visit  to 
St.  Petersburg  in  1855  was  crowned  with  success  in  some  important  ne- 
gotiations, though  the  termination  of  the  war,  soon  thereafter,  interfered 
with  the  consummation  of  the  railway  and  telegraphic  enterprises  in 
which  Mr.  Shaffner  was  engaged  for  the  benefit  of  the  imperial  govern- 
ment. 

During  Mr.  Shaffner's  visits  to  Europe,  in  1854— '57,  he  was  honored 
with  the  attention  of  the  distinguished  telegraphers  of  that  continent. 
His  Majesty,  Louis  Napoleon,  Emperor  of  the  French,  accorded  to  him 
full  honor,  and  directed  the  various  officials  to  oxpose  to  Mr.  Shaffner's 
inspection  and  information  whatever  he  desired  in  the  telegraphic 
service. 

The  officials  in  Belgium,  Holland^  Hanover,  Prussia,  Denmark,  Sweden, 


844  APPENDIX. 

Russia,  Austria,  and  the  German  States  generally,  and  other  parts  of  the 
continent,  accorded  to  him  due  honor  as  one  of  the  most  expert  tele- 
graphers of  the  age. 

Mr.  Shaffner  published  his  Telegraph  Tariff  Scale  in  1853,  and  in 
1854-'55  his  Telegraph  Companion,  2  vols.  octavo.  These  works  were 
the  most  extensive  ever  published  concerning  the  telegraph  in  America. 

"When  Mr.  Shaffner  entered  the  telegraphic  service  as  a  profession,  in 
1847,  he  abandoned  the  general  practice  of  law.  and  his  labors  in  that 
science,  since  then,  have  been  confined  to  such  cases  as  naturally  spring 
from  the  new  engagement.  Having  been  admitted  to  the  bars  of  the 
inferior  and  superior  courts  of  the  several  States,  Mr.  Shaffner  was  duly 
admitted  and  qualified  as  a  member  of  the  bar  of  the  Supreme  Court  of 
the  United  States,  in  1854,  on  motion  of  Mr.  Crittenden,  the  honorable 
Senator  from  Kentucky.  His  knowledge  of  legal  jurisprudence  and  its 
history,  gave  him  great  advantage  in  his  negotiations  at  the  different 
courts  of  Europe. 


INDEX. 


(FOR  TABLE  OF  CONTENTS,  SEE  PAGE  7.) 


PAGE. 

Administration  of  American  Telegraphs.  745 

French  768 

"  Russian  "  779 

"  Asiatic  "  799 

Agamemnon's  Telegraph  ..............     21 

Alarm  Telegraph,  Cooke's  .............   185 

Alexander's  Electric  Telegiaph  ..........  139 

Alphabet  of  Stoinheil's  Telegraph  .......  177 

"  Chappe  "          .......     34 

"  Bain's  "         .......  361 

"  the  English        "         .......   221 

Morse  Telegraph,  American.  469 
"  Morse     Telegraph,    Austro- 

Germanic  .......    .......  472 

Morse  Telegraph,  European.  474 

Morse  Telegraph,  Russian..  .  476 

Ampere's  Discoveries  ...................  115 

American  Wire,  Strength  of  ...........  521 

Telegraph  Insulation  ........   536 

"         Subterranean  Telegraphs  ______  587 

Apparatus   of  Chappe   Semaphore  Tele- 
graph ..............................     32 

Apparatus  of  Electrical  Telegraph  ......     62 

Apparatus   of  Steinheil's  Electric  Tele- 
graph ..........................    ....  159 

Apparatus   of    Cooke's    Electric    Tele- 
graph ............................  199,216 

Apparatus  of  Davy's  Electric  Telegraph.  255 


PAGB. 

I    Batchelder's  Insulator 545 

Battery,  Voltaic  Pile 81 

«                "        Chemical  and  Electri- 
cal action  of. 86 

"  «        Cruikshank's 88 

''                "        Wollaston's  Improve- 
ment in 90 

"        Daniell's 90 


Brett's  Printing 
Magnetic 
Highton's  Needle 
Bakewell's  Copying 
Nott's  Electric 
Siemens  &  Halskie's 
French  State  Electric 

"      Railway    " 

"       Bell 
Bain's  Chemical 
Froment's  Dial 
House's  Printing 
Morse's  Original 


273 
286 
295 
304 
310 
313 
325 
334 
346 
354 
373 
391 
404 
422 


"        Modern 
for  Repeating  .................  494 

"         "  Sounding  the  Ocean  _______  652 

Arago's  Discoveries  .*  .................  115 

Arbitrary  Signals  of  Morse's  Telegraph.  .  477 
Arrangement  of  English  Telegraph  Wires  234 
Asiatic  Telegraphs,  History  of  .........     799 

Attraction  and  Repulsion  ...............     67 

Atlantic  Telegraph  Company  ..........  622 

"      Telegraphs  Projected  ..........   655 

Austrian  Insulator  ...................   553 

Axial  Magnetism  .....................       130 

Bain's  Printing  Telegraph  ..............  269 

"      Chemical        "  .............  354 

Baltic  Sea  Telegraph  Cable  ............     616 

Balize  "  "  ............  617 

Bakewell's  Copying  Telegraph  ..........  304 


"        Bunson's ...     95 

(i  «        Grove's 96 

kk        Chester's      Improve- 
ment in   102 

"        of  the  Main  Line 487 

"  "        Stager  s  Arrangement 

of 492. 

Baker's,  Henry  N.,  Telegraph  Improve- 
ment   723 

Bavarian  Insulator 552 

Binding  Screws 442 

Biographical  Sketch  of  S.  F.B.  Morse.. .   803 
"  Amos  Kendall..  808 

"  «  J.  H.  Wa.le 831 

«  "          '  F.  0.  J.  Smith..  811 

'  "  Win.  M. Swain..  822 

"  "  John  J.  Speed..  829 

"  "  An-on  Stager..  837 

"  Levi  L.Sadler..  833 

«  W.  Tanner 825 

"  «  Tal.  P.  Shaffner.  840 

Bishop's  Submarine  Cables 603 

Black  Sea        "  "      618 

Blank  Forms  of  the  English  Telegraphs.  246 
"  American          u  467 

Boston  Fire  Alarm  Telegraph  Insulator.  545 
Bonnelli's  Report  on  Submarine  Electric 

Currents 50<S 

Brett's  Printing  Telegraph 27? 

Breguet's  Telegraph  Improvement 344 

"  "  Paratonnerre 578 

Bright's  Telegraph  Apparatus 292 

"       on  Return  Currents 503 

"       Insulator 535 

British  Subterranean  Telegraphs 589 

"      American  "         756 

Brackets  for  Insulators 542 

Brimstone  Insulator 539 

Bunsou's  Voltaic  Battery  95 

By-Laws  of  American  Telegraphs 750 

Cables,  American  Submarine 599 

"       European          k< 607 

Cagliari  Telegraph  Station . .  620 

Celerity  of  English  Telegraph  Signaling.  240 
"          Chappe  Semaphore        "  42 
Channing  &  Farmer's  Telegraph  Improve- 
ment   730 

Charter  form  of  American  Telegraphs.. .  749 
Charing  Cross  Telegraph  Station. . .  .233,  242 


846 


INDEX. 


PAGE. 

Chemical  Telegraph,  Davy's 255 

"  "         Smith  &  Bain's...  354 

"  "         Morse's  366 

"                   "         Rogers  &   West- 
brook's 370 

Chappe  Semaphore  Telegraph 27 

Chappe  Semaphore  Telegraph,  Adoption 

by  France 28 

Chappe  Semaphore  Telegraph,  first  Dis- 
patch of 28 

Chappe  Semaphore  Telegraph,  Appara- 
tus of 32 

Chappe  Semaphoi  e  Telegraph,  Alphabet 

of 34 

Chemical  Action  of  Voltaic  Battery 86 

Chester's  Battery  Improvement 102 

'         Cable  Manufactory 604 

Cincinnati  Telegraph  Station 458 

Circuits,  Electric 480 

"        of  Morse's  First  Telegraph 411 

"        Cooke  &  Wheatstone's 194 

"        Local,  Invented  by  Morse .•  418 

"        of  the  Morse  Telegraph  .480, 488,  497 

"        Stager's  Arrangement  of 492 

'"       Changers 436 

Clark's  Telegraph  Insulator 532 

Clay's,  Edward  C..  Telegraph  Improve- 
ment  733 

Clocks,  Regulation  of,  in  Russia  783 

Combining  of  Circuits 402,  411,  494 

Conductors  of  Electric  Currents 513 

Conduct  bility  of  Metals 513 

Conductibility  of  Earth  Circuit 162 

Conductors  of  Steinheil's  Telegraph 159 

Conductors  of  Static  Electricity 52 

Congressional  Report  on  Morse's  Tele- 
graph   413 

Cousti-uction  of  Experiment,  1844,  Ame- 
rica   413 

Comparative  Intensity  and  Quantity  of 

Batteries 104 

Coulomb's  Theories  of  Electro-statics. . .     56 
Companies,  American,  Organization  of..  748 
Coleman's,  Andrew,  Telegraph  Improve- 
ment   729 

Construction    of    American     Telegraph 

Lines 668 

Cooke.  William  Fothergill 179 

"      invents  the  English  Telegraph 179 

"      First  Apparatus 181 

"     Alarum  Apparatus 185 

"      Invents  a  Mechanical  Telegraph..  185 
Invents  an  Escapement  Apparatus.  188 
"     Invents  a  Second  Mechanical  Tele- 
graph   190 

"     becomes    Partner    with   Professor 

Wheatstone 193 

"     Recognized  as  the  Inventor  of  the 

English  Telegraph 194 

"     Improves  his  Telegraph 196 

"      Apparatuses  described 199 

"      Improvements  of  1838  207 

"      Improved  Mechanical  Telegraph..  213 

"      Present  English  System 216 

"      Cooke's  Insulator 529 

Copying  Telegraph,  Bakewell 304 

Corfu  Telegraph   620 

Crossing  of  River,  over  Masts,  in  Europe.  657 
"  "         "        "          America.  662 

Cruikshank's  Battery 88 

Currents,  Electric 496 

"       Intensity  and  Quantity  of 496 

Dalibard's  Experiments -. . .     58 

Danish  Subterranean  Telegraphs 587 

i:      Baltic  Sea  Cable 616 

Davy's  Electric  Telegraph  255 


PAGE. 

Daniel's  Voltaic  Battery 98 

De-la-Rive  Ring  explained 120 

Description  of  the  English  Telegraph...  216 
"  "      Morse  u        ....  422 

"  of  Electrical  Machines 62 

Delor's  Experiments 59 

Depth  of  the  Ocean 648 

Decrees  as  to  the  French  Telegraphs 769 

Divine  Telegraph 18 

Discovery  of  the  Leyden  Jar 53 

Distribution  of  Electricity 65r  501 

Discovery  of  Electro-Magnetism 114 

Discoveries  of  Steinheil 178 

Dispatch  Form?,  English  Telegraph 246 

"       American        ^l        467 

Digging  of  Telegraph  Holes 668 

Dial  Telegraph,  Germanic 313 

Donaghadie  Submarine  Cable 614 

Dover  and  Calais  Submarine  Cable C07 

"        "     Ostend  "  "       613 

Double  Needie  Telegraph  described 224 

Durability  of  Telegraph  Poles 681 

Earth  Circuit  Discovered 158 

'•          "       Conductibility  of 162 

Electrometers,  hovr  made 122 

for  Telegraphing   179 

':  of  English  Telegraphs...  216 

Electric  Circuit,  Conductors  513 

Electric  Currents,  Intensity  and  Quantity 

of 498 

"    Retardation  of 506 

"      "    Return  of 501 

Elbe  River  Crossing 659 

Electric  Time-Ball 741 

Electrical  Action  of  the  Battery 86 

Electro-Magnetism,  Discovery  of 114 

Electro-Magnetic  Laws 119 

Electro-Magnets,  how  made 120 

Elements  of  the  Ocean 653 

Electricity,  Origin  of 51 

"          Static 51 

«          Voltaic 77 

"          Negative  and  Positive. 55 

"          and  Lightning  Identical 56 

"          Distribution  of 65,  501 

Electrical  Machines  described 62 

Experiments  with  the  Leyden  Jar 70 

Electric  Telegraphs 132 

u  Alexander's 139 

"  Bain's  Printing 269 

"  "      Chemical    .   .  354 

Brett's  Printing 273 

"  BakewelUs  Copying.  304 

Baron  Schelling's.. .  135 

"  Bell  Apparatus 346 

'«  Cooke's 179 

Davy's  Chemical  ...  255 
English  ....  179,  216,  223 

French  State '  325 

"  Railway  ...  334 
Froment's  Writing  . .  373 
Galiss  and  Weber's  . .  137 

Henley's 289 

House  Printing 391 

Highton'a    £95 

"  Lomond's 132 

Magnetic.  English  . .  286 
Morse's  Chemical ...  366 
Morse'sElectro-Mag- 

netic 402 

Nott's    410 

Reisin's 133 

Ronalde's 147 

Salva's 135 

Smith  and  Bains . . .     354 
"  Seimens  and  Halskie's  313 


INDEX. 


847 


PAGB. 

Electric  Telegraph,  Soemmering's 142 

Steinheil's 157 

"  Westbrook  &  Rogers'  370 

Tail's  Printing 382 

"  Conductors  513 

Electro-Magnet  of  Morse  Telegraph,  1844  444 
"  "  Modern....  446 

"  "  Pocket  ....  450 

"  «  Sounder  451, 456 

English  Telegraph  Insulation 529 

"        and  Holland  Cable 614 

"        Telegraph  Wire,  Strength  of  ...  521 

"        Semaphore  Telegraph 47 

"        Telegraph  Poles 696 

"        Subterranean  Telegraphs 589 

"        Submarine 607 

Elevating  Wire  over  River  Crossings  660,  S65 

Elliott's  Flint  Insulator 549 

Employes,  Qualification  of,  American. .  .  761 

'•  French 773 

"  Hindostan..  801 

Erection  of  Telegraph  Poles 672 

Expeditions,  Atlantic  Telegraph 622 

European  Submarine  Telegraphs 607 

"         Morse  Alphabet  474 

Escape  of  Electric  Currents 497 

Example  of  Manipulation  of  Morse  Tele- 
graph    478 

Experimental  Line,  America,  constructed  417 
Escapement  Apparatus  of  Cooke's  Tele- 
graph    188 

Faraday  on  Return  Currents 501 

Fardley's  Paratonnerre 574 

Farmer's,  Moses  G.,  Telegraph  Improve- 
ment      721,724,730 

Failure  of  the  Atlantic  Telegraph 637 

Faber,  M.,  of  Danish  Telegraphs 114 

First  Dispatch  over  Morse's  Telegraph  . .  421 

Fog  conducting  the  Current 497 

Forms  of  English  Telegraph  Station 246 

"         American  "  "      467 

Franklin's  Electrical  Theories 54 

"         Kite  Experiments 60 

French  Electric  Telegraph 325 

"      Railway 334 

"      Electric  Telegraph  Bell 346 

"       Telegraph  Insulator 549 

"      Railway  Paratonnerre    579 

State  Telegraph 580 

"      Subterranean  Telegraphs  587 

Froment's  Telegraphs 373 

Flint  Glass  Insulator 547 

Galvani's  Discovery 77 

Galvanized  Wire  (see  zinc-coated) 516 

Gauss  and  Weber's  Electric  Telegraph  . .  137 

Gas,  Igniting  of,  with  the  Finger  69 

Germanic  Telegraph 313 

Gisborne's  Insulator 540 

Glass  Insulator 529 

Gonon'rt  Semaphore  Telegraph   48 

Gold  Leaf  Electrometer  Telegraph 295 

Grove's  Voltaic  Battery 96 

Gauge  of  Telegraph  Wire 522 

Gutta-  Percha  Insulation  ....    524 

Guyot's  Semaphore  Telegraph    49 

Hard  Rubber  Insulator 546 

Hague  Submarine  Cable 615 

Henry's  Electro-Magnet 117 

Henley's  Magnetic  Telegraph 289 

'•        Experiments  on  Atlantic  Tele- 
graph      641 

Highton's  Electric  Telegraph  2£ 

"         Insulator 533 

"         Paratonnerre 566 


PAGE. 

History  of  the  English  Telegraph 179 

Morse  402 

Hindostan  Subterranean  Telegraphs 595 

"         Telegraph  Poles 698 

House's  Printing  Telegraph    391 

"      Insulator 545 

Holland  Submarine  Cable t314 

"        Insulator  552 

Holyhead  Submarine  Cable 609 

Hughes',  David  E.,  Telegraph  Improve- 
ment    721 

Humaston,  John  P 737 

Ice  on  Telegraph  Wire 712 

Igniting  Gas  with  the  Finger 69 

Induction,  Resistance  to 24 

Induced  Magnetism 108 

Incidents  of  American  Telegraph  Station  462 

Injection  of  Telegraph  Poles 688 

Indians,  Telegraph  of 24 

Indian,  Execution  of  Respited  by  Tele- 
graph   464 

Iron  Insulator,  American 543 

Intensity  of  the  Electric  Current 498 

Interior  of  English  Telegraph  Station  . .  233 

"         Charing  Cross  "        233 

"         Tunbridge  "         ....  235 

"         Lothbury  "         ....  243 

"          American  "         458 

"         Cincinnati  "         ....  458 

"         Receiving  Department       ...  459 

"         Operating  461 

Insulation,  Gutta-Percha 524 

"          English  Telegraph  529 

"          American       "         536,679 

"          French  "         549 

"          Sardinian       "         551 

"          Bavarian        "         552 

"          Holland          ':        552 

"          Austrian         "         553 

"          Prussian         "         553 

"          Russian  "        554 

"          Hindostan      "         556 

"          Subterranean 4i        587 

Invention  of  Cooke's  Telegraph 178 

"  Morse's  "         402 

"  Steinheil's       "        178 

"  Combined  Circuits  by  Morse  411 

Intensity  Force  of  Batteries 104 

International  Tariff,  European 784 

Implements  for  building  Telegraph  Lines  669 
Improvements  in  Telegraph  Apparatuses  718 

"        Colemau's,  Andrew 729 

Channing  and  Farmer's 730 

Clay's,  Edward  C 733 

Baker's,  Henry  N 723 

Farmer's,  Moses  G.,  721,  724,  730,736 

Hughes,  David  E 721 

Humaston's.  John  P 737 

Kirchhoff's,  Charles 718 

Partridge's,  Albert  J 726 

Smith's,  John  E.. .'....  732 

Wesson's,  W.D 738 

Woodman  and  Farmer's 736 

Irish  Channel  Telegraph 612,  614 

Jar,  Leyden,  Discovery  of 53 

Joints  of  Telegraph  Wire 704 

Kendall,  Amos,  Agent  for  Morse 420 

Biographical  Sketch  of  .  808 
1   Kirchhoff,  Charles,  Telegraph  Improve- 
ment    718 

Laying  the  Atlantic  Cable 625,  634 

'•          Submarine  Cables,  American.  602 
<'  European.  610 


848 


INDEX. 


PAGE. 
Leaden-covered  Wire  ...............  587,  606 

Leyden  Jar,  Discovery  of  ...............  53 

"  Experiments  ..........     70 

Lever  Key  of  Morse  Telegraph.  .425,  432,  434 
Lightning  and  Electricity  identical  .....     56 

Lighting  Gas  with  the  Finger  ...........     69 

Lightning  striking  the  Telegraph  .......  572 

"         Arresters  ...  .................   564 

Load-Stone    .......................   105 

Lomond's  Telegraph  ...................   132 

Local  Circuit  invented  by  Morse  ........  418 

Lothbury  Telegraph  Station  ............  243 

Magnetism  ............................  105 

Magnets,  Permanent  ..................  105 

"        Electro-  ......................  120 

"        First  Electro-  ................  417 

"        Construction  of,  by  Morse,  1844.  444 

"  Modern  Electro-  446 

Magnetic  and  Voltaic  Electricity  ......  288 

Magneto-Electric  Telegraph  ........  163,  286 

Magnetism,  Generation  of  ..............  130 

"  Axial   ...................   130 

"  Induced  ...................  108 

"  Electro-  .................  114 

"  and  Electro-Magnetism    ...   129 

"  Magnetic  Needle  ...........  106 

"  Magnetometers 

Main  Line  Circuits  Described 
Main  Line  Batteries,  Adjustment  of 
Machine,  Electrical 
Manipulation  of  the  Chappe  Telegraph. 


125 
483 
487 
62 
38 
199 

216,233 
462,478 
..  354 
..325 
..  334 
..  373 
..  398 


Cooke 

"  English 

"  Morse 

"  Bain 

"  French  State 

"  "    Railway 

"  Froment's 

«  House 

Making  Submarine  Cables,  American  ----  602 

Malta  Telegraph  ........................  620 

Masts  for  Telegraph  Crossings  .........     657 

Maury  on  Ocean  Telegraphs,  ............  655 

Mechanical  Telegraphs,  Cooke's.185,  190,  213 
Wheatstone's  .  .  .  .  209 

Mediterranean  Telegraph,  Working  of...  508 
»  "          Cable  .........  618 

Metals,  conductibility  of  ................  513 

Message  Forms  of  English  Telegraph  ----  246 

tl  American        "         ........  467 

Meisner's  Paratonnerre  .................  575 

Mending  Subterranean  Telegraphs.       ...   597 

Morse,  Samuel  F.  B.,  Biographical  Sketch 
of  ..................................   803 

Morse  Telegraph  Alphabet,  American  —  469 
"    Austro-Germanic  472 
"    European  ........  474 

"    Russian  .........  476 

Circuits  ..............  480 

Electro-Magnetic....     402 

«  <:  Original  Model  of  .....  404 

«  «  Chemical  .............  366 

Native  Magnetism  .....................  105 

Needle,  Magnetic  ......................  106 

u        Telegraph,  described  ............  216 

Negative  Electricity  ..................  55 

Nelson's  Monument—  Electric  TimeBall.  741 

Newall  and  Co.'s  Submarine  Cables  ......  608 

Non-conductors  ot  Electricity  .........  52 

Nott's  Electric  Telegraph  ..........  -----  310 

Nottebohn's  Circuit  Changer  ...........  441 

"            Paratonnerre  ...............  577 

Ocean  Telegraphy  .....................  649 

(Ersted.  Discovery  of  Electro-Magnetism.  114r 


PAGE. 

Office  Regulations,  American 752 

Ohm's  Mathematical  Formulae 85 

Operating    Department,    English    Tele- 
graph  233,235 

Operating  Department.  Morse's 458 

O'Reilly's  Line,  Insulators 541,  678 

"          Contract  with  Morse 745 

Origination  of  Telegraph  Lines,  America  745 
Organization          "  Companies. . . .     748 

Orfordness  Cable ; 614 

Ostend  and  Dover  Cable 613 

O'Shaughnessy '&  Insulator 556 

Paratonnerres,  Telegraphic 564 

Breguet's 578 

"  "  French  State.  580 

"  "  "    Railway  579 

"  "  Fardley's....  574 

'•  "  Highton's....  564 

"  "  Meisner's....  575 

Nottebohn's.  577 

u  "  Reid's 567 

"  Smith's,  C.  T.  570 

Steinheil's...  573 

"  for  River  Crossings  571 

Patent  Franchises,  America 765 

"      Morse's  Administration  of 420 

Paying  out  Submarine  Cable  610 

Partridge's,  A.  J.,  Telegraphic  Improve- 
ment    726 

Penalty  for  refusing  Dispatches,  America  764 

Permanent  Magnets 106 

Pile,  Voltaic 79 

Positive  Electricity 55 


436 
407 
20 
614 
672 
681 
681 


Pole  Changer . 

Port  Rule  of  Morse's  Telegraph 

Polybius'  Telegraph 

Port  Patrick  Cable 

Poles,  Telegraph,  Erection  of 

"      '      Timber  for  

on  American  Lines.. 
"  "  "  Fiench          "      .. 

"            Injection  of 688 

"                            English 696 

»'              "           Hindostan  698 

Printing  Telegraph,  Bain's 269 

Brett's 273 

"                            Froment's 373 

S                            House's 391 

"             Vail's 382 

Prussian  Semaphore  Telegraph 46 

"        Subterranean     "          687 

"        Insulator 553 

Protection  to  Telegraphs 763 

Prince  Edward's  Island  Cable 616 

Quantity  Current  of  Electricity 497 

Qualification  of  Telegraph  Employes, 

American 761 

Qualification  of  Telegraph  Employes, 

French 773 

Qualification  of  Telegraph  Employes. 

Hindostan 801 

Railway  Telegraph,  French 334 

Resinous  Electricity  53 

Resistance  to  Induction 67 

Repulsion  and  Attraction 67 

Reizen's  Electric  Telegraph 133 

Receiving  Telegraph 170,  402 

Receiving  Department,   Lothbury    Sta- 
tion   243 

Receiving  Department.  Cincinnati 458 

"         by  Sound...' 462 

Regulations  on  )•  rench  Telegraphs 768 

American      ''           745 

Russian         >•               ...  777 


INDEX. 


849 


PAGE. 
Regulations  on  Hindostan  Telegraph...  799 

Repairing  bf  Telegraph  Lines  701 

Register,  Morse's  Telegraph.  1844 423 

"  Modern.  452-' 54 

Repeating  Arrangement 494 

"          of  Circuits 485 

Retardation  of  Electric   Currents,  Sub- 
marine      506 

Return  Currents,  Submarine 501 

Reid's  Paratonnerre 567 

Right  of  Way  for  the  Telegraph,  America  766 

River  Crossings,  America 599 

Ronald's  Electric  Telegraph 147 

"        Electrograph 158 

Rogers  and  Westbrook's  Chemical  Tele- 
graph     370 

Rubber,  Insulator 545 

Rusdan        "  554 

"       Subterranean  Telegraphs 587 

"        Government  "  777 

Sadler,  Levi  L.,  Biographical  Sketch  of. .  833 

Salva's  Electric  Telegraph 135 

Sardinian  Insulator 551 

Schelling's  Electric  Telegraph 135 

Screws  for  uniting  Wires 442 

Semaphore  Telegraph,  History  of 27 

Adoption  of,  in  France    78 
"  Extension  over  Europe    28 

"  German  Station,  1798.     29 

in  Russia 30 

Russian  Station 31 

Chappe's  System 32 

"  Alphabet 34 

«  Celerity  of. 42 

"  English  System 47 

"  Gonon's  System 48 

"  Guyot's        "        49 

Second  Circuit,  English 194 

"  «        American  411 

Seimens  and  Halskie's  Telegraph 313 

•'          Insulator 554 

See-see-sah-ma,  Execution  of,  respited...  464 

Signal,  Arbitrary,  Morse  Telegraph 477 

Signalling  by  English  Telegraph 240 

Single  Needle  Telegraph 216 

Shaffner's  Submarine  Cable 600 

"        Biographical  Sketch  of 840 

Shooter's  Hill  Experiment 488 

Sleet  on  Telegraph  Wires 712 

Smith,  F.  0.  J.,  engages  in  Morse's  Tele- 
Smith,  F.  6.  J.,  Biographical  Sketch  of  '.  811 

"        Report  in  Congress 413 

Smith's,  C.  T..  Paratonnerre 570 

Smith  and  Bain's  Telegraph 354 

Smith's,  John  E.,  Telegraph  Improve- 
ment   732 

Smee's  Voltaic  Battery 93 

Soemmering's  Telegraph 142 

Apparatus  and  Manipula- 
tion..   143 

Sounders  for  Morse's  Telegraph 455-6 

Sound,  Receiving  by   462 

Sounding  the  Ocean 649 

Specimen  of  Writing  by  Telegraph 409 

Speed,  jun..  John  J.,  Biographical  Sketch 

of .' 829 

Speed,  jun.,  John  J.,  combined  Circuits..  499 

Insulator 541 

Spurs,  Telegraph  Repairing ...    709 

Splicing  Telegraph  Wire  704,  709 

"        Subterranean  Wires : 597 

Static  Electricity 51 

Stager,  Anson,  Biographical  Sketch  of.. .  837 

"        Circuit  Arrangement 492 

"        Application  of  Battery  492 


54 


PAGE. 

Stations,  Interior  of 233-5,  243,  458 

Steinheil's  Telegraph  Described 147 

"          Conductors  of....  159 
Discoveries  and  Inventions. .   178 

"          Paratonnerre 573 

Strength  of  Telegraph  Wire 519 

Sturgeon's  Electro-magnet  117 

Submarine  Telegraphs,  American 599 

European 607 

Submerging  of  Telegraph  Cables,America  602 
"  European  610 

Submarine  Telegraph  Cables , . ., .  607 

"  Atlantic 623 

"  "  "  Balize 617 

"  Black  Sea 618 

M  "  "  Dover  &  Calais  608 

"  "  u  Danish    Baltic 

Sea 616 

'•  "  tt  Dover,  and  Os- 

tend 613 

"  "  "  England    and 

Holland....  614 

"  "  Holyhead 609 

«                   "             "  Irish    Chan- 
nel  612,614 

"  Mediterranean  618 
"  Portpatrick...  614 
"  "  Prince  Edward's 

Island.  .     .   616 
"  "    ZuyderZee...  617 

Subterranean  Telegraphs 587 

Swedish  Wire,  Strength  of. 521 

Schweigger's  Multiplier 115 

Swain,  Wm.  M.,  Biographical  Sketch  of    822 

Swain's  Insulator 537 

"      Improvement  of  Battery  Tumbler  101 

Tariff  of  Charges,  American 758 

"  "         French 770 

«  "         Russian 782 

"  "         International 784 

Tanner,  Wm.,  Biographical  Sketch  of. . .  825 

Telegraph,  The 17 

"          Derivation  of.   17 

"          Applied  Meaning  of. 17 

"          Early  History  of 17 

'•          Divine 18 

"         of  the  Classics 19 

"          Polybius' 20 

"          Agamemnon's 21 

"          American  Aboriginal  24 

"         Revolutionary.   ..     26 

"  '      Semaphoric     27 

"         Atlantic,  Projected 655 

"        Company 622 

"          American    Electro-magnetic  402 

"          Alexander's 139 

"          Bain's  Printing 269 

"      Chemical 354 

"          Baron  Schelling's 135 

Bakewell's  Copying 304 

Brett's  Printing 273 

Bell  Apparatus.   ..   .    346 

Circuits  of  Morse 480 

Conductors 513 

Cooke's  Electrometer '..  179 

Companies,  Origin  of 748 

Davy's  Electric 255 

Early  Electric 132 

English  Electrometer 216 

"        Stations 233 

Electrometers,  how  made 122 

French  State 325 

"        Railway •  334 

Froment's 373 

Gauss  and  Weber's 137 

Henly's  Magnetic 289 


850 


INDEX. 


PAGK. 

Telegraph,  HigMon's  Electric 295 

"          House's  Printing 391 

"          Insulation 529 

Improved  Apparatus  of 718 

Lomond's 132 

Morse's,  Invented 402 

"        Chemical 366 

Magneto-electric 286 

Magnets,  How  Made 120 

Nott's  Electric 310 

Poles 672 

Beizen's 133 

Ronald's 147 

Eiver  Crossings  on  Masts 657 

Salva's 135 

Subterranean    587 

Seimens  and  Halskie's 313 

Smith  and  Bain's 354 

Soemmering's 142 

Submarine,  American 599 

European 607 

Type,  Morse's . .    404 

At  Siege  of  Tray.. 21 

Truetler's,  Somaphoric 50 

Tunbridge  Station 335 

Wire  Joints 704 

"         Wires,  Strength  of. 519 

«      Conductibility  of . '....  515 

"      Suspension  of. 677 

«         Wheatstone's 209 

"          Westbrook  and  Rogers' 307 

Telegraphing  by  Sound 467,  839 

Tightening  Wires ,...  559 

Time  Ball,  Electric 741 

Timber  for  Poles 681 

Trees  falling  on  the  Telegraph 679,  710 

Tail's,  Alfred,  Experiments  of 488 

"     Printing  Telegraph 382 

Varley'a,  C.  F.,  Experiments  on  Atlantic 
CaW»...  ..637 


PAGB. 

Variation  of  Magnetic  Needle 106 

Velocity    of    Electric    Currents,    Sub- 
aqueous  503-7-12 

Vitreous  Electricity , 53 

Voltaic  Electricity 77 

"        Currents  explained 496 

"        Quantity  and  Intensity  of 498 

"        Circuits,  Composed  of 517 

"        Pile 79 

"        and  Magnetic  Electricity 288 


Wade,  Telegraph  Insulator 

"     J.  H.,  Biographical  Sketch  of. 

"      Submarine  Cable 

Walker's,  Charles  V.,  Insulator 

Washburn  and  Co.'s  Telegraph  Wire ... 

Watson's  Experiments 

Westbrook  and  Rogers'  Chemical  Tele- 
Weber  and  Gauss'  Telegraph 

Wesson's,  W.  D.,  Telegraph  Improvement 

Wire  Joints,  Telegraphic 

"    Suspension  of 

"    Conductibility  of 

"    Strength  of 

Wheatstone's  Mechanical  Telegraph .... 

and  Cook,  partners 

Permutating  Key-board.. . 

Working  of  Atlantic  Cable 

Wollaston's  Improvement  on  Batteries.. 

Woodman  and  Farmer's  Telegraph  Im- 
provement  

Wooden  Shield  Insulator 

Writing  Telegraph,  Morse's 

«  «  Froment's... 


548 


532 
519 


370 
137 
738 
704 
677 
515 
519 


192 
635 


736 
548 
409 
373 


Yandell's  Telegraph  Insulator 543 

Zinc-coated  Telegraph  Wires .  519 

Zuyder  Zee  Cable t.  617 


RETURN  TO  the  circulation  desk  of  any 

University  of  California  Library 

or  to  the 

NORTHERN  REGIONAL  LIBRARY  FACILITY 
Bldg.  400,  Richmond  Field  Station 
University  of  California 
Richmond,  CA  94804-4698 

ALL  BOOKS  MAY  BE  RECALLED  AFTER  7  DAYS 
2 -month  loans  may  be  renewed  by  calling 

(510)642-6753 
1-year  loans  may  be  recharged  by  bringing  books 

to  NRLF 
Renewals    and    recharges    may    be    made    4    days 

prior  to  due  date 

DUE  AS  STAMPED  BELOW 


APR  2  9  1995 


JUL  2  7  1994 


20,000  (4/94) 


VC   1 954 


BERKELEY  LIBRARIES 


JNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 


